朋友因為要採買便宜寵物飼料的關係，又找我逛寵物展，總之，我是抱著隨意走走、開開眼界的心情，看看又有甚麼新玩意，說實話，近幾年來，只要假日，常常就能看到寵物展、寵物市集或毛孩嘉年華等活動，或許也反映少子化與單身、雙薪家庭的比例提升，越來越多人選擇養寵物來陪伴自己。
據我觀察，寵物展的內容也變得越來越多元，早期的寵物展多半以飼料與用品販售為主，如今則加入了健康檢查、行為訓練、寵物保險、甚至是寵物心理諮詢等服務，早年的寵物展只有小小的場地，最近幾年，寵物展的場地也越來越大，規模也越來越驚人，也反映寵物相關產業的蓬勃發展。
這次的展覽，有些攤位也販售守宮、蛇、蜥蜴等爬蟲類，蜥蜴趴在加溫燈下靜靜曬著光，守宮睜著圓圓的眼睛，好奇地看著來往的人群，不過，不少女性對於這類的冷血動物們，是避之為恐不及，所以，這類攤位人潮不多，而可愛動物，如蜜袋鼯等，可以看到女性朋友們搶著抱及把玩牠們。
以領養代替購買的概念，在大力宣導之下，慢慢地影響人們的思維，漸漸地變成是大家的共識了，而在現場，志工們把一些待領養的流浪動物，開放讓人互動，只要看中了那隻動物，就可以現場填寫認養申請書，等候審核通過。
對朋友而言，各家廠商的攤位才是重頭戲，各式各樣的飼料、零食、保健食品，到玩具、衣服、推車與居家用品，商品種類多到讓我眼花撩亂，許多品牌也順勢推出展場限定優惠，我看朋友逛了一圈，買下來不少戰利品，看來可以暫時不用煩惱了，對我而言，就是一場熱鬧的參觀活動。
My friend asked me to go to a pet expo again because they wanted to stock up on cheaper pet food. As for me, I was just going with a “take a look and see what’s new” kind of mindset. Honestly, in recent years, it feels like almost every weekend there’s a pet expo, a pet market, or some kind of pet carnival. This probably reflects social changes like low birth rates and the rise of single-person and dual-income households, with more people choosing pets as companions in their daily lives.
From what I’ve noticed, pet expos have become more and more diverse. In the past, they mainly focused on selling pet food and basic supplies. Nowadays, you can also find services like health checkups, behavior training, pet insurance, and even pet psychology consultations. Pet expos used to be held in small venues, but in recent years, they’ve grown much larger in scale, which really shows how fast the pet industry is expanding.
At this expo, some booths were selling reptiles such as geckos, snakes, and lizards. Lizards lay quietly under heat lamps, basking in the warmth, while geckos stared at the passing crowd with their big, curious eyes. That said, many women tend to avoid these cold-blooded animals, so those booths weren’t very crowded. On the other hand, booths with cute animals like sugar gliders were packed, with lots of women eager to hold and play with them.
The idea of “adopt, don’t shop” has been strongly promoted and has slowly changed the way people think, becoming more of a shared value. At the venue, volunteers brought in rescue animals that were up for adoption and allowed visitors to interact with them. If you connected with an animal, you could fill out an adoption application on the spot and wait for approval.
For my friend, the real highlight was the vendor booths. There were all kinds of pet food, snacks, supplements, toys, clothes, strollers, and home products—so many that it made my head spin. Many brands also offered expo-only discounts. After walking around, my friend bought quite a lot and seemed set for a while. For me, though, it was simply a lively and interesting visit.
