The veterinary sector has been declining in real dollar terms since 2022 – and especially so in 2025, posting only 2.0% dollar growth despite 7.1% sector inflation.
Despite impressive tech-driven innovation on the clinical side, a perfect storm of macroeconomic precariousness, dog ownership and puppy adoption declines, veterinary services/pet care price inflation, and the growing role of telemedicine help explain a significant drop in vet services usage rates since COVID pandemic highs, as well as from pre-pandemic levels.
Packaged Facts’ January 2026 Survey of Pet Owners indicates that 40% of dog and cat owners had increased vet care spending or faced higher vet care costs over the last 12 months. Correspondingly, the high cost of veterinary services is a significant challenge to 33% of pet owners, and the high cost of pet medications to 23%. An even larger percentage of pet owners are significantly affected by the high costs of veterinary services and pet medications than are affected by the high costs of pet food.
Veterinary care inflation continues to take a toll on pet owners and, jointly, on real (rather than nominal) revenue growth in the sector. The 2026 “Pet Parent Perspective” by Spot Pet Insurance includes alarming statistics on the financial stress vet care bills can place on pet parents, including that 36% have been stressed until the next paycheck after a higher-than-expected vet bill, and 31% have taken on additional work to cover veterinary expenses.
In turn, a PetSmart Charities-Gallup State of Pet Care Study (January 13, 2026) reports that “Most veterinarians (94%) say clients’ financial considerations sometimes (56%) or often (38%) limit their ability to provide recommended care”. At the same time, this study highlights a “stark gap in perception” between veterinarians and their clients when it comes to realistic attention to affordability.
A positive turn for the veterinary industry has been increased attention to cats. Historically speaking, veterinary service providers, pet product manufacturers, retailers, and marketers have been canine-centric, since pet care spending is typically higher for dogs than for cats. With veterinary services, lower usage rates for cats are partly attributable to lower (or perceived as lower) veterinary care needs for indoor-only cats, as well as to the higher difficulty of transporting cats to the vet and of keeping them calm in typically dog-patient dominated spaces.
Over the last few years, however, pet population trends have spurred the pet industry to recalibrate its emphasis on dogs vs. cats: the dog household population has edged downward while the cat household population holds steadier, and a similar pattern holds for puppy/kitten adoption trends.
An increased emphasis on cats makes sense not just as a temporary adjustment but longer term, given that cats are not only less expensive to keep but easier to manage, especially important considerations for apartment dwellers, dual-worker households, and the aging human population. Catering to cats will continue to evolve as a prime opportunity in the veterinary sector, including with cat-only practices.