Halloween from a kid centric event has switched over to mini Christmas mode over time where everyone gets themselves fancy costumes to trigger the festive mood. This costume fetish is not restricted to humans; Americans are increasingly spending handsome amounts on Halloween costumes for their pets.
"Yes, Halloween has gone to the dogs. And the cats, too. Sales of pet costumes have soared in recent years, growing by 68% - from $220 million in 2010 to $370 in 2012," according to the National Retail Federation, reports CTV News.
Retailers have come up with exclusive costumes on Halloween for the four legged family members. "We've got a costume for every animal out there pretty much. And everybody's doing it," said Tanya Matkowski, a trainer at PetSmart, a U.S.-based pet store.
The most popular Halloween costumes for this season include pumpkins, hot dogs, cats, devils and witches.
However, the pet at the same time need to get familiar with the fun -frolic dressing beforehand to make sure they are comfortable in their new outfits.
Wednesday, some pet owners gathered at the Phillippi park, Sarasota, for a pet costume contest to raise funds for the Humane Society of Sarasota County. The furry animals were decked up in Halloween costumes clearly pointing to the extravagant lifestyles of the owners. The Americans are likely to expend more than $33 million on pet costumes on Halloween this year, reports mysuncoast.
"I spend, well I don't spend that much on my pet but I spend a lot on my pets, they are very spoiled" said Daniel Plonski, a pet dog owner at the park, in a statement.
Pet costumes are not very expensive. Some of the pet costumes even come as cheap as $10, according to a recent post on marketwatch. So the people do not mind paying for them for their beloved pets.
