Let’s be real: pet costumes are basically the animal equivalent of pantyhose for humans—cute in theory, slightly humiliating in reality, and guaranteed to spark a meltdown by 8 p.m.
A recent survey found that a whopping 16% of people genuinely believe pets enjoy dressing up for Halloween. Sweet optimism, honestly. But, like… have these folks ever met a cat?
RELATED: *The Top Halloween Costumes of 2025
Here’s what the survey said about how our furry friends really feel about Halloween fashion:
-
16% say pets love it—or at least tolerate it.
-
24% think pets are “meh, whatever.”
-
45% say pets absolutely hate it.
-
15% are unsure—probably because they haven’t stared into the dead-eyed soul of a dog dressed as a hot dog.
The poll didn’t split cats from dogs, but come on:
-
🐶 Dogs? They’ll grin through anything because they love us… or at least the treats.
-
🐱 Cats? They’re silently plotting our demise, one pumpkin hat at a time.
About one-third of people have dressed up their pets—or plan to this year. And yes, social media is largely to blame. Because if your dog didn’t strut around as a pumpkin for Instagram… did Halloween even happen?
Unsurprisingly, younger people are way more into pet costumes:
-
Only 18% of seniors have ever dressed up a pet.
-
A full 35% of Gen Z have—and will do it again, matching outfits included, TikTok soundtrack queued.
And if you’re curious about this year’s hottest costumes, Google’s Frightgeist has spoken: the top dog costumes are Labubu and Derpy the Tiger from KPop Demon Hunters. Because yes, even your golden retriever isn’t safe from pop culture.
So this Halloween, remember: your pet’s love may be unconditional… but their patience for sequins and wings? Not so much.
