PETstock acquires Dubbo pet supplies store Furney's Town and Country and Pet Xtra

"When you've been involved in something for so long and you've built a lot of relationships through the years with your clients and customers, that's what I will miss. That interaction with people," he said.

"Often those relationships go beyond a business interaction and you take genuine interest in what their activity is - right across the spectrum of pets from horses to cats to dogs to a hermit crab - it's quite a range of people you meet. And they all have such a genuine interest in their pets."

Mr Edwards has worked for Furney's Town and Country for over 35 years and has owned the store - as well as sister business Pet Xtra - for 25 years. In that time he's seen the business go from strength to strength with the support of the community.

"We only recently moved the business down here to the old Holden car dealership site and that's been hugely popular and successful. We sold the old premises with apprehension - it always is when you move a large business - but it's worked amazingly well," he said.

"I went to work with the Furney family to run the site when it was a significantly smaller stock feed store. And we expanded on the pet side of things and opened the Pet Xtra on Erskine Street. And it continued to grow and grow."

"We've been very lucky to have that experience and have the support of the Dubbo and regional community."

Ready for retirement, Mr Edwards said age and finding a "like minded buyer" made now the right time to take a step back from the business he has built. Taking over the business is Australian owned and operated pet retailer PETstock which has 47 stores across NSW.

"Both my wife and I have been strongly involved in the business and we're both 64 coming 65 so it is the right time and the buyer was right. When you have a business like this it consumes you nearly totally," he said.

"The store offers a great service to the community and PETstock is very conscious of community support - and that's always been key to me."

Soon, the store will be rebranded under the PETstock name with the new owners planning on expanding the range of services to include DIY dog wash, grooming and personalised pet ID tags. PETstock will also continue to support the local community through charitable endeavours.

"In addition to expanding existing services, the store will support local organisations, such as local rescue groups, by providing them with free in-store space, temporary or permanent, for our PETadopt program where adoptable pets can find forever families in a convenient and friendly environment," said PETstock State Manager, Tom Ginty Wise.

"We look forward to welcoming Dubbo residents to the store and introducing them to the new services available within the coming months."

Mr Edwards said he is optimistic about the direction PETstock would like to take the home-grown business in, and said the handover seemed fitting given the similarities in the history of both stores.

"In so many ways PETstock comes from a similar background in that the PETstock group started off with a young family and a small stock feed store. That is in essence how Furney's Town and Country started," he said.

Stepping up to manage Furneys Town and Country and Pet Xtra will be Dubbo locals Victoria Egan and Cassandra Hayne who previously worked under Mr Edwards and regular customers can expect to see other familiar faces around the store despite the handover.

"I owe a big thank you to some key staff members who have been with us for a significant amount of time and they've done a great job. Pretty much all of them are continuing on," said Mr Edwards.

"That continuity is important and I am sure that Victoria and Cassandra will do a great job."

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