MSNBC’s Jim Cramer Calls This New Pet Care Investing Trend “Man’s Best Friend”

The big players are finally beginning to catch on. In a recent MSNBC article by Mad Money’s Jim Cramer, large-scale companies are beginning to act on the lucrative attraction to the multi-billion-dollar-a-year pet care industry. While Cramer speaks mostly to the recent acquisition of Veterinary Centers of America (VCA) by food mogul Mars—who plans to merge the VCA system with its Banfield pet hospitals to create a “dominant” companion animal health care company—other members of the pet care industry including doggie daycare franchises can feel the trickle-down effect of top-level investing by the big players.

“Spending on companion animals has been growing faster than almost any other consumer outlet,” says Cramer. “Pets have moved from the backyard, to the basement, and finally, to the bed,” he says. “Americans spending on pets has exploded in the 21^st Century, more than doubling since 2001.”

This fact would help explain why doggie daycare franchises like Hounds Town USA have seen exponential growth in revenue over the past 15 years. When Hounds Town USA founded its first location in 2001, owner Michael Gould—a retired NYPD canine handler—never expected the company to grow so quickly. Due to such a high demand for its daycare, boarding, grooming, and training services, Hounds Town USA now has five locations across Long Island and counting. They have collectively hosted nearly 600,000 canine (and feline) visitors since their inception.

Cramer also names the cash nature of the pet care business as a top reason the industry is so attractive to investors outside the industry. “There aren’t many large scale companies with exposure to the sector,” he explains. This leaves the door wide open for doggie daycare franchises like Hounds Town USA—which is rooted in legitimate professional experience with animals—the opportunity to provide much- needed doggie daycare, boarding, grooming, training, and retail services.

While most pet owners bring their dogs to doggie daycare franchises like Hounds Town for daycare, boarding, and grooming, there is an intrinsic health and wellness added value for the pet when they use these services. Socialization and interaction in a doggie daycare environment helps with pet obesity, arthritis, and other physical ailments, not to mention the psychological benefits it provides for a dog. “I think anything that makes a company less dependent on pet food and more dependent on animal health is a positive,” says Cramer. Count Hounds Town USA in.