Cost of pet food rising

A new story at BusinessWeek.com says pet food prices are climbing, and package sizes are shrinking. As an example, the PetSmart VP of dog and cat consumables cited a bag of Hill's Science Diet dry dog food up $2, to $36, this year. He also says the $17 Purina Dog Chow bag has dropped from 50 pounds to 44 pounds.

An executive at Colgate-Palmolive, maker of Hill's products, says a double-digit price increase was implemented in the second quarter. The executive blames the sudden price increases on a 30 percent price hike in pet food staple ingredients like corn and rice.

A price hike won't cause owners to ditch their high-cost, high-quality pet food, according to consumers and analysts quoted in the story.

Have packaging changes affected your clients' pet food choices? Let us know by commenting below.