Estimates indicate the US pet market will reach $62 billion in 2013

This past week, Packaged Facts released their latest “U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2013-2014.”

As expected, the report indicates they anticipate the pet industry to continue to grow citing, "consumer spending in the U.S. pet market will reach $62 billion in 2013, up 4.7% over 2012, with veterinary services and pet food make up the bulk of the market, with over $21 billion each in sales projected for 2013."

Contrast that with the American Pet Products Association 2013 US pet industry expenditures estimate of $55.53 billion.

Additional notables in Packaged Facts report include:

• Non-medical pet services - a smaller category that includes grooming, boarding, training, and pet sitting/walking services - is growing at the fastest rate, at 6.0% annually. 
• Dogs account for two-thirds of sales in the overall pet products and services market, they are showered with 90% of the spending in this non-medical services category. 
• (Pet owners) are becoming less price sensitive than in years past, a trend borne out in the sales data. 
• Sales in mass channels such as grocery stores have been relatively flat, but pet owners have continued to migrate to pet specialty channels, which focus more on the high-end market. 
• Industry initiatives designed to spur growth in pet ownership, seem to have been paying dividends, as "pet ownership among younger adults has jumped to its highest level in years," according to David Sprinkle, research director for Packaged Facts. “Half of the adults in their 20s have a dog in the household, up from only a third a decade ago.”

For more information about the Packaged Facts “U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2013-2014,” visit their website.

Photos provided courtesy of RollenB and Kevin Dooley.