Buying Pet Food and Veterinary Supplies in Colombia: Laika, Agrocampo, and Neighborhood Tiendas

Quick answer: in Colombia, commercial dog and cat food is registered with ICA (the agricultural institute), not INVIMA. Buy a sealed bag with a registro ICA on it, use apps or chains for convenience, and treat any open bin of loose kibble with suspicion.

The question every new pet owner hits sooner or later: you are standing in a small tienda with a scale and a big bin of kibble sold by the kilo, and you wonder whether to trust it. Or you are scrolling an app and wondering whether the delivery will actually reach your address. Here is how I would sort the options, including where each channel falls short.

How to read a bag: registro ICA first

Pet food is an animal-feed product, so it falls under ICA, not INVIMA. ICA's Resolution 61252 of 2020 says complete or balanced foods, nutritional supplements and animal treats (golosinas) need ICA registration before sale (ICA animal-feed registration page, accessed October 2026). Some retailers mislabel codes, so do not rely on the word INVIMA anywhere on a pet label.

• Look for the registro ICA on the bag, not just on the shelf tag.
• Check species and life stage: puppy, adult, senior, cat. Colombian bags say cachorro, adulto, gato.
• Check that the bag is sealed and the lot is printed.
• Treats count too. A snack without registration is a red flag.

I will not give you a price table. Shelf prices move constantly, so check the live product page before you compare.

Neighborhood veterinarias and tiendas

The corner shop selling kibble by the kilo is a real Colombian institution, and it is not automatically illegal. ICA's Resolution 3761 of 2009 regulates bulk (a granel) dog and cat food: the seller must be a registered commercializer, the containers must resist corrosion and be sealable, and the shop must keep records of quantity and lot (ICA). Resolution 61252 of 2020 still points dog and cat bulk sales back to that rule.

My practical test is simple:

• The bin is closed, metal or similarly sturdy, and the scoop is clean.
• The product inside is itself ICA-registered and the shop can tell you the lot.
• Nothing smells stale or looks damp.

If any of that is unclear, buy a sealed bag. Honestly, I would skip open bins entirely for a cat with a sensitive stomach or a puppy. The savings are small and the risk is real.

If a retailer delivers a spoiled or wrong bag, the consumer path is the SIC, and this guide explains how to file a consumer complaint. ICA is about product registration; SIC is about your purchase. Do not mix the two.

Agrocampo: the Bogotá agro-veterinary hypermarket

Agrocampo is a large agro-veterinary retailer with one Bogotá hipermercado that the company identifies as Calle 73 No. 20-62, with an Avenida Caracas entrance in the same 73 block. Confirm the door on its live site before you go. Its catalogue is huge, from food and flea products to accessories.

Two things matter for foreigners:

• Shipping: Agrocampo publishes national shipping, including Medellín. Fees, free-shipping minimums and weight breaks change, so read the domicilios page for your municipality. Do not assume it has a shop outside Bogotá; it does not.
• Prescriptions: at Agrocampo, a veterinary medicine that requires a prescription is sold only against a fórmula from a médico veterinario or médico veterinario zootecnista, shown at purchase, and only for the quantity on the fórmula (Agrocampo terms). That is Agrocampo's checkout rule, not a promise about every shop.

The downside: if you live far from Bogotá, big-bag shipping is priced by weight blocks, so a single heavy order can cost more than a local bag.

Laika: the pet app

Laika sells dog and cat food, snacks, hygiene products, toys, accessories and home veterinary visits. Its app listing describes payment online or cash or card on delivery, and a member discount on purchases. Check the current member offer inside the app rather than trusting an old number.

The catch is coverage. Delivery routes vary by day and by address, so same-day delivery is something you confirm by entering your address, not something to assume. Rappi has listed Laika points in several cities, including Medellín, Cali and Barranquilla, but those are marketplace pins, not proof of a walk-in shop. Laika also runs a store-finder page; use it, but treat the app as the source of truth for your door.

Puppis: the walk-in chain

If you want a conventional pet shop, Puppis says it has stores in Bogotá, Barranquilla, Medellín and Envigado, plus web shipping to the rest of the country. Its own published hours are Monday to Saturday 8:00–20:00 and Sundays and holidays 9:00–18:00 (Puppis, accessed October 2026). Its sucursales page did not list street addresses, so use its store finder or phone before you travel.

Stocking up before the Monday 12 October 2026 long weekend

Monday 12 October 2026 is a national holiday. Since Ley 2347 de 2024, every 12 October is officially the Día de la Diversidad Étnica y Cultural de la nación colombiana, though many people still call it Día de la Raza. Expect a long weekend.

My advice is to buy a sealed bag a few days earlier, confirm your Laika route for that address, and use Puppis's published holiday hours only for Puppis. Do not assume every vet or tienda stays open. If you plan to travel with your pet over the break, see our guide to domestic pet travel between cities; the food rules here are not airline rules.

Veterinary medicines are a different system

ICA also registers and controls veterinary medicines and biologicals. The registration procedure is Resolution 62542 of 2020, and ICA's public list of registered products was marked as updated on 1 October 2026 (ICA). Ask your vet which registered product fits your pet.

A few rules of thumb: a foreign prescription, a human-pharmacy formula or a photo sent over WhatsApp is not a safe route to prescription pet drugs. I would not give a pet a human painkiller on a stranger's advice either. Human pharmacies are a different counter; the human pharmacy guide covers those, and pet formulas are not filled there. A Laika home visit can be handy, but it is not a substitute for a diagnosis when your animal is really sick.

Used carriers, bowls and cat trees

New kibble should come from the retailers above. For durable gear, a local owner is often cheaper. Colombia Move's pets section is still thin: in the 2026-10-09 snapshot it had 3 active listings, and the cats category was empty. That means little to browse today, but also that a good carrier or scratching post posted there would be easy to find. Inspect gear in person and meet in a public place. For selling cat equipment, there is a Spanish companion guide on used scratching posts and cat accessories.

Frequently Asked Questions

❓ Does dog and cat food in Colombia need an INVIMA number?

No. Commercial pet food is registered with ICA, so look for the registro ICA on the bag. Complete foods, supplements and treats are all in the registration net, and some retailers mislabel codes. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Can I buy prescription flea, pain or antibiotic products without a vet's fórmula?

Not at Agrocampo, which asks for a fórmula from a médico veterinario or médico veterinario zootecnista and limits the quantity to that fórmula. Ask any other seller about its rule before you pay, and do not count on foreign prescriptions. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Is kibble sold by the kilo in a neighborhood shop legal?

It can be, if the seller follows ICA's bulk rules for dog and cat food, including a sealed, corrosion-resistant container and lot records. If the bin is open or unlabeled, buy a sealed bag instead. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Does Agrocampo deliver outside Bogotá?

It publishes national shipping, including Medellín, from its Bogotá operation. Check the live domicilios page to see whether your municipality and bag weight are covered, since fees and minimums change and I will not quote a peso figure. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Does Laika deliver the same day where I live?

The app offers delivery routes and pay on delivery, but coverage depends on the address you enter. Confirm in the app; a Rappi pin is not a promise of same-day service, and routes vary by day. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Will pet shops keep normal hours on Monday 12 October 2026?

That Monday is a national holiday. Puppis publishes holiday hours of 9:00–18:00, but other shops and Laika routes need a same-week check, so do not assume anyone is open. (verify with the official source, as accessed)

❓ Where do I find a used carrier or cat tree from a local owner?

Use a local classifieds section for pets, including Colombia Move's pets section, and inspect the item in person before paying. Meet in a public place and ask for photos that show the size of the pet it suits.