“Everyone’s going back to work and
you’re going back to being alone again,” says a voiceover in a new ad for Petco from Droga5.
It’s hard to
figure out whom the narrator is talking to. The visuals show a man in a house, alone. The narration then asks “What do you do? Do you act out? Get anxious? Or go where you’re not supposed
to?” (The latter question is spoken over a visual of the man shown from the back while it looks like he’s peeing on a plant.)
“No,” the man answers, “You
get Petco to help you make a plan for your mental health.” He then suggests getting the right trainers, toys and shoes from the retailer.
The ad is the latest in a campaign
themed “What we’d want if we were pets,” which anthropomorphizes the needs of pets. With human beings in the role of dogs and cats, the viewer is challenged to sympathize
with their plight.
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This latest spot addresses the phenomenon of pandemic pups. BluePearl, a veterinary service owned by Mars, reported that visits were up 20% during 2020 and that more than
half were from new patients.
This ad addresses some of those new owners and the pets they have welcomed into their homes.