we feed them, groom them, clothe them and otherwise shell out the big bucks to protect and pamper our pets the american pet products association's annual report on pet industry spending says americans spent $58 billion in 2014 on their 397 million pets, which range from freshwater fish and reptiles to cats and dogs the industry trade group released the survey thursday at the global pet expo, an annual trade show in orlando, florida the data came from a variety of groups, market research studies and media reports the american pet products association's annual report on pet industry spending says americans spent $58 billion in 2014 on their 397 million pets, which range from freshwater fish and reptiles to cats and dogs  here's a snapshot of how we spend money on pets:  where the money goes  the association measures five areas of spending last year, people spent $22 billion on food; $15 billion on veterinary care; $14 billion on supplies such as beds, bowls and collars and over the counter medicine to fight ailments such as fleas, ticks and colds; $48 billion on other services; and $2 billion on animals themselves the 'other services' category grew the fastest in 2014 and includes payments on grooming, boarding, walking, training, day care and even trips to the spa — where pets can get facials and massages, said bob vetere, president and ceo of the pet products association, based in greenwich, connecticut food:  $2262 billion  supplies/otc medicine: $1372 billion  vet care:  $1525 billion  live animal purchases:  $219 billion  grooming & boarding: $473 billion  the breakdown of pet expenses above is an estimation by the american pet products association based on its annual report on pet industry  vet visits flat  the report says trips to the veterinarian were unchanged or slightly down last year, although expenditures per visit have increased as owners green light more expensive procedures, vetere said those treatments ranged from the lifesaving to the exotic, like plastic surgery a robust human animal bond still exists, especially with dogs and cats, and people are doing more to prolong their pets' lives, from surgery to food, vetere said what's for dinner  if food for pets sometimes sounds good enough to eat, it's because it is san diego based honest kitchen and vero beach, florida based caru natural dog stews are two pet food brands considered human grade by the us food and drug administration because their grub is made with ingredients palatable by people and produced in facilities meeting higher safety requirements americans spent the most on food for their pets last year, and much of it mirrored human trends, such as gluten free, wheat free, little sugar or reduced calorie the feast might come dry, wet, raw, baked, flaked, shredded, diced, sliced, frozen or freeze dried pet sales down  sales of the animals themselves dropped from $223 billion in 2013 to $215 billion in 2014, which was expected because spending in the category has fallen slightly each of the past several years, vetere said there is likely no one reason, he said but adoptions at shelters and rescues are strong, many cities banned the sale of dogs from puppy mills and the lifespans of dogs and cats have lengthened industry growth  as pets have become more important parts of us families, spending on them has exploded there has been more than a threefold increase since the group's first survey was released in 1994, when people paid out $17 billion spending grew 42 percent, from $5572 billion in 2013 to $5804 billion last year, vetere said comparing spending  people spent about five times more on their pets than they did on movies last year the box office firm rentrak estimated that ticket sales from 2014 totaled $104 billion, a 52 percent drop from 2013 but people spent far more on their homes than they did their pets, with expenditures from home improvements and repairs reaching $298 billion in 2013, the most recent data available as pets have become more important parts of us families, spending on them has exploded 
the american pet products association's annual americans $58 billion 2014 last year $223 billion 2013 $215 billion
the american pet products association's annual report on pet industry spending says americans spent $58 billion in 2014 on their 397 million pets . americans spent the most on food for their pets last year, and much of it mirrored human trends, such as gluten free, wheat free or little sugar . sales of the animals themselves dropped from $223 billion in 2013 to $215 billion in 2014 