Following your article in the Tele on April 24 with a photograph of two young men in a pet shop, I can confirm that the shop was actually mine.
The Dog Food Shop was first opened in 1928 by my grandfather, Walter Croal (1902-1997) who remained working in the shop and horse riding until he was in his 90s.
My dad, Fraser Croal, took over running the shop in the 1960s, with my grandad continuing to work there.
Fraser also worked in the shop with my mum, Jacqui, who married Fraser in 1986. This was after the death of his first wife several years earlier.
I eventually took over running the shop in the 1990s.
I sold it in 2008 as I was to be moving away, however that eventually didn’t happen.
Unfortunately the new owners didn’t make it work and it closed down.
My great grandfather, James Croal, was a tea importer and grocer back in the late 1800s with a shop in the Greenmarket area.
His shop can be seen in many of the old Greenmarket photos.
The Dog Food Shop had a few locations with it finally settling at 37 Dock Street in the 1960s.
The shop is now the office of Joe FitzPatrick MSP, who is the Member of the Scottish Parliament for Dundee City West. It’s amazing how things change. The two guys in the photo are Paul McLean and Ewen Low, two excellent members of staff who were with us for many years.
Mike Strachan.
The photo in the paper the other night of two guys in a pet shop – the bloke on the right holding the chinchilla is my husband, Ewen Low, although often confused for Jim Carey!
Gilly Low.
