Groundwork

Pets · County · Connecticut

Pet businesses in the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT

The pet businesses in the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 26 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,985 of 2,200 scored counties
#8 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut

Listings
68
7 chain locations (10%)
Official establishments
35
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$34.6M
On pets · $723 a household
Spending per listing
$509K
42% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.2
37% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
114,690
+2.2% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in the Northwest Hills Planning Region

The site report maps the pet businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Northwest Hills Planning Region scores 26 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for pet businesses, ranking #1,985 of 2,200 scored counties and #8 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Households in the Northwest Hills Planning Region spend about $34.6M a year on pets, or $723 per household, 21% below the U.S. average. That is about $509K of household spending for each business on map listings, 42% below the U.S. figure of $878K.

The Northwest Hills Planning Region has 68 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 10% of them, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.2, 37% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Northwest Hills Planning Region was 35 in 2023. That is one for every 1,367 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $4.2M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Northwest Hills Planning Region. Population estimates show the Northwest Hills Planning Region grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Northwest Hills Planning Region compares

The same measures for Connecticut and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Pet businesses in Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT compared with Connecticut and the U.S.
MeasureNorthwest Hills Planning RegionConnecticutU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.211.110.4
Spending per listing$509K$671K$878K
Households per official establishment1,3671,6601,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+5.1%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.2%+3.0%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$723$742$909
Median household income$93,551$95,781$80,734
Groundwork market score2629

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
35
Employees, 2023
286
Annual payroll, 2023
$14M
One-person businesses, 2023
106Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
687 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
39The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$4.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Northwest Hills Planning Region, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in the Northwest Hills Planning Region

Population, 2025 estimate
114,690+2.2% since 2020
Households
47,845
Median age
47.0
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
787 sq. mi.
People per square mile
144
Median household income
$93,551
Average household income
$131,679
Median home value
$335,600
Jobs located here
36,871
Daytime population
93,666Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Northwest Hills Planning Region?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the pet businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Pet businesses across Connecticut

Every Connecticut market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Connecticut for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Northwest Hills Planning Region marked.

Top counties in Connecticut

Counties in Connecticut ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT541159.6$763K+4.1%#909 of 2,200
2South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT502139.2$765K+2.5%#1,090 of 2,200
3Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT491659.2$752K+3.2%#1,134 of 2,200
4Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT4732713.9$633K+3.5%#1,244 of 2,200
5Capitol Planning Region, CT4539310.0$723K+3.1%#1,324 of 2,200
6Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT3612510.8$631K+2.0%#1,669 of 2,200
7Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT3011215.1$511K+2.3%#1,872 of 2,200
8Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT266814.2$509K+2.2%#1,985 of 2,200
9Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT226717.0$408K+3.0%#2,079 of 2,200

Other business types in the Northwest Hills Planning Region

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Funeral services

Questions

How many pet businesses are in the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 68 pet businesses in the Northwest Hills Planning Region. 7 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 35 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Another 106 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT spend on pets?

About $34.6M a year, or $723 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $509K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 47,845 households in the Northwest Hills Planning Region and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

The Northwest Hills Planning Region has 14.2 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 37% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $509K, 42% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Northwest Hills Planning Region would have about 39, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,367 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S.

How fast is the Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT growing?

Population estimates put the Northwest Hills Planning Region at 114,690 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 47,845 households. Median household income in the Northwest Hills Planning Region is $93,551, 16% above the U.S. median of $80,734.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Northwest Hills Planning Region scores 26 for pet businesses (lower middle), #1,985 of 2,200 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Northwest Hills Planning Region. It maps the pet businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for pet businesses · All 56 business types in the Northwest Hills Planning Region

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Northwest Hills Planning Region?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.