made no attempt to compete with the new Internet retailers on their terms, spending no money on advertising for its website. Instead, the company viewed the website as a support structure for its catalog business. Its existing distribution chain allowed Drs. Foster and Smith to become the first in its industry to promise shipment within 12 hours. Following the 2000 collapse of Pets.com, Foster & Smith's online sales increased substantially. A new telecommunication center was added and order fulfillment upgraded to meet the increased demand. Continued growth through acquisition In an effort to boost catalog distribution, Drs. Foster and Smith offered 100,000 free pet tags to those who joined their mailing list in early 2000. In 2001, Drs. Foster and Smith increased its market share by 20% through the acquisition of Pet Warehouse, a Dayton, Ohio mail-order catalog, in a cash buyout. The acquisition expanded the company's product selection from primarily dog and cat supplies to also include products for aquariums, birds, small pets, and reptiles. After a brief transition period, the Dayton warehouse was closed and its products and employees moved to the Rhinelander location. were added to the Rhinelander warehouse to handle the 7,000 new items. The acquisition also boosted the company's catalog distribution by 5 million. Later in 2001, LiveAquaria.com, a specialty aquarium supply company, was purchased by Foster and Smith, and its operations were moved from Dayton, Ohio to Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The website sells tropical fish, aquatic plants, and other aquarium animals online. In 2005, LiveAquaria.com opened its Aquaculture Coral & Marine Life Facility. Doctors Foster and Smith continued to pursue expansion, signing their first advertising contract in July 2002. Around the same time, catalog and internet departments were integrated to increase efficiency. Advertising efforts were expanded to television in 2003 with spots airing on Animal Planet and Lifetime. The ads were aimed at reinforcing the idea that the company's catalog items are hand selected by veterinarians, according to the then marketing director Joe Voellinger. Product development In 2003, Drs. Foster and Smith moved into product development, introducing its own brands of cat and dog food. The brands were formulated by the company's on-staff veterinarians, aiming at the premium end of the market. Around the same time, company sales were boosted through an auto-replenishment program that automatically billed customers for regularly bought items – food and certain medicines – after an email reminder a few days