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Market Coverage
This Nextin™ report features comprehensive dog market research and consumer insights spanning the full dog nutrition landscape, from tomorrow’s pet food trends to the future of dog supplements.
Dog Food Market Forecast: format adoption, premium pet food trends, fresh dog food market growth, novel proteins, share-of-bowl analysis
Tomorrow’s Dog Treat Trends: functional dog treat opportunities, multi-treat behaviors, dog treat format preferences
Dog Supplement Signals: purchase drivers, ingredient associations, preferred delivery systems, retail channel behaviors specific to dog supplement purchasers
Dog Dental Drivers: pet product adoption curves, interest in dog dental care delivery systems, cross-category connections
Dog Market Segmentation: consumer segmentation, sustainability attitudes among dog owners, information sources, purchase influencers, retail channel trends, wellness ecosystem mapping
Table of Contents
A forward-looking, comprehensive analysis of dog category trends across food, treats, supplements, and dental care.
Report includes dynamic charts and data tables, plus Nextin Demand Signals that allow you to toggle and navigate dog market trends. Product innovation concepts and visualized protocepts put insights into action.
Nextin Dog Market Insights Report
Introduction
Nextin™ Protocept
Executive Summary
Methodology and Reading Guide
Dog Owners at a Glance
The Dog Market Navigator
The Path to Purchase
Table: Dog Product Categories Purchased
Table: Top Sources of Dog Health and Nutrition Information
Table: Benefits That Motivated Dog Food, Treat, or Supplement Purchase
Chart: Retail Channels for Dog Product Purchases
Dog Parent Psychographics
The Lifestyles of Dog Parents
The Multi-Species Pet Owner
Chart: Multi-Species Households vs. Dog-Only Households
The Values-Driven Dog Parent
Chart: Corporate Responsibility Initiatives and Influence
The Sustainability Sway
Chart: Sustainability Influences on Dog Nutrition Purchases
Dog Owner Segmentation
From Humanization to Proactive Health
Psychographic Segmentation of U.S. Dog Owners
Table: Consumer Segmentation: U.S. Dog Owners
Invested Idealists
Chart: Prized Pairings: Meal Additions
Gourmet Servers
Chart: Dog Food Formats Fed
Eco Agents
Chart: Sustainability Attributes Worth Paying More For
Category Collectors
Table: Multi-Category Purchase Behaviors Among Category Collectors
Dog Food Trends and Opportunities
Dog Food Snapshot
Share of Bowl: The Making of a Meal
Table: Food Types and Additions to Dogs’ Meals
Table: Life Stage-Specific Dog Food Purchases
Table: Dog Food Toppers and Additions Fed
The Influence of Ingredients
Chart: First Ingredient Influence on Dog Food Purchases
Chart: Influence of Biotics on Dog Food Purchases
Chart: Most Important Qualities in Dog Food
Chart: Factors That Influence Dog Food Purchase
The Benefit: Wellness in a Bowl
Chart: Consumer Interest in Dog Foods by Benefit
Chart: Consumer Adoption Journey in Dog Foods by Format
Demand Signals
Navigator: Dog Food Demand Signals *
Novel Proteins in Dog Nutrition
Novel Proteins: Perception and Preference
Chart: Trial Potential of Novel Proteins in Dog Food
Get to Know Novel Protein Prospects
Chart: Influence of Novel Proteins on Dog Food Purchases
Novel Protein Prospects Profile
Insect Protein-Inclined
Consideration of Cultivated Meat
Dog Treat Trends and Opportunities
Dog Treat Types Fed
Table: Dog Treat Types Fed
Multi-Treat Feeding Behaviors
Chart: Multi-Treat Feeding Behaviors
What’s Fresh in Treating
Chart: Premium Dog Treats: Consumer Interest and Adoption
Chart: Functional Dog Treats: Consumer Interest and Adoption
Demand Signals
Navigator: Dog Treat Demand Signals *
Dog Supplement Trends and Opportunities
The Dog Supplement Purchaser at a Glance
Cross-Category Purchases
Chart: Cross-Category Purchases by Dog Supplement Subgroup
Chart: Eco Attributes That Increase Purchase Likelihood
The Dog Supplement Purchase Journey
Table: Attributes Guiding the Path to Dog Supplement Purchase
Benefits That Motivate Dog Product Purchase
Chart: Benefits That Motivate Dog Product Purchase
Ingredient Influence Among Dog Supplement Subgroup
Chart: Ingredients Associated With Positive Health Benefits for Dogs
Chart: Ingredients Researched for >1 Hour
Dog Supplement Formats: What’s Trending, What’s Ahead
Dog Supplement Delivery Systems
Chart: Supplement Formats Preferred by Dog Supplement Purchasers
Dog Supplement Shopping Behaviors
Chart: Retail Channels Shopped by Dog Supplement Purchasers
Demand Signals
Navigator: Dog Supplement Demand Signals *
The Demand for Dog Dental
The Dog Dental Purchaser
Chart: Need-States That Prompt Dog Product Purchase
Chart: Ingredient Affinity Among Dog Owners Who Purchase Dog Dental Products
Feeding Behaviors Among Dog Dental Purchasers
Protein Affinity
The Potential for Dog Dental
Chart: Interest and Engagement With Dog Dental Care Products
Demand Signals
Navigator: Dog Dental Demand Signals *
The Dog Market Basket
Preventive Health: The Next Wave of Humanization
Multi-Category Purchase Behaviors
Table: Quantity of Dog Product Categories Purchased
Table: Calculating Co-Purchase Rate and Lift “A”→“B”
Highest Lift Combinations
Table: Highest Lift Combinations (Lift ≥+20 pts)
Table: High-Volume, High-Lift Combinations (≥20% co-buyers, ≥+10 pts lift)
Table: Moderate-Volume, Moderate-Lift Combinations
The Wellness Ecosystem
Chart: Wellness Ecosystem Venn Diagram
Dental Product + Supplement Purchasers
Chart: Distinct Characteristics of Dental Product + Supplement Purchasers
Supplement + Functional Treat Purchasers
Chart: Characteristics of Functional Treat + Supplement Purchasers
Dental Product + Functional Treat Purchasers
Chart: Characteristics of Dental Product + Functional Treat Purchasers
The Wellness Trifecta: Supplement + Dental Care + Functional Treat Purchasers
The Price Paradox
Quality Signals
Table: Wellness Trifecta: Dog Supplement Decision-Drivers
Benefits on the Rise
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Benefits That Motivate Product Purchase
Biotics Beyond Gut Health
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Preferred Functional Ingredients
The Wellness Experience
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Preferred Supplement Formats
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Treat Types Fed
Dental Care Conversion
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Dog Dental Care Product Usage
Chart: Wellness Trifecta: Retail Channels Shopped
A Retail Channel Remix
Nextin Innovator’s Toolkit
Ready-to-explore product concepts grounded in consumer data and evolving dog market trends.
Appendix
Dog Owner Demographics
What’s Next?
Glossary
About Nextin Research
About MarketPlace
Innovator's Toolkit
Your source of inspiration, guided by Nextin Research. Interactive tools and visualized pet product concepts display more than dog survey data—they spotlight opportunity.
Demand Signals: dynamically navigate consumer demand in the dog market, like purchase-driving benefits, ingredients, and delivery systems
Innovator’s Toolkit: accelerate your next ideation with ready-to-explore product concepts grounded in consumer data and evolving dog trends
Exploratory Protocepts: see product innovation concepts that help you visualize tomorrow’s dog market trends today
Dynamic Charts
Content
INSIGHTS PREVIEW
Intelligence You Can Act On
What’s next in dog market trends?
69% of dog owners purchased across 4+ pet product categories last year, but only 11% of the market is buying supplements, dental care, and functional treats together.
We call this product mix the “Wellness Trifecta.”
This 11% of dog owners buying supplements, dental care, and functional treats are more than wellness-invested, they’re dramatically more engaged across the dog market. These dog owners:
consult 1.66x more information sources than average when researching pet products
purchase from 1.82x more dog product categories overall
shop 1.55x more retail channels
fill their market basket with dog products featuring 1.72x more health benefits
Strategic implication: Converting two-category wellness buyers to the full ecosystem represents a high-value opportunity—and the data reveals exactly which benefits, formats, and channels resonate with key bridge segments.
The full dog trend report includes 15+ subgroups, plus dynamic cross-tabulations that reveal audience-specific opportunities.
WHO IT'S FOR
This Nextin Report is designed for pet industry professionals who need current, validated consumer insights to anticipate tomorrow’s dog trends and inform high-stakes decisions.
Forward-looking Dog Trends for Strategic Decision-Makers
Product Development and Innovation Teams
Identify which need-states, ingredients, and delivery formats are gaining consumer traction to prioritize formulation and format strategies grounded in demand data.
Brand and Marketing Teams
Validate new concepts and refine product positioning with consumer-backed insights that help you identify and reach the right dog owners for your brand.
Ingredient Suppliers
Identify which functional ingredients—from postbiotics to functional mushrooms—are gaining traction, and which ingredients dog owners are seeking but not yet finding on shelf.
Retailers and Buyers
Understand cross-category purchase behaviors and the omnichannel mix to optimize pet product assortment and drive new product trial.
Investors and Analysts
Assess growth potential in the dog category with primary consumer data on adoption curves, conversion gaps, and willingness to pay.
Executives and Innovation Leaders
Inform long-term vision and growth strategy with dog trends that futurecast demand before it reaches shelves.
Our Reports are Cited and Sourced by Leading Brands and Organizations in Pet Nutrition and Care
METHODOLOGY
This Nextin Report features proprietary data from a March 2025 survey conducted by Nextin Research. The online panel comprised 1,201 U.S. adults aged 18 and older who report owning at least one dog (“dog owners,” “dog parents,” “pet parents”). Panelists, also referred to as “dog owners” or “dog parents,” were screened to include only respondents who reported making pet product purchase decisions. Behaviors such as “purchases” are self-reported and reflect the prior 12 months unless otherwise noted.
Research design, programming, fieldwork, and analysis were conducted by Nextin Research, the syndicated research arm of strategic advisory and brand activation firm MarketPlace. Samples for these studies are sourced through Dynata, the world’s largest first-party data provider. Original sampling is balanced for gender and region according to the U.S. census. All data is reported in the aggregate except where otherwise noted.
Results reflect a balanced, non-probability sample. For directional reference, a probability sample of equivalent size would carry a margin of error of approximately ±2.8% at the 95% confidence level for the total sample (n=1,201). Differences between consumer groups are tested for significance at p ﹤ 0.05.
KEY CONTRIBUTORS
Nicole Hill, VP of Strategy, Insights, & Innovation
Jon Copeland, Research Manager
Rose Broyles, Insights Associate
Shelby White, Group Creative Director
