When does “how much” become “too much”, when it comes to spending money on your pets? Said another way- what dollar amount might make you pause when it came to veterinary care of your pet?
In a recent post from the Pet Business Professor, he shared a graph on Petflation through January 2026, using 2019 prices as the base, the US CPI sits at 26.6%, Total Pet at 29.1% and Veterinary Services as the highest at 49.6%. GULP… that’s almost twice of CPI but the visual is what is really striking. While most categories made steady regular treks upward the steep and continuing climb in veterinary is shocking.
You’ve all seen the data- veterinary visits are down, practices are feeling it. For many pet owners the cost of care is a real challenge with a recent study of US Pet owners stating 7 in 10 owners skipped veterinary care this past year due to cost.
Financial conversations for anyone are never easy but recent studies show that disclosing personal financial information can alleviate anxiety. Working as a veterinarian, I’m faced with financial discussions with clients regularly- I’ve never shied away from the conversation- but I have found myself taking a deep breath a bit more often lately because I’m brushing up on what would be my own personal “too much” more than ever before. I’m not sure where the answers and solutions will come from but I’m confident that this industry will be able to meet this challenge too.
Dr. Christine Merle
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