The impact of air pollution on petcare utilization

There is a large literature documenting the adverse impacts of ambient air pollution on human health. In contrast, there is a lack of research studying the effects of air pollution on animal health. This paper fills this gap, utilising five years of data on over seven million visits to veterinary practices across the United Kingdom.

Leveraging within-city variation in daily monitor-measured air pollution levels, the authors find that increases in fine particulate matter (i.e. PM_2.5) lead to significant increases in the number of vet visits for both cats and dogs. In aggregate, these estimates indicate that reducing ambient PM_2.5 levels to the maximum recommended by the World Health Organization (5 micrograms per cubic metre) would result in 80,000 fewer vet visits in the UK each year (a 0.4% reduction).

Key points for decision-makers

• The authors use detailed data on visits to veterinary practices across the UK to investigate the extent to which air pollution impacts petcare utilization.
• They focus on PM_2.5, which is the primary driver of pollution-caused mortality among humans. Pets typically share the same environmental exposures as their human companions and are therefore exposed to similar levels of ambient air pollution. Humans and animals share many of the biological pathways that lead to ill health and death.
• The study finds that an increase of 1 microgram per cubic metre in average PM_2.5 over the preceding week leads to a 0.7% increase in vet admissions for both cats and dogs.
• Decreasing ambient levels of PM_2.5 to 5 μg/m³ as recommended by the WHO would reduce vet visits by 0.4% each year, resulting in around £15 million-worth of savings in vet visit costs alone for cat and dog owners. The full benefits are likely significantly higher.
• The findings raise the possibility that a growing share of the benefits from air pollution regulations may come from the avoided petcare costs associated with reduced exposure to poor air quality.