America's Pet Frenzy

AMERICA'S PET FRENZY: FINDING THE BALANCE AMERICA'S $50.8 BILLION PET BUDGET IS THE MOST EPIC DISPLAY OF ANIMAL LOVE IN THE WORLD. And pets love us back, adding years to our lives. Splurging on cat wigs and gold threaded doggie pads we tend to forget: 4 million possible pets die in shelters every year. Let's strike a spending balance where pets and people both win: PAYING FOR PETS More than spent on movies ($18.5 billion), video games ($25 billion) and digital music AMERICANS SPENT OVER ($5.2 billion) combined $48.3 BILLION $18 5B ON PETS LAST YEAR $48.3B MOVIES PETS 6 2B More than spent on children's dental care DIGITAL MUSIC $30.6B ($30.6 billion) $25B CHILDREN's DENTAL CARE VIDEO GAMES. PET OVERPOPULATION 72.9 MILLION 2x the number of households More than the number with children of married households U.S. HOUSEHOLDS HAVE PETS Seattle has 1.5 dogs for every child 13 million lizards are kept as pets in the U.S. (Enough to give every 6th grade boy 5 iguanas) HEALTHIER THAN HUMANS OWNERS WILL SPEND ...AND THEY'LL SPEND $19.5 BILLION $25.5 BILLION ON PET FOOD THIS YEAR... ON VET CARE AND SUPPLIES More than spending on vitamins ($6 billion) and gym memberships $19.5B ($17 billion) combined PET FOOD $17B 2X GYM MEMBERSHIPS SCHOOL LUNCH $25.5B $6B Nearly 2x the budget of the VET CARE VITAMINS National School Lunch Program On average, pet dogs visit vets 2x more often than men aged 18-45 see their doctors 77% 51% of Americans took prescriptions DOGS MEDICATED in the last year. 77% of dogs were medicated in the last year 51% AMERICANS MEDICATED AND IN RETURN: HEART ATTACK VICTIMS ARE 6X MORE LIKELY Dog owners live up to 3 TO SURVIVE IF THEY OWN DOGS years longer than average Americans HISTORY OF A LOVE AFFAIR 1000s B.C. EGYPTIANS SWORN TO SAVE CATS BEFORE CHILDREN IN FIRES 1500s POPE LEOX KILLS HIS PET ELEPHANT, HANNO, FEEDING HIM TOO MUCH GOLD 1890s MARK TWAIN HOARDS CATS 1929 RIN TIN TIN GETS 10,000 WEEKLY LETTERS, 2X AS MANY AS PRESIDENT HOOVER 2007 LEONA HELMSLEY DIES AND LEAVES $12M TO HER MALTESE OWNERSHIP COST/BENEFIT IN 2011, Y OU CAN BUY A Puppy: $750 GERMAN CAR Vaccines: $250 AVERAGE YEARLY COSTS: $1540 (Surgical Vet Visits: $407 2011 Volkswagen Jetta: Routine Vet: $248 Food: $254 $15,365 Boarding: $274 Vitamins: $95 Travel: $78 Groomer: $73 Treats: $70 Toys: $43) AVERAGE YEARLY COSTS x 10 Year Life: $16,400 Raising a German Shepherd: $16,400 OR YOU CAN RAISE 1 PURE-BRED GERMAN SHEPHERD EXTREME PETCARE $3.000 WILL COVER CANINE MASSAGE CERTIFICATION IN VIRGINIA 425.000 PETS SPORT TESTICLE IMPLANTS FROM NEUTICLES GENETIC SAVINGS AND CLONE WILL CLONE YOUR CAT FOR $40,000 RISKS OF PET MANIA 4 MILLION 1 125 INSPECTOR BREEDERS OF THE 7 MILLION AMERICAN SHELTER ANIMALS WILL BE EUTHANIZED 7 MILLION ANIMALS IN SHELTERS 8.800 AMERICAN BREEDERS ARE 4 MILLION INSPECTED BY 70 PEOPLE ANIMALS TO BE EUTHANIZED That's 1 person policing 125 puppy suppliers PHILANTHROPY YOU CAN SAVE A LIFE FOR THE YEARLY PRICE OF 2 MONTHLY STARBUCKS FRAPPUCCINOS $130: $124.56: ANNUAL COSTS TO FIX, ANNUAL COSTS OF GETTING A VACCINATE AND FEED A STARBUCKS FRAPPUCCINO FIX SHELTER PET 2X A MONTH 1 IN 28 57.000: AMERICANS DONATE TO THE NUMBER OF ANIMALS HUMANE SOCIETY (LARGEST THEY SAVED THIS YEAR ANIMAL CHARITY IN THE WORLD) ONLY IF 15% 100% OF AMERICANS DID THEY'D SAVE ADOPT FROM $2.4 BILLION SHELTERS (OR DOUBLE THE BUDGET OF U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE) WITH ANNUAL DONATIONS FOR ANIMALS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENTS AT $6.6 BILLION, U.S. ANIMAL LOVERS GIVE MORE THAN MOST OTHER NATIONS COMBINED. 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