How Pets Are a Part of the Family

Observing how our pets influence finances, fertility rates, and parent-child relationships, an SMU professor said that some of us have multi-species families. Even affecting government during an emergency, the 2006 PETS Act said FEMA could rescue household pets. When determining custody, six states–New York, Alaska, California, Illinois, Maine, and New Hampshire–have considered a pet’s welfare. And, a Colombian court recently decided a dog was equal to a son or a daughter when a man sued his former wife for visitation rights.

Let’s take a look at how all of this shapes our spending.

Pet Spending

Pet Ownership

Among the assorted critters that live with us, dogs top the list with cats a close second:

Whereas Baby Boomers travel more, buy more homes, and do more of most things, it’s the Millennials that own more of our pets:

Pet Spending Amounts

During the past five years, the price of our pets’ goods and services skyrocketed. Now though, the increases have decelerated. The Bank of America Institute hypothesized that consumers were trading down, going to cheaper retailers, and purchasing pet insurance:

Pet Spending Geography

How much we spend depends on where we live. Known as dog friendly cities, Seattle and San Francisco recently spent more on their pets than communities in the U.S. South:

Our Bottom Line: Consumption Expenditures

Occupying close to 70 percent of our GDP, consumer spending includes our pet spending on goods and services.

What we buy:

Why we buy:

And where we buy:

My sources and more: Thanks to Sherwood for inspiring today’s post. Then, through their link to the Bank of America Institute, here and here, we got our detail. Meanwhile, for more, I recommend the BLS, American Pet Products Association, and Psychology Today. And finally, taking the next step at econlife, we saw how pets could be economic indicators.