Category Captains: Interactive Toys and Litter

Interactive Toys

A bored dog is a destructive dog. When dogs don’t have mental stimulation, they can chew furniture, dig, bark or start excessively licking or pacing. Utilizing the expertise of Certified Training and Behavior Specialists, Starmark pet products know how dogs learn, keep busy and have fun. Starmark’s mental stimulation and interactive play toys, training tools and treats help keep pets mentally engaged in an activity they enjoy. 

Emily Benson, Marketing Director, reported, “Starmark is more than just a pet product manufacturer—we are one of the country’s largest training and boarding centers, as well as an international school for professional dog trainers. The knowledge we garner from actively training dogs from a variety of backgrounds guides our product development and enforces our mantra of keeping pets happy in their homes.” 

With a 100,000 square foot facility situated on 360 acres, Starmark’s training center caters to pets to pros. Their extensive staff of certified professional trainers and behavior specialists offers training in basic companion obedience, solutions for common behavior problems, agility, police K-9, search and more. The company’s deep dog behavioral expertise can be seen in their interactive toys that provide hours of challenging play and help reduce anxiety and boredom behaviors. And in today’s tough market, those are benefits that consumers and retailers are looking for. Benson explained, “Money is restricted in a lot of households across the country but people still want to indulge their pets with treats and toys. As such, people often look for longevity and durability—toys that will both entertain their pets for a long time and withstand hearty play.”

She continued, “With hard goods sales being soft throughout the last few months, retailers have been more discerning in the products they add to their assortment. Products with stand-out features, a lower price point or that encourage repeat sales, such as consumables, seem to be faring better. This could potentially influence new product development in the coming year.”

As a world leader in pet education for more than two decades, Starmark knows how to appeal to dogs. With both US and international distributors, they also work hard to keep their products engaging to retailers too. “We have been utilizing monthly promotion campaigns with our partners, as well as discount programs for initial orders on new items,” Benson shared. “Our intent is to encourage sales of legacy items as well as stoke interest in new items where retailers may be wary of taking chances.” 

Starmark’s deep doggy knowledge gives the company unique insight that leads to innovative products. From a treat dispensing puzzle ball that keeps dogs entertained by releasing food, to their Snapper Trapper Venus, which traps treats for a chewing challenge, while its nubby surface helps clean teeth, Starmark product design stands out in the industry. 

“While we always set out to make a high-quality product with any of our concepts, we also continuously work to improve upon them. Because we manufacture most of our products at our headquarters in Texas, we can adjust our production schedule to maintain a high fulfillment rate. A lot of our toys also utilize our proprietary treats, which creates a bigger basket and repeat sales for retailers.”

Starmark’s products are more than toys. They are problem-solving solutions. The Starmark website boasts loads of customer testimonials like this: “I gave my dog the Everlasting Fire Plug, and he went wild with excitement. He kept busy gnawing at it for most of the evening and when I looked at it, it didn’t even look like he ate any of it. This really is an exceptional product.”

Starmark’s hands-on experience, combined with vast technical knowledge, allows the company to lead the interactive dog toys category—bringing useful and innovative products that keep dogs busy with positive behavior.

Litter

Cat ownership is on the rise and Purina is at the forefront of the litter category—a product staple that is central to owning felines. 

“2026 is poised to be the year of the cat, with cat ownership on the rise—according to the American Pet Products Association, the number of households that own cats in the US rose to 49 million in 2024, an increase of 23 percent since 2023,” said Joe Toscano, VP of Trade and Industry Development at Purina. “And with cat ownership increasing, litter remains a must-have household staple, keeping the category stable even with broader pet category fluctuations. Premiumization of litter is what we see driving the most growth for the category, with consumers increasingly trading up for premium and functional litter options, including low-tracking offerings, lightweight options, such as our Tidy Cats Lightweight Litter or alternative litter systems, like our Breeze Litter System.”

Purina understands that brand loyalty is critical to both retail partners and pet owners along with product performance. When it comes to litter, high performance in the form of superior odor control and clumping are nonnegotiable for pet owners. “We know that consumers who make purchase decisions based on loyalty want to be recognized and appreciated for that loyalty,” Toscano said. “The myPurina App is a tool all retailers can use to help their pet aisle shoppers feel recognized and rewarded for their loyalty, but also a chance to increase visibility of the broad offerings within the category, expanding the basket. But beyond products, we share this tool with retailers also for the incredible opportunity it gives us to support pet owners in other ways, including with tips and advice for bonding with and training pets, and more.”

When retailers team up with Purina, they gain an ally that is trustworthy, has a deep well of expertise, innovation and marketing resources. 

“Retailers partner with Purina because we combine trusted, high-performing brands with category expertise, innovation and marketing muscle,” Toscano said. “We have a dedicated category team focused on growing the category, which allows us to share insights and data and create tailored actions for retailers to help move the litter and/or pet category forward. Additionally, we have implemented solutions that double the on-shelf capacity of our larger size pails. This helps retailers increase sales and maintain a better in-stock position on these big-ticket items. On top of that, our team includes 500 Purina scientists, veterinarians and pet care experts who help ensure our commitment to unsurpassed quality and nutrition.”