The study on consumer behavior in purchasing dog food and perception towards biologically appropriate raw food (BARF) for dogs in Bangkok Metropolitan

Dog food industry in Thailand has been growing continuously due to major driving forces like urbanization, pet humanization and aging society. With these evolving trends, the consumer behavior has been continuously changing over time. Therefore, it is important for both marketers and business entrepreneurs to understand the implications which could create new opportunities for the business. Biologically Appropriate Raw Food for dog, also known as Bone and Raw Food (BARF), is one of the emerging trends among the dog owners due to its health benefits.This study aimed to understand consumer behavior in purchasing dog food. The objectives of the research were to understand the key attributes that affect purchasing decision for dog food, consumer profile for dog food in Bangkok Metropolitan region, understand consumer perception towards BARF for dogs and identify influencing attitudes and their impacts on willingness for BARF trial. The research methodology includes both exploratory and descriptive researches in which secondary research, in-depth interview and survey questionnaire were conducted. The survey targeted dog owners who lived in Bangkok Metropolitan and purchased dog food within the past three months. The collected data was analyzed using the statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). The model was described in terms of frequency, means, standard deviation, one-way ANOVA, regression and correlation.The four key factors which affect the consumer purchasing decision of dog food were healthy, functional value, reassurance and emotional value. Based on these factors, the respondents were grouped into three segments which are smart shopper, value seeker and health driven. The research found that the consumers who are unsure about the benefits of BARF are less willing to try BARF. On the contrary, the consumers who agree that food which is traditionally optimal for a wolf is optimal for dogs and that cooking destroys enzymes needed for digestion are more willing to try BARF.From this the study, manufacturers and marketers of dog food and pet care service providers will gain some insights about the behavior of consumers in purchasing dog food and their perception towards BARF in order to tailor effective marketing strategies to attract the consumers.泰国犬粮行业因城市化、宠物拟人化及人口老龄化等核心驱动因素持续增长。伴随上述趋势的演进，消费者行为亦随时间不断变迁。因此，营销人员与商业创业者亟需洞悉其中蕴含的商业新机遇。生物适配生食（Biologically Appropriate Raw Food），俗称骨肉生食（Bone and Raw Food，BARF），因其健康益处，正成为养犬人群中的新兴趋势之一。本研究旨在探析犬粮购买行为，具体研究目标如下：一是明确影响犬粮购买决策的核心属性；二是勾勒曼谷都会区犬粮消费者的画像；三是了解消费者对犬用BARF的认知态度；四是识别影响其BARF尝试意愿的态度维度及其作用机制。本研究采用探索性与描述性研究相结合的方法，涵盖二手资料调研、深度访谈与问卷调查。调研对象为居住于曼谷都会区且近三个月内购买过犬粮的养犬人群。所采集的数据通过社会科学统计软件包（SPSS）进行分析，分析维度包括频次、均值、标准差、单因素方差分析、回归分析与相关性分析。研究识别出影响犬粮消费者购买决策的四大核心因素：健康属性、功能价值、安心保障与情感价值。基于上述因素，受访样本被划分为三类群体：精明购物者、价值追求者与健康导向者。研究发现，对BARF益处存疑的消费者，其尝试BARF的意愿相对较低；反之，认同‘狼的传统最优饮食同样适用于犬类’及‘烹饪会破坏消化所需酶类’这两种观点的消费者，尝试BARF的意愿显著更强。本研究可为犬粮生产商、营销人员及宠物护理服务提供商提供关于犬粮购买行为及消费者对BARF认知态度的相关洞察，助力其制定精准有效的营销策略以吸引目标消费者。