How COVID-19 affected pet ownership in the U.S. 2020-2022

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has affected many industries in significant ways, including the pet industry. During a survey carried out in February 2022, 14 percent of respondents in the United States reported acquiring a new pet. This is an increase of four percent compared to December 2020, when 10 percent of respondents reported getting a new pet. Pet ownership during the pandemic With nationwide lockdowns forcing people to spend most of their time confined at home, approximately 70 percent of Americans from all generations surveyed in 2020 reported spending more time with their pets as a result of social distancing regulations. Additionally, the pandemic had its impact on the economic situation of millions of people who may have struggled with precarious work or part-time employment that was discontinued due to lockdowns, which made many pet owners concerned about the affordability of pet food and products. In fact, younger generations like Gen Z and Millennials in the United States were more likely than Baby Boomers to be worried about pet expenses during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Pet industry in the United States Pet industry expenditure in the United States has witnessed remarkable growth over the years and was forecast to reach nearly 110 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, up from less than half that figure only ten years prior when it was approximately 51 billion U.S. dollars in 2011. Among the most prominent players in the U.S. pet industry are pet food companies Mars Petcare Inc. and Nestlé Purina Petcare, generating 18 billion and 14 billion U.S. dollars in revenues, respectively.

新冠病毒（COVID-19）大流行对众多产业产生了深远的影响，宠物产业亦不例外。在2022年2月进行的一项调查中，美国受访者中有14%表示在疫情期间新养了宠物。这一比例相较于2020年12月时10%的受访者新养宠物的比例，增加了4%。在大流行期间，随着全国范围内的封锁措施迫使人们大部分时间居家隔离，约70%的受访者，无论所属年龄段，均表示由于社交距离规定，他们与宠物相处的时间有所增加。此外，大流行对数百万人的经济状况产生了影响，这些人可能因封锁而面临不稳定的工作或兼职工作，这使许多宠物主人对宠物食品和产品的可负担性表示担忧。事实上，相较于婴儿潮一代，美国Z世代和千禧一代在2020年新冠病毒大流行期间对宠物费用的担忧更为明显。美国的宠物产业在近年来经历了显著的增长，预计到2021年将达到近1100亿美元，这一数字远超十年前2011年的约510亿美元。在美国宠物产业中，最显赫的参与者包括宠物食品公司火星宠物护理公司（Mars Petcare Inc.）和雀巢普瑞纳宠物护理公司（Nestlé Purina Petcare），它们的收入分别达到180亿美元和140亿美元。