Biodiversity–a term that refers to the variability of life forms in a given area—has long been used to measure ecological health; but could it also be used to gauge the long-term economic health of the pet industry?

As you will read in this month’s cover story, many industry observers strongly feel that this is the case. It is important, they say, that the world of pets continues to include a veritable menagerie of animals. Every type of pet fills a particular niche—whether it is a hamster that serves as a gateway pet and teaches a child responsibility, a reef aquarium that serves as a relaxing hobby, or a dog or cat that provides companionship. Each plays a crucial role in maintaining a healthy pet industry. The bottom line is that pet owners come in all shapes and sizes, with a variety of interests, needs and limitations, and a pet industry that caters to just a segment of these consumers—albeit a large segment—will not, and cannot, be as strong as one that serves them all.

Unfortunately, there are troubling signs that biodiversity in the pet industry could someday be all but extinct. As this month’s cover story notes, pet ownership statistics from the American Pet Products Association (APPA) National Pet Owners Survey show a decline in the number of households that own aquariums, small mammals, birds and herptiles. And, according to a recent retailer survey conducted by Pet Business, this trend seems to be reflected in pet stores. For example, nearly 60 percent of retailers we polled indicated that they do not actually sell pets in their stores—a drastic difference, one would have to think, from just a couple of decades ago, when going to the local pet store was tantamount to a mini-trip to the zoo.

But selling pets is, pardon the pun, a whole different animal—one fraught with a variety of economic, operational and ethical challenges. So no one could really blame a retailer for shying away from the practice. What may be more disturbing is how few pet stores participate in non-dog and cat product categories at all. While more than 70 percent of retailers Pet Business surveyed said that they sold dog and cat products, no other pet product segment broke the 35-percent mark (bird, small animal and aquarium products are sold by about 34 percent of surveyed retailers, and herptile and pond products were sold by around 25 percent).

At the end of the day, the industry, as a whole, must do more to improve ownership figures in some of these troubled pet categories. As you will read in the cover story, there are already a couple of initiatives in place to do just that. And while they have garnered a lot of support from pet industry associations and manufacturers, retailers must get involved too.