Executive Summary: China’s eight-day National Day holiday turned pet sitting and boarding into one of the busiest service categories in the country. Household-services platform data reported by CCTV Finance show in-home pet feeding orders rose more than 300 percent against the prior week, while JD’s consumer research arm logged a 300 percent jump in pet feeding searches and a 200 percent rise in at-home service orders in the two weeks before the break. Boarding facilities in Ningbo, Chengdu and Zhengzhou reported sold-out capacity at roughly triple normal volume.
Key Facts
- Holiday window
- 1-8 October 2026, eight-day National Day break
- In-home feeding orders
- Up more than 300 percent versus the prior week (household-services platform data via CCTV Finance, 5 Oct 2026)
- JD platform data
- Pet feeding searches up 300 percent in two weeks pre-holiday; in-home service orders up 200 percent (JD Consumption and Industry Development Institute, 30 Sept 2026)
- Boarding capacity
- Ningbo operator with 46 boarding rooms fully booked, about 3x normal; Zhengzhou orders roughly 2x and sold out
- Owner preference
- 48.5 percent still choose pet stores for boarding; 11.4 percent pick professional in-home feeding, rising year on year (2026 China pet industry white paper)
- Market size
- 2025 urban dog and cat consumption reached RMB 312.6 billion, up 4.1 percent; 126 million dogs and cats; projected above RMB 405 billion by 2028
- Prices
- In-home cat visits RMB 30-80 per call by city tier; boarding RMB 50-100 per day for kennel runs, RMB 120-280 per night for hotel-style rooms
- Sources
- CCTV Finance via CNA, ThePaper, China News Service via PChome, Sichuan News Network
What Happened
The eight-day National Day break, which ran 1-8 October 2026, produced one of the sharpest demand spikes China’s pet care service sector has recorded. Data from household-services platforms, reported by CCTV Finance and carried by CNA on 5 October, show pet feeding orders placed through those platforms grew more than 300 percent week on week. One housekeeper quoted in the report, Wang Jiuhua, said her schedule was booked solid from 1 to 8 October and nearly all of it was pet feeding work, adding RMB 100 to 200 a day to her income. Part-time feeders told reporters the standard call pays about RMB 30 per visit, enough to earn around RMB 1,000 across the holiday.
Boarding capacity tightened in parallel. China News Service reported that a Ningbo operator’s 46 boarding rooms were fully booked, with overall boarding volume about three times normal, while a Zhengzhou pet sitter said his holiday orders ran at roughly twice the usual level and had sold out. Owners who wanted animals to stay home turned to pet sitting services arranged through platforms and social media; ThePaper documented one Shanghai owner handing his door code to a stranger found online, at RMB 60 a visit, with instructions for a shy cat and photo reports after each call.
Background: From Favor to Formal Service
Handing keys to a neighbor used to be the default. That habit is now a priced, platformed service with service standards. According to JD Consumption and Industry Development Institute figures released on 30 September, searches for pet feeding inside the JD app rose more than 300 percent in the two weeks before the holiday and at-home pet service orders grew more than 200 percent against the prior period. A separate survey cited in the same report found about 70 percent of owners were open to in home pet care visits over the break rather than moving the animal to a facility.
The supply side has formalized quickly. Didi launched its pet line in December 2025 across more than 20 cities, covering transport, shipping, in-home feeding, dog walking and grooming calls. JD’s home-services arm had opened pet feeding in 23 cities by April 2026. Both platforms standardize what solo sitters improvised: visit records, photos, gloves and shoe covers indoors, and escalation rules when an animal looks unwell. The approach mirrors what sitting platforms in the United States built a decade earlier, adjusted for China’s dense cities and super-app habits.
Industry Context: Where In-Home Care Sits in the Market
The white paper numbers behind this season were already pointing at services. The 2026 China pet industry white paper, produced by the Petdata research platform, counted 126 million urban dogs and cats in 2025, up 1.8 percent, and RMB 312.6 billion of urban consumption, up 4.1 percent year on year, with a projection above RMB 405 billion by 2028. Goods lead that market, but the service layer grows alongside them as owners humanize daily care.
Choice data show the split. When boarding is needed, 48.5 percent of owners still prefer pet stores, but 11.4 percent now pick professional in-home feeding, a share that rose from the prior year. The appeal is stress reduction: cats in particular tolerate a sitter visiting their own territory far better than a kennel stay. Price ladders have settled by city tier, with first-tier visits for cats at RMB 50 to 80 and calls that include dog walking at RMB 80 to 200, against RMB 30 to 50 and RMB 40 to 120 in new first- and second-tier cities.
Market & Business Impact
For platforms, holiday spikes prove the category can carry recurring demand, and each spike leaves behind rated providers who accept bookings year-round. For gig workers, pet care has become a visible income line: the CNA report describes new occupations such as dedicated pet sitters, with operators in Chengdu noting entry requires animal-handling experience and knowledge of stress signals. For boarding operators, the lesson is capacity planning, since Chengdu facilities told Sichuan News Network that holiday rooms were booked a month ahead this year, against two days’ notice in ordinary weeks.
The constraint is trust. Owners are handing house keys and animals to semi-anonymous providers, and the reported cases rely on ratings, chat records and photos. Platforms that formalize vetting, insurance and incident handling will take share from informal social-media matching. That is where the next round of competition in China’s pet services market will be decided.
Companies & Brands Involved
The active platforms are Didi’s pet line, JD’s home-services arm and the household-services apps behind the CCTV Finance data, alongside thousands of independent sitters and boarding operators. Service businesses of this kind sit beside the retail and supply side tracked in the GPI company directory, and the numbers can be set against regional patterns in the GPI industry rankings.
Data & Evidence
In-home feeding orders up more than 300 percent week on week during the holiday (household-services platform data via CCTV Finance, reported by CNA, 5 October 2026). Pet feeding searches up more than 300 percent and at-home service orders up more than 200 percent in the two pre-holiday weeks; about 70 percent of owners open to in-home care (JD Consumption and Industry Development Institute, 30 September 2026, via ThePaper). Ningbo operator’s 46 rooms fully booked at about 3x normal volume; Zhengzhou orders about 2x and sold out (China News Service via PChome, 4 October 2026). 2025 urban pet market RMB 312.6 billion, up 4.1 percent; 126 million dogs and cats; 48.5 percent prefer store boarding, 11.4 percent in-home feeding (2026 China pet industry white paper via ThePaper and Sichuan News Network, 6 October 2026).
What This Means for the Pet Industry
GPI’s read: the holiday week is a stress test that China’s pet care service layer passed, and the residual data show a market moving from informal favors to priced, platformed services. The 11.4 percent share for in-home feeding looks small next to store boarding, but it is the segment compounding fastest because it removes the animal’s stress and the owner’s kennel bill at the same time. Suppliers and investors watching China should treat services, not only goods, as the demand signal to track into 2027.
Key Takeaways
- In-home pet feeding orders in China rose more than 300 percent week on week during the 1-8 October 2026 National Day holiday, per CCTV Finance platform data.
- JD data show pet feeding searches up 300 percent and at-home service orders up 200 percent in the two weeks before the break.
- Boarding sold out at holiday peaks: a Ningbo operator with 46 rooms ran about three times normal volume, and Zhengzhou orders roughly doubled.
- The 2026 industry white paper counts 126 million urban dogs and cats and RMB 312.6 billion of 2025 consumption, projected above RMB 405 billion by 2028.
- 48.5 percent of owners still board at pet stores while 11.4 percent now choose professional in-home feeding, a rising share.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is pet sitting?
Pet sitting means a caregiver visits the owner’s home to feed, water, clean and interact with the animal while the owner travels. In China’s holiday week, platform data showed such orders rising more than 300 percent against the prior week.
How much does pet sitting cost in China?
Reported holiday pricing runs RMB 30-80 per cat visit depending on city tier, RMB 80-200 when dog walking is included, and RMB 50-100 per day for standard boarding, up to RMB 120-280 per night for hotel-style rooms.
Why do owners choose in-home visits over boarding?
Animals stay in their own territory, which lowers stress, especially for cats. Survey data cited by JD’s research institute found about 70 percent of owners were open to in-home care during the holiday.
How big is China’s pet market?
The 2026 China pet industry white paper put 2025 urban dog and cat consumption at RMB 312.6 billion, up 4.1 percent year on year, with a projection above RMB 405 billion by 2028.
Sources
- Primary — CCTV Finance data via CNA, China National Day holiday drives pet economy, in-home feeding orders up 3x, https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202610050311.aspx, 5 Oct 2026
- Secondary — ThePaper, Who takes care of the cats and dogs when owners travel, https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_34203145, Oct 2026
- Secondary — China News Service via PChome, Mainland long holiday triggers pet boarding boom, https://news.pchome.com.tw/living/imedia/20261004/index-79107290052665287009.html, 4 Oct 2026
- Secondary — Sichuan News Network, Chengdu pet hotels fully booked for the holiday, https://scnews.newssc.org/system/20261006/001645785.html, 6 Oct 2026
