THE owner of two exotic pet shops is hoping to pass on a lifetime of experience with animals to Warrington’s schoolchildren.

Lee Owen has run Warrington Pets & Exotics at Warrington Market for the last two and a half years.

The 32-year-old launched a larger store on Lovely Lane in Bewsey at the end of last year.

And he says he has always been something of a Dr Doolittle!

He said: “I grew up with animals, my dad Colin worked at Chester Zoo and my mum Christine worked at Nadin’s, one of the best pet shops in Warrington.

“I was always in there so animals have been around me all my life.

“We had horses, reptiles, my dad had chickens and pigeons, so it’s just second nature to me really.”

The store on Lovely Lane has a reptile room with around 60 vivariums and pets including tropical fish, birds, tortoises, turtles, rabbits, hamsters, mice, gerbils, snakes, lizards, spiders and scorpions.

The father-of-seven added: “We’re hoping to get more schools down and give talks on animals.

“We hand out care sheets and let people look into it properly during a cooling off period so they don’t make a snap decision.

“We want to pass on as much knowledge as we can.”