Making dogs great again: Revitalizing canine ownership in the animal health industry.

At S&A, there’s nothing like the “dog days.” I’m not talking about the sweltering days of summer. I mean those moments when a client or teammate brings an extra set of paws to the office. For those in the animal health industry, the emotional, mental and physical benefits of dog ownership are well-known. But while these best friend bonuses are a no-brainer for us, dog ownership as a whole has been declining recently—threatening both this special bond and the animal health industry at large.

During his State of the Industry address at the Global Pet Expo in March 2025, pet market analyst Dave Bolen explained that “premiumization”—the tendency for the industry to increasingly target high-end customers vs. middle- and lower-income pet owners—is driving many people away from dog ownership. Since 2020, the cost of owning a dog has surged by 49%, compared to just a 17% increase for cat ownership, due at least in part to this premiumization trend.

To better understand what these numbers mean for the industry, we reached out to Bolen. And no surprise—he’s concerned. “There are no barcodes on cats and dogs,” he told us. “So [these population trends] are all survey-based. But the surveys I’ve learned to trust indicate that the dog population lost a decent chunk in 2024.”

Understanding the decline of the dog and the “lost pet owner”

Currently, 51% of U.S. households own a dog, Bolen’s research shows. That’s a 4% drop over the past four years.  In a U.S. pet industry valued at $152 billion, this signifies billions in lost revenue, which can severely affect suppliers, retailers, veterinary healthcare providers and pet owners. Put simply, a decline in dog ownership is bad for the pet industry.

Several factors are contributing to this stagnation, Bolen says, but high costs associated with dog ownership play a significant role in deterring potential dog families.  The continued focus on premiumization has made affordability a challenge, creating a demographic Bolen calls the “lost pet owner.” These are individuals who love dogs and want them in their homes but find the financial burden of ownership too overwhelming.

Bolen believes it’s possible to provide quality care on a budget. “If you really think a dog is important to your family and want to dive in and get one, you can do it for significantly less,” he says. “You can feed it medium-grade food and use televet services. If you’re really honed in and very frugal in terms of how you approach it, you can make it happen.”

Plus, the industry needs to offer alternatives to premium options, promoting a wider range of affordable yet high-quality products, Bolen says.

It’s also important for animal health leaders to emphasize the advantages of pet ownership. In a recent study, the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI) found that pet ownership saves $22.7 billion in healthcare costs in the United States. Bolen says highlighting these benefits may be key to reversing the dog ownership decline.

“It’s incredible how much research HABRI has pulled together,” he says. “Owning a dog or a cat teaches children responsibility and makes the entire family function better as a unit. We really need to spread the word.”

A vision for renewal

Despite the challenges revealed by the research, the opportunity to rejuvenate dog ownership is within reach, Bolen says. This revitalization will not just be good for the industry financially; it will help society by spreading the joys of the canine bond: those precious moments every owner understands.

Bolen knows these joys firsthand. “When the grandkids arrive from Chicago and they come to the front door, that moment when Oliver greets them—it’s just spectacular,” he says. “When they come to see us, we’re not first. Oliver’s first.”

This article appears in our Summer 2025 issue of Trendline: Ailurophile. Subscribe to get the next issue!