Pet Obsessed Millennials Pamper Their "Fur Babies"

Last week the online retailer Zulily celebrated their first annual pet week.

In honor of this auspicious occasion, they released a set of survey results on pet owning millennials.

It will come as no surprise to anyone who knows a pet owning millennial that they're, on average, a bit obsessed with their "fur babies". 

Our favorite finding is over 8 in 10 (84%) millennial pet owners report experiencing separation anxiety when away from their pets for even short periods of time, like when running errands. 

Our second favorite finding is the willingness of millennials to take less pay in exchange for being able to take their pet to to work. Key quote from the study report:

Employed Millennial pet owners are so attached to their pets that 71 percent would take a pay cut if it meant they could bring their pet(s) to work everyday. And, more than 1 in 5 (21%) would sacrifice a whopping 20 percent or more of their pay to make every day “bring your pet to work day.”

Other interesting findings include:

• 92 percent of millennial pet owners purchase gifts for their pets, such as toys, clothing and treats, with more than half (51%) purchasing a gift for their pet at least once a month. On average, millennials who buy their pets gifts on a monthly basis do so four times a month.
• 82 percent of millennial pet owners have purchased dog- or cat-themed merchandise to advertise their proud pet parenthood.
• 82% of millennial pet owners report a dog or cat isn’t just a pet – it’s a starter child and they feel that getting a pet is part of preparing to have a family.
• A third of millennials who purchased their first home cited they were influenced by needing more space for their dog.
• For those millennials who haven’t purchased a home, 42 percent say their dog, or the desire to have one, would be a key factor in buying a home.

It's pretty clear millennials love their pets.

And a lot of them have pets. Three-fourths of Americans in their 30s own a dog and over half own a cat, compared to 50 percent of the overall population with dogs, and 35 percent with cats.

This is, of course, good news for the pet industry because millennials have passed baby boomers as our nation's largest demographic cohort.  They're also moving into middle age and their higher earning years. 

So don't expect the pet boom to do anything but continue.

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