All free tools Talk to a specialist
Free tool for pet stores

High-Risk Merchant Account Readiness Checklist for Pet Stores

Most pet stores are underwritten as everyday retail. Live animal sales, supplement lines, auto-ship programs, deposits, or a frozen account can still put yours in front of a high-risk underwriter. Use this checklist to see what your pet store has ready and what to gather first.

Your business

Pick the closest match. This changes which items are ranked first and what product or service documentation you'll need.
How long the business has been operating, not how long you have been processing cards.
Total card sales in a typical month. If you haven't processed cards yet, enter your expected volume.
Number of card sales in the same month you use for disputes. Used for your dispute ratio and average ticket.
Disputes received in that same month. Enter 0 if none, or your best estimate if this is your first account.
This changes which documents apply and what your next step should be.
What you already have

Tick only what is ready today. Leave it unticked if it exists but is out of date or hard to find.

Monthly statements showing volume, refunds, and disputes. Not applicable if this is your first account.
Statements for the business account where card deposits will land.
Articles of incorporation or organization, EIN confirmation letter, and any business license that applies.
A page customers can find that explains how and when they get money back.
Explains how to cancel a service, booking, subscription, or membership.
Explains what customer data you collect and how you use it.
The name that appears on a customer's card statement matches the brand they bought from.
Easy to find, ideally in the header or footer and on checkout or booking pages.
Industry-specific proof of what you sell, such as product labels, licenses, or sample contracts. See the explanation in your results.

Your readiness results

Choose your industry and situation, tick what you have, and enter your numbers to see what is missing.

How this works: the rules behind your results

Every rule this checklist uses is a TouchSuite tool assumption, listed here so you can see exactly how your score and ranking are produced. None of them measure approval likelihood, and no pricing assumptions are used.

Ranking by industry

Why a pet store ends up on a high-risk application

A shop selling food, toys, and leashes at the register usually looks like standard retail to an underwriter. The extra review tends to come from specific parts of the business. Common triggers include selling live animals, taking deposits on animals or grooming packages, carrying supplements or calming chews with health-related claims, running an auto-ship food subscription online, fast growth in card-not-present orders, or a previous processor freezing or closing the account.

Each trigger raises a different question. Live animals and deposits lead underwriters to ask what happens if the sale falls through. Supplements lead them to ask what you claim the product does. Auto-ship leads them to ask how a customer stops the charge. A frozen account leads them to ask what went wrong. This checklist helps you answer those questions on paper before the underwriter asks.

If no processor has flagged your store as high risk, you may not need a high-risk account at all. A payments specialist can tell you which kind of review your actual product mix is likely to need.

Which industry to choose, and what product documentation means for pet stores

The tool's industry list is built for common high-risk categories. Most pet stores should choose 'Other'. Under 'Other', product documentation is a 'Finish before you apply' item, and it can mean product sheets, sample invoices, grooming service agreements, or any licenses that apply to your location.

If supplements, chews, or wellness products make up a meaningful share of your sales, especially online, choose 'Nutraceuticals'. Product documentation then moves to 'Gather first', because underwriters typically want labels, ingredient lists, supplier details, and support for any claims on your site, such as 'reduces anxiety' or 'supports joint health.'

If you sell live animals, gather your sale agreement, any health guarantee you offer, your deposit and refund terms for reservations, and any permits or registrations that apply to you. Rules for selling animals vary by location, so confirm what applies to your store locally rather than assuming.

Pet store numbers: a hypothetical worked example

Here is a hypothetical store. Every number below is invented for illustration. It runs about $60,000 a month in card volume across 1,500 card transactions and has 6 disputes a month. It is switching processors and has 6 of 9 checklist items in place. It is missing a cancellation policy for its auto-ship program, a recognizable billing descriptor, and product documentation.

The tool would show 6 of 9 items in place (67%), which falls in the 'Partially ready' stage. The average ticket would be $40.00 and the same-month dispute ratio 0.40%. With 'Other' selected, the missing items are sorted like this. Cancellation policy is listed under 'Fix next'. Product documentation, then billing descriptor, are listed under 'Finish before you apply'. If the same store chose 'Nutraceuticals' because of a large supplement line, product documentation would move to the top under 'Gather first'.

Pet store averages can shift a lot by season. Holiday gift buying, spring and summer flea-and-tick restocking, and adoption events can change both ticket size and transaction count. A large bulk food order or a live animal sale can also push one month's average well above your usual register sale. Use typical months when you enter numbers, and be ready to explain spikes that show up on your statements.

Estimates are based on published industry averages and are not a quote. Actual rates depend on card mix, ticket size, industry, and underwriting.

Pet store policies and statement details underwriters read closely

Returns: spell out how you handle opened bags of food, used toys, and products that a pet won't eat or wear. A clear policy gives customers a way to come to you instead of disputing the charge with their bank.

Deposits, tips, and recurring charges: if you take deposits on animals or prepaid grooming packages, put the refund terms in writing at checkout. If groomers receive tips on cards, make sure the receipt shows how the tip was added. For auto-ship, publish how to skip, pause, or cancel, and send reminders before each charge.

Billing descriptor: if your store trades as 'Happy Paws' but your LLC has a different name, customers may not recognize the charge. Ask that your descriptor match the name on your sign and website.

If you are switching, review your current statements for line items such as PCI non-compliance fees, monthly minimums, statement fees, and early termination terms. Note these before you move. They affect what switching actually costs, separate from what the underwriter reviews.

Frequently asked questions

We sell calming chews and joint supplements for dogs. Should I choose Nutraceuticals or Other?

If supplements are a small add-on at the register, 'Other' usually fits. If they are a significant part of your sales, or you sell them online with health-related claims, choose 'Nutraceuticals'. This moves product documentation to 'Gather first', and it reflects what an underwriter is likely to ask about: labels, ingredients, supplier details, and support for any claims on your site.

Our auto-ship pet food program bills customers every few weeks. Do I really need a cancellation policy if we're a retail store?

Yes. Any charge that repeats gets a closer look, whether or not you have a storefront. Publish how customers skip, pause, or cancel a shipment, and show it at signup. Customers who forget they enrolled are a common source of disputes on recurring billing.

We take deposits to reserve puppies and kittens. What should we have ready?

Gather your written deposit terms, including what happens if the sale doesn't go through, along with your sale agreement and any health guarantee you offer. Underwriters want to see that a customer knows upfront whether a deposit is refundable. Check locally which rules apply to animal sales and deposits where you operate.

Our disputes jumped in December from holiday online orders. Will that one month hurt us?

The tool shows a simple same-month ratio, and card brand programs may calculate it differently, so confirm current thresholds with your processor. In practice, be ready to explain the spike. Say what caused it, such as shipping delays or unrecognized charges, and what you changed. Your statements will show the pattern either way.

Our previous processor froze our pet store's account after online sales grew quickly. What do we bring to a new underwriter?

Get the freeze or closure notice in writing, your last statements, and details of any funds held in reserve. Ask the previous processor for the stated reason and whether your business was reported to a terminated-merchant list such as Mastercard MATCH. Then talk to a payments specialist at https://touchsuite.com/contact with that information in hand.

Related free tools and guides

Put this checklist on your website

Accountants, business attorneys, consultants, and trade associations that work with supplement brands, moving companies, tech support firms, and membership sites can embed this free readiness checklist with one line of code. It stays up to date automatically.