People in Germany spent more than €7 billion ($7.9 billion) on pet supplies last year, the German Pet Trade and Industry Association (ZZF) and the Pet Supplies Industry Association (IVH) said on Wednesday.

“Overall, the pet supplies market continued to develop stably,” said Georg Müller, chairman of the IVH. Despite the tense economic situation, the industry was able to maintain the sales level of previous years, he said.

In 2023, total sales of pet supplies amounted to €6.8 billion.

However, since the data for pet food for 2024 has been determined on the basis of a new database, the two years can only be compared to a limited extent.

Cats remain the most popular pets in Germany, with a total of 15.9 million animals recorded in 2024, around 200,000 more than in the previous year, according to the data.

Sales of cat litter, accessories and other supplies rose in line with sales of food.

“You don’t need to walk a cat,” said ZZF President Norbert Holthenrich, adding that cats are easy to keep in an apartment.

In second place behind cats were dogs at 10.5 million.

According to the associations, a total of almost 34 million dogs, cats, small mammals and ornamental birds lived in German households in 2024, in addition to numerous ornamental fish and terrarium animals.

At least one pet lives in 44% of households, it said. Two out of three families with children have a pet, as do almost one in three single people, according to the figures.

The data is based on a representative survey conducted by market research institute SKOPOS on behalf of the IVH and ZZF.

Source: dpa.com