Considering pets can be found in 67% of American households and the pet products industry has grown annually by roughly $2.77 billion since 1994, it’s not surprising to see so many CBD businesses pursuing the pet demographic. In addition to foods and over-the-counter tinctures, manufacturers are finding an assortment of different products suitable for CBD makeovers such as treats, grooming products and toys. Although cat and dog owners make for the vast majority pet product consumers, the audience is so vast that the even the smallest demographic, such as horse owners, have an estimated 1.6 million potential buyers.
In its April 2019 report on pet supplements, Packaged Facts, a publisher of market research, reported that 39% of dog owners and 34% of cat owners liked the idea of cannabis-derived CBD products and that 29% of cat and dog owners would be interested in buying them. The Packaged Facts report also shows that veterinarian recommendation is the leading factor in pet owner purchases of CBD products.
Research by The Hemp Business Journal shows that pet owners spent roughly $48 million on CBD products for their pets in 2018, more than tripling 2017 sales. The publisher projects the market for CBD pet products will hit $298 million in 2022.
Domestic, hemp-derived CBD pet product sales (in millions)
2017 $13
2018 $48
2019 $135
2020* $195
2021* $235
2022* $298
*Estimated
Source: New Frontier Data, Hemp Business Journal
April 2019 CBD product sales by pet type
Dog 78%
Cat 19%
Other 3%
Source: Packaged Facts Pet Supplements – April 2019
Pet owner buying trends during April 2019
Brick-and-mortar retail dog owner 60%
Brick-and-mortar retail cat owner 58%
Online dog owner 43%
Online cat owner 45%
Est. 2019 annual sales (in billions)
Total sales $75.38
Food $31.68
Veterinarian care $18.98
Supplies and OTC $16.44
Live animal purchases $1.97
Other services $6.31
Source: American Pet Products
Est. 2019 number of households by pet type (in millions)
Dogs 63.4
Cats 42.7
Birds 5.7
Reptiles 4.5
Small animal 5.4
Saltwater fish 1.6
Freshwater fish 11.5
Horse 1.6