Pet Industry News
The deals, launches, and strategic moves behind the brands and operators shaping the industry.
Pets will shape travel plans for 68% of owners, Subaru survey finds
A Subaru-commissioned Talker Research survey of 2,000 pet-owning drivers, released October 13th, 2026, says 68% expect their pet to affect travel plans this year and 73% would drive instead of fly to bring the pet. New in this release, 10% may host, 10% may shorten a trip and 8% may skip gatherings. In our view, the trip-length and planning numbers are the ones sitters and kennels can use.
Vicuna Air extends pet travel beyond the flight with a ground network
Vicuna Air launched Vicuna Waypoints, a concierge service that connects owners and pets to its transatlantic flights via pet-friendly ground transport and hotels. The move extends the brand into cities it does not fly, betting the moat in premium pet travel is journey orchestration, not the aircraft.
Genius Dog puts a dog birthday box on Chewy, testing the celebration economy
Genius Dog launched a first-ever dog Birthday Box exclusively on Chewy, putting a DTC subscription brand on the largest online pet retailer's shelf. The bet: occasion-based SKUs can turn a giant's traffic into new subscribers, and dog-birthday gifting could mature into its own retail category.
Buddy Bites Raises $4.2M as Asia's Subscription Pet Bet Heats Up
Buddy Bites has closed a $4.2M Series A led by Digitalis Ventures, its first institutional round since founding in 2020. The Hong Kong subscription pet food brand now pulls 85.9% of revenue from repeat orders, and plans to use the funding to expand into cat food and Taiwan.
StoneX Acquires the Merchandiser Behind Pet Food's Protein Supply
StoneX Group has acquired Advanced Marketing Group, a merchandiser of animal protein-based feed ingredients that serves pet food manufacturers, dairy and poultry producers, and feedlots. Terms weren't disclosed, but the deal folds a key ingredient supplier into a much larger commodities-trading balance sheet.
M&S Enters Pet Food, Chasing 'Shopping List' Status
Marks & Spencer entered pet food for the first time on August 19th with its 13-line Paws & Pals range, aiming to double its category market share. The launch is part of a broader push to become a full 'shopping list' grocery destination.
A Feline Muscle-Loss Drug Clears Its First Trial
A Delaware biotech says it ran the first randomized trial of a drug for age-related muscle loss in cats, and posted encouraging results as a preprint. The muscle-height gains beat placebo, but a small sample, an appetite-stimulant confound, and an unpublished safety model mean the real catalyst is the conditional-approval filing coming later this year.