Pet industry BOOM

Pets are becoming more and more integrated parts of the family. They are no longer outside dogs that are secondary family members. They sleep inside (often in the same bed as us!) go on vacations with us, we dress them up, cook for them and more.
So it isn't shocking that Americans last year (2009) spent a whopping $45.5 BILLION on our pets. And that number is only growing. According to the 2009/2010 National Pet Owners Survey, 62% of U.S. households own a pet, which equates to 71.4 millions homes.
Pet ownership in the United States is broken down like this: (according to 2009-10 Nation pet Owners Survey americanpetproducts.org)

Number of U.S. Households that Own a Pet (millions)

Bird 6.0
Cat 38.2
Dog 45.6
Equine 3.9
Freshwater Fish 13.3
Saltwater Fish 0.7
Reptile 4.7
Small Animal 5.3

Total Number of Pets Owned in the U.S. (millions)

Bird 15.0
Cat 93.6
Dog 77.5
Equine 13.3
Freshwater Fish 171.7
Saltwater Fish 11.2
Reptile 13.6
Small Animal 15.9

Spending in 2010 is estimated to be $47.7 billion. The spending breakdown in 2009:

Food $17.56 billion
Supplies/OTC Medicine $10.41 billion
Vet Care $12.04 billion
Live animal purchases $2.16 billion
Pet Services: grooming & boarding $3.36 billion

What a great industry to have your hand in right now! Now if we could just shut down all those puppy mills :o)