The gap between spending on dogs and cats in Japan has widened, with having a dog costing more than twice as much as having a cat, reports Nippon, citing survey data from Japanese pet insurance company Anicom.
The survey found that as of 2020, annual average spending on dogs had gone up 13.1% to JPY 347,104 (USD 3,184), and for cats, it was up 3.9% to JPY 164,835 (USD 1,512).
Meanwhile, for dogs and cats, the biggest expense was “foods and treats,” coming to JPY 64,745 (USD 593.95) for dogs and JPY 42,925 (USD 393.78) for cats.
In addition, “veterinary care for injury or illness” was up 34.7% over the previous year to JPY 60,430 (USD 554.38) for dogs, and up 33.1% to JPY 31,848 (USD 292.17) for cats.
Addressing the increase, Anicom stated that with the coronavirus and its restrictions, “people have been working at home and refraining from going out, so they spend more time with their animals, and are probably more aware of the slightest change in their condition, leading to an increase in vet visits.”
Anicom’s data also found that there are areas where pet parents spend more on their pets than on themselves. This includes grooming (for 32.9% of survey respondents) and veterinary fees (30.8%).
Some of the pet owners said “I only get my hair cut once every two or three months, but the dog goes for a trim every month”, and “they get very thorough health checks and are treated even for the slightest thing.”
