The U.S. pet industry spending reached approximately $158 billion in 2025, up ~4% year-over-year, with food and treats at about $68 billion, veterinary care and services at $41 billion, supplies and medications at $34 billion, and other services (e.g., grooming, boarding, etc.) at $14 billion. For two decades, pet was treated as a safe, recession-proof category. Buyers now look much harder at what’s underneath. Consumers are trading down selectively: discretionary toys, tech accessories and premium hard goods have softened, while consumables, health-linked products and non-deferrable services have held strong.
M&A volume slowed across 2024 and 2025 as high financing costs and tariff uncertainty collided with the elevated entry valuations of the 2020 to 2022 surge. Activity is picking up in 2026, driven by portfolio maturity (a large cohort of sponsor-owned assets is well past normal hold periods), delayed deal closings from the previous year, and strategics buying their way into higher-frequency, health-adjacent revenue.
Key Takeaways
For more information, please contact Sophea Chau, Senior Managing Director, at 617.603.8963.
