Supermarket Guru Consumer Panel: Pet Feeding Stats

What are you feeding your pets? The Supermarket Guru consumer panel revealed interesting statistics about pet feeding and food purchasing. Of the people surveyed, 95% had a dog or cat, and 19% reported that their pet is overweight. Almost half of the people surveyed purchase pet food at a specialty pet store.

“76 percent feed it store bought natural, organic or gourmet pet food. Twenty-four percent serve their pet a mixture of people and pet food, while merely 21 percent reach for generic pet food.”

“And what about those feeding their pets from the dining room table? Over half say they sometimes do while 35 percent say they never do. The question is why? A third feed their pet people food and say they do it for a change, to stimulate the pet. Twenty-three percent say their pet likes people food more, and 18 percent say it’s nutritionally superior. Another 18 percent just don't want their foods to go to waste.”

If you feed your pet people food, do not feed them “chocolate, coffee, caffeine, avocado, macadamia nuts, grapes, raisins, yeast dough, undercooked or raw meats, eggs or bones, the sweetener xylitol, onions, garlic, chives, milk, salt, and never any alcohol.” All of these are hazardous to pets, according to the ASPCA.