Their knowledge and love for animals is REMARKABLE. Everyone from The manager Megan to all the employees demonstrate exceptional service and dedication to their job. It reflects incredibly on a brand when everyone is excited to working together in providing exceptional care and service for their animals. I'm always amazed by how much this staff really devotes themselves to these animals and their work Excellent job everybody at Exotic Pets read more

My experience with NJ Exotic Pets was very bittersweet. I purchased my beloved hedgehog Hazelnut from them, and she was the friendliest, cuddliest, smartest, chillest little girl ever. Our bond was truly special, and I will always be grateful that they brought her into my life. That said, I do have concerns about the health of the hedgehogs they sell. Hazelnut came home with rhinitis and severe diarrhea and needed antibiotics. I even asked if her completely liquid stool was normal (since I was such a newbie to hedgies and had no idea what was and wasn't normal) and was told "yes" by the store; which was very clearly not true... lol. Later in life, she developed a devastating neurological disease that eventually left her paralyzed and requiring around-the-clock care. I would do it all again for her without hesitation, but my experience truly taught me how important responsible breeding and lineage tracking are. Neurological diseases such as Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome have a suspected hereditary component. Because captive pet populations stem from limited bloodlines and can involve frequent inbreeding, a heritable predisposition remains a plausible explanation, especially since WHS has not been documented in wild African pygmy hedgehogs. For anyone considering a hedgehog, I would personally recommend going through a reputable breeder who can provide documented lineage, health records, and information showing the line is free of known neurological disease. These animals deserve to be bred responsibly, with their health and well-being coming before profit. No hedgehog should have to suffer because proper breeding practices and genetic health weren't prioritized. read more

See all

I am beyond disgusted by what I witnessed here. This store should not be selling animals. I saw multiple animals without food or water, filthy cages that clearly had not been cleaned, and even half dead animals left inside enclosures with living animals. It was absolutely heartbreaking and completely unacceptable. I also personally know of animals purchased from this store that became seriously ill shortly after going home. Based on what I have seen and experienced, I would never trust this business with the health or welfare of any animal. Their supplies are also significantly overpriced, so there is no reason to support this business. Please do yourself and the animals a favor, adopt from a rescue or buy from a truly reputable, ethical source instead. Every dollar spent here supports the continued mistreatment of animals. I will never shop here again and strongly encourage others to stay away. read more

Sold me a sick cockatiel that ended up passing away at 5 months old, only had him for 2 months and had $1500 in animal hospital bills. When I called to let them know what happened they offered to replace the bird. Disgusting read more

Normally, I loved going to the old NJ Exotic Pets. I had nicely and graciously asked the girl working in the store if I was able to hold one of the bunnies because I saw somebody else doing it. She didn't even look at me, and she said no unless we were interested in buying it. The people that were touching the bunnies before us walked out of the store empty handed. I was very nice, and yet I don't know what I had said to make this girl not let me, but someone else. read more

PROS: This place reminded me of the rainforest cafe. Loads of animals, jungle atmosphere, staff was nice, and prices were reasonable CONS: I expected more from an exotic pet store; monkeys, toucans and other exotic birds, foxes, raccoons, turkeys, etc but the only exotic thing I saw was an iguana. OVERALL: As a normal pet store I think this is better than petco, but if you're looking for some crazy animals to own this place won't have them read more

Nice variety of animals but they sold me a sick snake that passed 1 week after purchase. I called to let them know what happened and they just said I should have taken it to the vet. read more

The only exotic pet store I will trust. Extremely informative and kind as soon as I walked in. I literally drove an hour to get here and I didn't want to leave!! I bought so much, left extremely satisfied! read more

I recently I came to this store to buy a jumping spider. I've been super excited as this is new for me and I've been getting the terrarium ready for 2 days or so. I will note that I came to the shop on a weekend. It was extremelyyyyyyy busy! Along with that unfortunately the jumping spiders/mantis's/isopods are all in this tiny alcove near the register. To look at the selection was impossible because it was so busy the workers were running back and forth from the register and another family was also trying to look at some items in that area. I was never able to talk to any employees and was just made to feel I was in the way. I did not buy my spider here and I'm so glad! The size spider I wanted would have been $65 without tax, they really only had one large one, and again it was overwhelmingly uncomfortable in there. I ended up going to exotics n equatics in Bayonne and found the CUTEST regal jumping spider at the same size I wanted at this store for only $39 before tax!! She is super cute and I'm so glad I wasn't impatient and just settled with what was at nj exotic pets. I do want to say I understand how busy the workers were. It was insane in there and I don't know if they could have helped me any better. The area where they keep the jumping spiders should be relocated because it's literally terrible. If they had a spider I liked I still don't think I would have purchased. After reading other reviews on yelp I am also happy I did not purchase due to the question of ethics and moral of this store. I have been here when I was young and they were still in Lodi and I don't think they were as greedy at that time. read more

DO NOT BUY ANIMALS FROM HERE ** THEY SELL SICK ANIMALS we spent 250 for a skinny guinea pig and it passed away a year and half later from a series of health related issues. Our guinea saw the vet regularly for all her skin issues, bumble feet, and digestive issues. we took amazing care of her and were heartbroken when she died in my daughters arms. The exotic vet said it could be a result of INBREEDING!!!!! This shop does not care for its animals and seriously should be inspected. RIP Ralphie read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

Staff is very knowledgeable very friendly and they have a wide variety of pet supplies and everything you need for your exotic pet

Great selection of reptiles, interesting mammals if that's your thing. Not a huge invertebrate selection, was told by a worker that they just aren't big sellers so they don't get a lot (completely understandable!). Store was clean and bright, pricing was a little weird on some things (if something was marked with a price that included the habitat, there wasn't always an option to get it without). A lot of the reptile supplies didn't have prices marked. Most of the in store habitats were clean, some of the mammal enclosures could've used some attention but nothing overwhelmingly bad. I did love that a lot of the specialty animals had specific "checklists" of items needed in order to purchase! A lot of people impulse buy animals and I feel like that's awesome to make sure they're going to good homes. Overall a great place to check out, would definitely make the trip back! read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Chinchilla - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

Love this place! We drive about 40 mins to their place. It gives me such zoo vibes, a ton of animals. Compared to other pet stores the maintenance looks better.. seems like the keepers actually care about the animals. These two geckos are ones I got from them Loki I got last year and Thor I got this year. Tons of isopods and items for bioactive. I also have isopods that I got from here and are doing good. read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Loki - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

We've gotten 3 separate ferrets from them, 6 years apart, 2 different store locations. Great owners, great pet care, great everything.

i visited nj exotic pets recently and was really disappointed by how the hamsters were being kept. there were around six syrian hamsters in one small cage, which is extremely unsafe since they're solitary animals. while i was there, i saw the smallest hamster almost get caught and seriously injured in the wheel because two larger ones were running together. it was really upsetting to watch. i hope the store reconsiders how they house their animals and gives them proper space and read more

Stopped in here with my boyfriend to grab some food for his iguana. Gotta say, at first I was freaked out haha. There's a ton of different animals here, a lot of which I did not know could be pets! It's a small store with a small parking lot but easy to maneuver. The workers were very friendly and were ready to answer any questions. We got some worms for the pet iguana and walked around to take a look and some of the interesting pets they had. One that really popped out to me was the skunks! I had no clue you could own a skunk as a pet and they were actually adorable! I'd definitely suggest coming here if you're in the market for a different type of pet. They seem very knowledgeable and friendly. I'd give it a chance because it really seems like they care about the animals here, minus the negative reviews. read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

Meh, called to ask about specific feeders for my spiders which they said they had. Drove 30 mins and surprise, they didn't have what I needed in stock. It was crowded, kids literally running around inside as if they were in the zoo and staff didn't say a word. Went to look at jumping spiders and they only had about 2 sad looking ones in dirty enclosures near the register. I picked out something I needed and went to pay. As the cashier is about to ring me up a lady walks in with her ferrets needing their nails clipped and ears cleaned and she literally stopped helping me to tend to her and her pets. I watched her work on these ferrets and she totally ignored me until a different cashier approached the register to ring someone else up and I had to jump in and ask if they could ring me up too. Place seems unorganized and chaotic on the weekends. Save yourself the trip. read more

I purchased a bunny and it died 1 month to the day of purchased. All I was told was we can give you a discount on another one and asked me questions as if it was our fault the bunny passed. We had a bunny for 10 years at this time. One thing we know is how to take care of them. We purchased one from a breeder instead. Our snowball just turned 2. Shame on this store and the manager. Will never do business with them ever. Poor customer service. For the $500 I spent they should have just given me another bunny. read more

DO NOT SHOP HERE!! I bought a lip ear bunny from them. At the time of purchase she had some marks on her head and ears. They assured me these were from getting bit by her litter mates. Well it turns out she has FLEAS AND she was being eaten alive by them!!! She needed to go to the vet and be treated. My home needed to be treated. And the expenses have gone on and one. I reached out the the pet store and spoke with Stefanie who told me she was the owner and claimed she checks every single animal and would never sell a sick animal. Well she did. And not only that but I have since read all of the NEGATIVE reviews on this shop along with the change.org petition with 44k signatures to shut them down. This is a very unethical shop and something needs to be done. read more

On April 6th in the evening, my son walking through James J Braddock Hudson County Park found a cardboard box with two abandoned Guinea Pigs inside with a water bottle & on box said FREE! The temperature was dropping & about to rain, so my son took them home, but our four rescued cats would be threatening. I was so thankful to Meghan at NJ Exotic Pets who was the only person I found willing to rescue these abandoned Guinea Pigs! Bergen County Animal Shelter receives funding but being one block out of Bergen County they said, "No" and other local Shelter's only take dogs & cats. So a great big THANK YOU, to NJ EXOTIC PETS for their great humanitarian commitment to rescuing these abandoned precious Guinea Pigs! Meghan said that they look very healthy, even fat & they were very clean, friendly & looked to be about 3 years old. Easy to pick up. Hopefully a home in need of these lovely little cuddly God's blessings may go to NJ EXOTIC PETS to rescue into a loving home. They eat a special Timothy Grass or Meadow Hay, love Romaine Lettuce & make the cutest little sound & slept quietly through the two nights we fostered them. What a blessing at Easter was NJ Exotic Pets of 143 Broadway, Elmwood Park NJ 973-396-8897 who accepted these precious little Guinea Pigs who were abandoned in a box that the rain & cold would have been open to attack by prey birds or could have frozen. Thank you again so very very much Meghan & NJ Exotic Pets who are so very kind hearted & generous to continue the car of these little God's creatures! If anyone wants to bless these little ones, please visit NJ Exotic Pets and find these sweet Guinea Pigs. Easter Blessings! Cynthia read more

I had a terrible experience with Exotic Pets. They came to my home for a party and caused severe damage to my property during the service. The owner, Joe Aversa, initially promised to fix the issue but later completely backtracked. When I asked Joe for their insurance carrier and info to handle the property damage, Joe refused to provide any details. Instead of resolving the issue, he blocked my number and stopped responding. This is a very shady and untrustworthy business, and possibly an uninsured one. I would strongly recommend avoiding Exotic Pets at all costs unless you want to deal with dishonesty, poor customer service and the possibility of an uninsured business. read more

Big potential, even bigger disappointment. Staff is rude and ignore the customers. Animals, especially the reptiles are in bad shape and poorly cared for. Feeders are full of parasites. 1 star is too many. Sad read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

This place is absolutely phenomenal! When you walk in the first thing you see is tuna the aquatic turtle and a big squawking bird. The diversity in animals insane, everything from skinks and pigs to very exotic birds and any reptile you could think of. The store is always clean and organized. They have a feeder container recycling program and a huge feeders closet. There are always bioactive supplies. Every animal we've gotten here is in great shape and doing well. The staff is great and welcoming and knows their regular customers well. We drive out often from Brooklyn and it's always worth the trip! read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Giant day gecko - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

PLEASE READ ITS LONG BUT IMPORTANT: I am contemplating why I ever trusted this pet store as I write this review.... on 07/13 my husband and I purchased a baby blotched king snake and a n 8-12 week old regular haired guinea pig (not sure why they don't keep track of the age but ok). Both of us did tons of research on these pets for a long time before purchasing them. BEFORE PURCHASING, I noticed the guinea pig had eye crust. I asked them if he was okay and they said yes he probably poked himself in the eye with hay or was a little too rough with the other GPS. I said okay... continued on and purchased over $350 worth of pets and supplies for them. Within 5 days the snake had mites ALL OVER HIM, which were 100% NOT introduced by anyone/anything in our household. We've made sure we were as sanitary as possible with everything regarding both pets. So I call and tell them the issue they say soak him in dawn soap he'll be fine and rush me off the phone... after doing extensive research on mites, the only chance of him getting them that soon after purchase is that he already had them from the store. That's been taken care of, thankfully and with no thanks to them. Anyway, my main issue is with the guinea pig who had eye crust from the day of purchase. They assured me he was fine and sold me over $200 worth of stuff and sent me on my way. I was trying to clear his eyes gently but a few days go by with no improvement and towards the 10th day got worse and some sneezing started. I brought him back there on 07/23 and said you guys sold me two sick pets. Help me fix my guinea pig.. They gave 110 excuses "he poked himself in the eye" "his nose might be sensitive to strong smells" they brought him in the back for under 2 minutes came out with him and a carrot and said he's fine. I said ok but I'm suspicious because the snake I bought on the same day immediately had mites "oh I'm sorry, have a nice day" After doing research AGAIN with how to properly treat this at home I got OTC eye drops and cleaned him. Eye got better and sneezing got worse. So yesterday 7/28 I brought him to a vet. He has a PNEUMONIA and is closer to 12 weeks old. They said it looks like he's never seen a vet before, like ever..... I was told it was good i brought him in when I did otherwise it could've worsened to death and he's now on an antibiotic. I was sold 2 sick pets and given the run around with both of them. I've read reviews and saw some people had the same issue and the employees address it with "after you leave the store the pet is your responsibility" or something along those lines. I ASKED BEFORE I LEFT THIS NASTY STORE AND WAS LIED TO AND RUSHED INTO PURCHASING SICK ANIMALS. You better believe I'm reporting this place. So unethical. read more

If you are are looking for an exotic pet such as a pig, chinchilla, snakes, rabbits, etc you are definitely at the right place for it. Walked in to be greeted by a well informed staff who understands and cares for these animals that needs a loving home. It was also a nice surprise to find out that this establishment is not just an exotic pet seller but, also rescues and places pets in permanent homes. Has a private parking lot attached to the strip mall and location is fairly easy to find. read more

i got my blue iguana here. Everyone was very helpful and answered so many questions. They'll do that no matter if you are buying or not. Now the store moved to a new place and I just visited--it's bigger now and lots of space for the pets there. It's very lovely and I enjoy stop by once in a while. 5 stars! read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

These guys are super helpful and knowledgeable. I got a leopard gecko and I'm soooo in love with him! He's super healthy and well taken care of. Thanks for Casper! read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Casper (don't ask) - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

I'm always rescued snakes from them because there snakes aren't maintained correctly. I have a red tail boa that I got from them that has a prolapse problem and they said we can't help you even tho I seen it once I walked out the store. Terrible service and terrible prices! read more

This place is better than the zoo. Wow! They've got something for everyone and can easily meet all your pet needs. Great place.

I just left this place. I've been a regular at this place since i bought their first liter of pigs. Now, when i first bought otis (my pot belly pig) i did my research so i knew what i was getting myself into. But they continued to tell me a FULL GROWN PIG WILL GET TO ABOUT 25-30lbs. No. Not true!!! A full sized mini pig grows from 75-300lbs. A mini pig is based on their HEIGHT. NOT WEIGHT. Now, tonight i went back for the first time in years to see if this place has educated themselves and tell the truth about pigs before people buy them and give them up because people are too lazy to research for some reason. Now, i asked one of the bigger and unfriendly guys if i could hold a pig and he asked immediately if I'm going to buy one - he was Very rude. He couldn't even tell me the sex of the animal and he told me the pig will grow 50-75lbs. NOT TRUE. I immediately told him my pig is 90lbs and he's 3. And he got so defensive. Because his pig is 25lbs at 5 months but the pig is going to be double the weight in another 5 months. Exotic pets : PLEASE KNOW YOUR INFORMATION. STOP GIVING FALSE ADVICE, SELL PEOPLE HEALTHY PIGS DONT TELL PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANNA HEAR SO THEY BUY A "mini" AND GIVE IT UP. And fire that guy, you need nicer and more educated staff. Cool. Picture of Otis: 3 years old. 90lbs. Size of a medium dog. read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

See all

Great facility! The staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. I've adopted pets from here a few times and was always impressed by the staff.

I got a bunny here a week ago, within few days he has diarrhea, larthargic, and not eating. Took him to the animal hospital where they said he has a parasite contracted from the store. When I called the store the women was rude, and made me feel at fault for handling my rabbit and taking him out his cage. Different employees also gave me different incorrect information regarding my rabbit. I am extremely upset with this experience. $561 NJ exotic needs to be accountable and pay the medical expenses. read more

All the staff only care about there paychecks and people that actually love animals and want to work there are rejected. RJ says he's always busy and never returns any calls for almost over a month. All the employees are always sick so be careful for that. I just wouldn't recommend this place all the animals are over priced as well. $200 for a Pac-Man frog where u can get the same frog at petco for $20 read more

Felt like i walked into a zoo. So many awesome animals and they're all for buy. It's a fantastic!

This is why retail stores are going out if business and people are buying online. You drive to the store, look around, and the employees ignore you. It's not busy; there are plenty of people hiding in the back socializing. You finally get someone's attention, tell them what you want, point it out, then they disappear and they leave you standing there like an imbecile for ten minutes. I have spent a few thousand dollars at NJ exotic over the years. My recent visit is not the first time I was ignored. But it will be the last. There are many online exotic pet dealers, who are more helpful, knowledgeable, reasonably priced, and they allow the customer to maintain his human dignity. So long, NJExotics. read more

What an amazing pet store, from the moment you walk in it feels like you entered a jungle. Massive array of animals and merchandise. I went in only looking around but soon fell in love with a white bellied caique. The gentleman that helped me that day was very knowledgeable and really cared about the babies in his care. While I didn't leave that day with my baby I returned the very next day and Tiffany helped me make my final decision. The staff is amazing you won't be disappointed. read more

See all

I bought a baby bunny a week ago today. It had parasites. I had to euthanize her. Almost $600 later, they tell me they don't do refunds. I am making it my mission to shut this horrible place down. They display examples of animal cruelty and neglect their animals. They cram too many animals into small cages and sell sick baby animals. read more

NJ Exotic Pets - Sick baby rabbit sold to me - Pet Stores Near Me - Elmwood Park, New Jersey

This place is absolutely amazing they did such a good job restoring his old place and moving it. I'd highly recommend coming here status as friendly as the first floor prices are obviously expensive because the animals are extremely exotic but they do a great job of doing all this.. read more

This store is wonderful. From the selection of animals to the staff. I absolutely hate corporate pet stores because they mishandle animals. At least the no exotics the manager knows what she is doing and I always see the staff caring for and cleaning the animals. My most recent purchase was a crested geckos and I love this little guy. I got all the information I needed. They also took in my pet mice I used to have and they fostered them until they were able to find a home because I wasn't able to handle them. I always go here when I am looking for advice or just have a few minutes to kill to check out the new animal selections they have. read more

Sold me a rosebreasted cockatoo with bornavirus, parrot cannot use either of its legs, constantly needs injections. Many vet trips