Petflation: How soaring pet food prices are straining households
As families across the country struggle to keep food on the table, many are now facing another kind of hunger that often goes unnoticed: the rising cost of feeding their pets.
It's a growing problem known as "petflation."
Pet food has seen a bigger price jump than medical care, electricity, and even groceries. In some Atlanta-area pet stores, dog owners are paying close to $100 for a 25-pound bag of food.
From pet stores and doggy day cares to animal shelters, the strain is clear. For pet parents like Lisa Ray, food insecurity is no longer just a human issue.
A CBS News analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index shows pet food prices have climbed more than 20% since 2022.
"People love their pets as much as we love our humans," Ray said. "They are part of our family. We're going to make sure that they eat."
Ray, who has two cats, a dog, and four daughters, is undergoing cancer treatment and now turns to a pet food pantry for help.
Holding her pet, she said, "This is little Peanut."
At PAWS, a no-kill shelter in Atlanta, Brenna Lakeson helps manage donations.
"Unfortunately, for a lot of people, it comes down to choosing between feeding their kids and feeding their pets," Lakeson said. "Most will feed their kids, and a lot of times the animals end up in a shelter."
So, what's driving the spike in pet food prices, and why is it outpacing so many other products?
"The first thing was supply chain," said John Gibbons, a biochemist and pet industry analyst who has tracked pet food prices since 1997.
He says pandemic-related supply chain issues and a growing demand for premium wet pet food pushed prices up, and they've stayed high. Dry pet food, he noted, has seen the smallest increase.
For those hoping prices will fall soon, Gibbons says that's unlikely.
"Once they're getting that higher price, they're not going to give it up," he said.
And the emotional cost is high, too.
"I think it's shameful and a very sad state of affairs for anybody to go hungry, human or dog," said Steven Walters, who works at a doggy day care.
Across the country, more Americans are struggling to feed what matters most, their family on both two legs and four.