Did you know that according to a Narrative Research national survey, one third of Canadian pet owners have welcomed a new pet since the start of the pandemic? That’s right, pets are everywhere! And this instalment of our Subject spotlight blog series is no exception. In it, we'll share quarterly sales and library circulation data of Non-Fiction / Pets titles, and — we didn’t want to let this opportunity pass by — we'll introduce you to some of our BookNet furry friends!
To the data!
Buying Non-Fiction / Pets
Canadians have welcomed more pets in their homes lately, but is that reflected in their book buying choices? Let’s take a look.
In the graph below, we see that while the third quarter of 2021 was better in terms of overall sales of Non-Fiction / Pets books, in 2022 sales were more stable. August 2021, for example, saw a significant dip in sales of 30% compared to July, with sales going back up 58% in September.
Overall, the sales of this subject increased 11% throughout the third quarter of 2021.
The sales of Non-Fiction / Pets titles during the third quarter of 2022 saw small, steady increases. During this time, sales increased by 1% from July to August, and 16% from August to September. Resulting in overall growth of 17%.
Now, looking at the year-over-year differences, we see that in July, for example, sales decreased by 61%. The decrease in year-over-year sales in August was not as dramatic as in July, but still very significant at 44%, by September there was a difference of 59% in the year-over-year sales of Non-Fiction / Pets.
These are the BISAC subcategories with the highest year-over-year increase in sales :
Non-Fiction / Pets / Reference — up 1,148%; and
Non-Fiction / Pets / Horses — up 19%.
From July to September, the most purchased Non-Fiction / Pets subcategories were:
Non-Fiction / Pets / Dogs — 50% of all Non-Fiction / Pets sales;
Non-Fiction / Pets / Cats — 22% of all Non-Fiction / Pets sales; and
Non-Fiction / Pets / Reference — 12% of all Non-Fiction / Pets sales.
Borrowing Non-Fiction / Pets
Are readers choosing to borrow books about pets instead of buying them? Let’s switch gears and focus on library circulation.
In the graph below, we see that despite loans being lower at the beginning of July 2022 compared to July 2021, the overall performance of Non-Fiction / Pets titles was better during the third quarter of 2022 compared to 2021.
More specifically, the quarter started with a decrease of 11% in year-over-year loans. Something that changed by August and September when loans increased by 14% and 8% respectively. Overall, we see that from July to September 2021 the loans of Non-Fiction / Pets decreased by 5%, whereas loans increased by 15% during the third quarter of 2022.
Let’s take a look at renewals. At the beginning of the quarter, there was a year-over-year growth of 5%, this trend continued in August and September with a 21% and 13% year-over-year increase in renewals.
Overall, 2021 saw an increase in renewals of Non-Fiction / Pets of 42%. The third quarter of 2022 saw an increase in renewals of 32%.
Which Non-Fiction / Pets BISAC subcategories were the most popular in Canadian libraries? From July to September 2022, these subcategories saw the greatest increases in library circulation compared to 2021:
Non-Fiction / Pets / Reference — loans up 69% and renewals up 90%;
Non-Fiction / Pets / Reptiles, Amphibians & Terrariums — loans up 47% and renewals up 62%; and
Non-Fiction / Pets / Birds — loans up 26% and renewals up 18%.
During the third quarter of 2022, the most circulated Non-Fiction / Pets subcategories were:
Non-Fiction / Pets / Dogs — 58% of all Non-Fiction / Pets loans and 60% of all Non-Fiction / Pets renewals;
Non-Fiction / Pets / Cats — 16% of all Non-Fiction / Pets loans and 16% of all Non-Fiction / Pets renewals; and
Non-Fiction / Pets / General — 6% of all Non-Fiction / Pets loans and 6% of all Non-Fiction / Pets renewals.
Reading Non-Fiction / Pets
Here are the top selling and top borrowed Non-Fiction / Pets titles from the third quarter of 2022.
Top borrowed
And a Dog Called Fig by Helen Humphreys 🍁
Loving Edie by Meredith May
Indoor Cat by Laura J. Moss and Lynn Bahr DVM
The Forever Dog by Rodney Habib 🍁 and Dr. Karen Shaw Becker
Integrated Dog Training by Michael Wombacher
Top selling
The Forever Dog by Rodney Habib 🍁 and Dr. Karen Shaw Becker
Zak George's Dog Training Revolution by Zak George and Dina Roth Port
And a Dog Called Fig by Helen Humphreys 🍁
The Year of the Puppy by Alexandra Horowitz
And now, without further ado, here are some of the pets that keep us company, warm our legs while we read, and give us their love every day!
Until next time!
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Sales and library circulation data of Cooking titles during the first quarter of 2024.