What a terrific day outside! On Tuesday, I took a trip to San Antonio’s Japanese Tea Garden with my mom. This was our second trip to this beautiful location, which in itself is a piece of art. The location is public and dog friendly, so this was a great opportunity for mom and I to hang out together and get some exercise walking around. It was nice to spend some time outside of the house and to get mom away from all of her school work. We both got to de-stress and take in the beautiful scenery around us. It wasn’t very crowded, but everyone who was there thought I was cute and wanted to pet me!

This time around, I took a moment to appreciate the fantastic architecture behind this historical spot. The location is meant to replicate an authentic Japanese Tea Garden and was designed by a Japanese artist in 1926. The area is unlike anywhere else I’ve been in San Antonio, it really felt like I was in a different world and culture. On my walk I saw a lot of interesting rock formations but some of them looked like cats so I had to bark at them just in case. I also picked up some great smells and even made some new fish friends. I didn’t understand why they were in the water and didn’t want to come out and play with me. Really, I don’t understand why anyone likes water, it reminds me of bath time and I do not like bath time.

The Tea Garden really got the creative juices flowing. The landscape was so intriguing, mom was inspired to take a few photos and I got to be her model! This is a great spot to take photos for an event or just for fun; we even caught the sunset and snapped a golden hour photo. What do you think of them? I think it looks like I need to drop a few pounds!

• 

• 

• 

Once we got home, I was exhausted and took a long nap to recover from the walk. Overall, this was a creative and fun experience and I hope that I get to go back very soon. I would highly recommend the Japanese Tea Garden to my dog friends, it is a great spot to walk around and look at beautiful architectural design. If you do go, be sure to send me a picture and say “hello” to my fish friends!

2017 Pet Products Spending was Nearly $50

This article summarizes spending on pets in 2017, which reached almost 50 billion dollars, by looking at various segments such as age, occupation, race, and more. For example, homeowners make up 80.3% of pet spending when compared to renters, those who lease apartments, etc. This comes from Millennials being more likely to own homes in 2017. Income is the most important factor that predicts spending on pets. These facts are not surprising. It makes sense that those with comfortable living situations and financial stability are more likely to spend their disposable income on pets.

The Truth About Millennial Pet Owners

The topic of this article is the Millennial consumer and what their spending preferences are like in terms of pets. One the key findings is that Millennial’s are waiting to have children and instead adopting pets on which they spend their discretionary income. This is good news for pet supplies businesses who will certainly profit off of the Millennial generation’s interest in a wide range of products. Social media is also important to Millennial’s who are prompt to share and post about their pet products, which businesses can use to their advantage as well. Overall, businesses are eager to understand the Millennial so that they may tailor their products to this unique generation.

Pet Supplies Market Hits $18.58B

This article references the same source as the first and is similar in that it looks at spending on pets in 2017. The difference is that this article focuses on pet supplies, which excludes pet food. According to the article, spending on pet supplies increased in 2017 17.3% from 2016. There is also a note that pet food spending increased as well. This is unique because usually, when spending in one of those categories increases, the other decrease.

Feeding Natural

Humanization of pets is a growing trend, which means consumers are paying closer attention to what they are feeding their furry companions. This article considers the changes pet owners are making to their animals’ diets, such as an increase in raw and natural foods. This has lead to an increase in human-grade dog and cat food. Pet companies are receiving more and more pressure to adopt these changes to their own food products. While the article doesn’t mention the effect this has on pet food prices, it could be expected that we may see a rise.

Federal Judge Rejects Claim That Champion’s ORIJEN Dog Foods Are Unsafe

Champion Petfood is under scrutiny after large amounts of unsafe metals such as cadmium were found in their dog food. This article provides Champion’s defense that the metal found their pet food is naturally occurring and should not be considered unsafe. Ultimately, the judge found that the allegations against Champion were not grounded and the pet food company was able to avoid any kind of prosecution.

TRENDS:
1. Millennials are bringing big changes to the pet industry including how pets are viewed 
2. Consumer spending in the pet industry is increasing on all accounts
3. Humanization of pets is leading to greater pressure for companies to create higher quality products