英国宠物零售商“Pets at Home”的全年零售额首次突破10亿英镑，这是由于宠物主人更舍得花钱把他们的宠物当作“小主人”般伺候，包括给狗狗购买用来玩乐的游泳池。

 

The dilemma¹ of what to do with your dog while you're at work has long been a major barrier for many who'd like to become an owner. But Pets at Home say the pandemic has changed all that as we spend more time in our homes.

当自己上班不在家时，该怎么照料狗狗，这个问题实在让人左右为难，这也是让很多想养狗的人下不了决心的主要障碍。不过 “Pets at Home” 指出，新冠病毒疫情改变了这一切，因为我们待在家里的时间更多了。

 

It's seen the number of pets in the UK grow by eight percent in the last year, leading to a similar sized growth in its sales to 1.1 billion pounds.

过去一年，英国的宠物数目上升了8%，从而带动了这家宠物用品公司的销售相应增长，零售额达到11亿英镑。

 

We're pampering² them more too. The industry calls it 'humanisation'. Paddling pools for pooches helped sales of puppy products grow by more than a quarter. But we were even keener for kitten kit³, where the retailer⁴ saw spend increase by more than a third.

与此同时，我们也更加宠爱它们。宠物业界称之为 “人性化”，就是把动物当作人类般对待。给狗狗玩水的小游泳池热销，从而带动小狗用品销售增长了超过25%。但我们对购买猫咪用品甚至更热衷，在这上面的消费增加了超过三分之一。

 

Overall, profits dipped slightly to 88 million pounds as parts of the business, particularly grooming⁵ salons⁶, were hit by Covid-related restrictions⁷. But the company expects more growth to come as it cashes in on our frenzy⁸ for furry⁹ friends.

虽然宠物用品热销，但是整体而言，该公司的利润稍微下跌到8800万英镑，这是由于部分业务，尤其是宠物美容店，受到新冠疫情限制措施的打击。不过该公司预期，由于我们对这些毛茸茸的朋友们狂热不减，其生意会蒸蒸日上。

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