by David Sprinkle
January 27, 2025
Shifting pet population trends have increased the focus on cats in marketing and retail. Senior pets have emerged as a significant opportunity as well.
ROCKVILLE, MD — January 27, 2025 — Recent pet population trends have shifted the landscape of a historically dog-centric market, highlighting both cats and senior pets as key opportunities, according to Packaged Facts’ just-released Pet Population and Ownership Trends in the US, 8th Edition.
Aside from the litter category, cats have taken an often distant second place in the overall pet market, with feline offerings and options seldom as robust as those for canines. The historical reasons for this skew include the higher rate of dog ownership and the higher consequent spending on pet food, supplies, and services for them.
Recent pet population trends, however, have increased marketing and retailing emphasis on cats. Between 2018 and 2024, household ownership rates slipped for having dogs or cats (from 53% to 50%), for having dogs (from 42% to 38%), and for having dogs but not cats (from 30% to 26%). In contrast, ownership rates are up by one percentage point since 2018 for having cats (from 23% to 24%), and for having cats but not dogs (from 11% to 12%).
Increased emphasis on cats by marketers and retailers makes sense not just as a temporary adaptation but long term, since cats are not only less expensive to keep but easier to manage – an especially important consideration for lower- or modest-income households, dual-worker households, and the aging human population.
In addition, the senior side of pet ownership is all the more important given that the human/animal bond tends to deepen as pets age. Packaged Facts survey data show that among Baby Boomers, 87% of dog owners and 84% of cat owners consider their pets as family, compared to 57%/52% of their adult Gen Z counterparts. Similarly, 76% of dog owners and 70% of cat owners who are Baby Boomers consider themselves happier because they have their pets, compared to 46% of dog owners and 49% of cat owners among Gen Z adults. A similar pattern applies to the desire to have dogs or cats as long as possible.
Despite the importance of Gen Z and Millennials in driving pet population growth, a single-minded focus on new pet parents and new pets therefore misses a big part of the picture, according to report author David Sprinkle. Older and overweight pets have a profound effect on the pet industry due to age-related health issues, including joint, urinary tract, and cognitive issues, as well as diabetes and cancer.
By targeting these segments of the pet population with customized health and wellness products, marketers can not only target a growing pet population segment, but also extend the healthy lifespan of pets and increase the feasibility of pet ownership further into senior age brackets. Overlooking this dynamic can leave key growth opportunities on the table, including in pet product segments that have otherwise flattened out in real dollar growth and unit sales.
Packaged Facts, a division of The Freedonia Group, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer market topics, including consumer demographics and shopper insights, consumer financial products and services, consumer goods and retailing, and pet products and services. Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services. Reports can be purchased at freedoniagroup.com/packaged-facts.
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