The Economy Goes to the Dogs

Americans now spend $41 billion a year on their pets-- double the amount spent a decade ago, according to BusinessWeek's August 6th cover story, "The Pet Economy." That dollar figure is more than Americans spend on movies, video games, and music combined and more than the gross domestic product of all but 64 countries. Writers Diane Brady and Christopher Palmeri examine the conspicuous consumption of pet owners.

"It wasn't so very long ago that the phrase 'a dog's life' meant sleeping outside, enduring the elements, living with aches, and sitting by the dinner table, waiting for a few scraps to land on the floor. Today's dog has it much better," they write.

That means chowing down on gourmet meals, wearing animal couture, and receiving birthday presents. Some of the more outrageous examples of pet products include $430 indoor potties, $30-an-ounce perfume, and $1,200 Hermes collar-and-leash sets. Small entrepreneurs and big corporations alike are capitalizing on growing demand for pet care -- the fastest-growing category in retail. "But the escalating volume and cost of services, especially in the realm of animal medicine, raises ethical issues about how far all this loving should go," the article says.

Owners go beyond lavishing their pets with creature comforts and drop astounding amounts on animal health care. The sidebar, "When To Let Go," details how owners are putting off euthanasia with painkillers, surgery, chemotherapy and even hospice care --which all carry hefty price tags. Some of the experts quoted say that owners are unfairly prolonging the suffering of their animals with extraordinary measures in order to make themselves feel better. Owners are even subjecting their pets to unnecessary procedures such as plastic surgery and braces for crooked teeth.

All of this extravagant spending on pets begs the question addressed in another sidebar, "Why We Spoil Spot So." Scientists have different positions on human attachment to animals -- some believe humans respond to the genuine love pets feel for their masters while others say pets know how to make us think they love us in order to get fed. "But there's one point everyone agrees on," according to the sidebar. "The more disconnected we become from each other because of e-mail, iPods, and work-at-home lifestyles, the deeper the bonds we form with our pets."

Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism