Groundwork

Pets · County · Iowa

Pet grooming and boarding businesses in Dubuque County, IA

The pet grooming and boarding businesses in Dubuque County, IA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 40 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #974 of 1,461 scored counties
#14 of 28 scored counties in Iowa

Listings
23
2 chain locations (9%)
Official establishments
9
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$34.9M
On pets · $851 a household
Spending per listing
$1.5M
40% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.6
56% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
99,381
+0.1% since 2020

See the pet grooming and boarding businesses around any address in Dubuque County

The site report maps the pet grooming and boarding 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 Dubuque 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 23 pet grooming and boarding businesses in Dubuque County. 2 of them (9%) are chain locations, against 9% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.6, 56% above the U.S. rate of 3.6.

Household spending on pets in Dubuque County comes to about $34.9M a year: $851 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.5M per business, 40% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. That spending covers all pets, which pet grooming and boarding businesses share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Dubuque County was 9 in 2023. That is one for every 4,554 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S.

Population estimates show Dubuque County grew 0.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Dubuque County scores 40 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for pet grooming and boarding businesses, ranking #974 of 1,461 scored counties and #14 of 28 scored counties in Iowa.

How Dubuque County compares

The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet grooming and boarding 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 grooming and boarding in Dubuque County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureDubuque CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.63.93.6
Spending per listing$1.5M$2.2M$2.5M
Households per official establishment4,5544,4605,057
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+39.8%+25.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$851$843$909
Median household income$77,630$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score4035

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5 → 9
Employees, 2023
35
Annual payroll, 2023
$794K
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
232 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
14The 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 (except veterinary) in Dubuque 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 Dubuque County

Population, 2025 estimate
99,381+0.1% since 2020
Households
40,989
Median age
39.9
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
608 sq. mi.
People per square mile
163
Median household income
$77,630+23.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$100,177
Median home value
$237,300
Jobs located here
58,941
Daytime population
105,695Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Dubuque 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 grooming and boarding businesses on map listings by name and distance.

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Pet grooming and boarding across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for pet grooming and boarding businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Dubuque County marked.

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for pet grooming and boarding businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Dallas County, IA75122.8$3.7M+17.8%#116 of 1,461
2Johnson County, IA73162.5$3.5M+4.6%#152 of 1,461
3Story County, IA7192.3$3.6M+2.7%#199 of 1,461
4Warren County, IA7062.9$3.3M+9.0%#226 of 1,461
5Scott County, IA61294.0$2.2M+0.4%#456 of 1,461
6Pottawattamie County, IA61143.7$2.2M−0.7%#458 of 1,461
7Woodbury County, IA5771.7$4.7M+0.7%#544 of 1,461
8Polk County, IA57854.1$2.2M+4.8%#555 of 1,461
9Black Hawk County, IA57203.7$2.1M+0.4%#558 of 1,461
10Clinton County, IA5163.1$2.6M−0.9%#701 of 1,461
14Dubuque County, IA40235.6$1.5M+0.1%#974 of 1,461

Other business types in Dubuque County

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

Questions

How many pet grooming and boarding businesses are in Dubuque County, IA?

There are 23 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings in Dubuque County as of September 2026. 2 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count groomers, boarding, dog daycare and pet sitters. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in 2023.

How much do households in Dubuque County, IA spend on pets?

About $34.9M a year, or $851 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 23 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings, it comes to $1.5M per business. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet grooming and boarding businesses. It is estimated from the incomes of the 40,989 households in Dubuque County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Dubuque County, IA compare with the U.S. for pet grooming and boarding businesses?

Dubuque County has 5.6 pet grooming and boarding businesses per 10,000 households, 56% above the U.S. rate of 3.6. Spending per business is $1.5M, 40% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of pet grooming and boarding businesses to household spending, Dubuque County would have about 14, against 23 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,554 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S.

How fast is Dubuque County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Dubuque County at 99,381 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 40,989 households. The median household income in Dubuque County is $77,630 a year, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.2% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Dubuque County scores 40 for pet grooming and boarding businesses (lower middle), #974 of 1,461 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Dubuque County. It maps the pet grooming and boarding 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 grooming and boarding businesses · All 56 business types in Dubuque County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Dubuque 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 Dubuque 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.