Groundwork

Pets · County · West Virginia

Pet businesses in McDowell County, WV

How McDowell County, WV compares with other counties and the U.S. for pet businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

The score needs at least 5 listings; this market has 1.

Listings
1
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$3.6M
On pets · $563 a household
Spending per listing
$3.6M
Too few listings to compare
Listings per 10k households
1.5
Too few listings to compare
Population, 2025
16,878
−10.9% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in McDowell County

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 McDowell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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

What this means

Households in McDowell County spend about $3.6M a year on pets, or $563 per household, 38% below the U.S. average. That works out to $3.6M per business.

There is 1 pet business on map listings in McDowell County as of September 2026. That is 1.5 per 10,000 households.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in McDowell County, since they leave out counts under 3.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of McDowell County declined 10.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S. With 1 pet business on map listings, McDowell County isn’t given a market score: the score needs at least 5, since one listing more or less would swing it.

How McDowell County compares

The same measures for West Virginia 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 McDowell County, WV compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureMcDowell CountyWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households1.59.010.4
Spending per listing$3.6M$876K$878K
Households per official establishmentn/a2,5751,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+10.1%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025−10.9%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$563$788$909
Median household income$31,559$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored50

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
4The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in McDowell County, 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 McDowell County

Population, 2025 estimate
16,878−10.9% since 2020
Households
6,467
Median age
42.5
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
534 sq. mi.
People per square mile
34
Median household income
$31,559+14.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$43,863
Median home value
$50,000
Jobs located here
3,064
Daytime population
16,847Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in McDowell County?

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 McDowell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Pet businesses across West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in West Virginia for pet businesses, numbered among those based in West Virginia, with McDowell County marked.

Top counties in West Virginia

Counties in West Virginia ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Jefferson County, WV862812.3$860K+9.2%#20 of 2,200
2Berkeley County, WV85418.0$1.1M+13.7%#27 of 2,200
3Monongalia County, WV68439.6$916K+2.0%#351 of 2,200
4Putnam County, WV662410.3$913K−1.0%#429 of 2,200
5Wayne County, WV6595.7$1.3M−4.0%#454 of 2,200
6Hampshire County, WV631011.6$689K+4.4%#561 of 2,200
7Upshur County, WV6066.3$1.2M−0.3%#644 of 2,200
8Preston County, WV6097.0$1.1M−0.6%#646 of 2,200
9Wood County, WV59287.8$992K−2.1%#682 of 2,200
10Mineral County, WV59109.0$902K−0.4%#686 of 2,200
McDowell County, WVNot scored11.5$3.6M−10.9%

Other business types in McDowell County

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in McDowell County, WV?

As of September 2026, map listings count 1 pet business in McDowell County. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. No official count is published for pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in McDowell County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in McDowell County, WV spend on pets?

About $3.6M a year, or $563 per household. That is 38% below the U.S. average (an index of 62, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1 pet business on map listings, it comes to $3.6M per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,467 households in McDowell County and national spending patterns by income.

How does McDowell County, WV compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

McDowell County has 1 pet business on map listings, too few for a steady comparison with the U.S. rate. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, McDowell County would have about 4, against 1 on map listings.

How fast is McDowell County, WV growing?

Population estimates put McDowell County at 16,878 people in 2025, down 10.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,467 households. Median household income in McDowell County is $31,559, 61% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 14.0%, before inflation.

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. McDowell County has no market score for pet businesses: the score needs at least 5 on map listings, and it has 1.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in McDowell County. 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 McDowell County

Screening a site or an acquisition in McDowell County?

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 McDowell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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.