Pet industry dealmaking picks up again across services and supply
Bottom line
A new round of pet industry dealmaking is picking up pace, with transactions spanning pet food, distribution, and care platforms. GlobalPETS highlighted several recent moves, including the February 18, 2026 agreement to merge Covetrus with MWI Animal Health, a deal that would combine distribution, pharmacy, software, and practice services under one platform. The report also pointed to Rover’s expansion after Blackstone’s roughly $2.3 billion take-private deal, including Rover’s completed November 11, 2025 acquisition of Australia’s Mad Paws, as investors continue to back scaled pet care businesses with cross-border growth potential. Outside North America and Europe, GlobalPETS also noted fresh activity in South Africa’s pet market: RCL FOODS signed a binding agreement to acquire Cape Town-based Martin & Martin for R695 million to expand in wet pet food and pet care, while Monic Group, parent of Montego Pet Nutrition, completed its purchase of Marltons Pet Care to strengthen competition with multinational players. Broader market commentary from GlobalPETS, Capstone Partners, and Lincoln International suggests 2026 is shaping up as a more active year after a slower 2025, with delayed deals beginning to close and buyer appetite improving. (globalpetindustry.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this latest M&A wave is most relevant where it touches the supply chain and practice operations. If the Covetrus-MWI deal closes, it could reshape how clinics buy products, access pharmacy services, and use practice technology, while potentially increasing the leverage of a few large platforms across animal health. More broadly, continued consolidation across pet food, services, and distribution, including manufacturers expanding into pet health, longevity, and everyday care categories, means veterinary teams may see tighter links between manufacturers, logistics providers, digital platforms, and consumer-facing brands, with possible effects on pricing, product access, referrals, and competition. (covetrus.com)
What to watch: Watch for regulatory review and closing timing on the Covetrus-MWI merger, plus whether the stronger 2026 deal pipeline expands further into veterinary-adjacent services, nutrition, and animal health platforms. It is also worth watching pending competition approval for RCL FOODS’ Martin & Martin deal and whether more regional pet food and care manufacturers use acquisitions to build scale against larger multinational brands. (aaha.org)
A fresh wave of pet industry mergers and acquisitions is taking shape this winter, with recent deals showing renewed appetite for scale across pet food, care services, and animal health infrastructure. GlobalPETS flagged the trend through transactions involving companies such as Covetrus and Rover Group, arguing that deal activity has accelerated since the start of 2026 as companies look to broaden reach, deepen capabilities, and position themselves for the next phase of pet sector growth. That momentum is not limited to the largest Western markets: GlobalPETS also highlighted new acquisition activity in South Africa, where established food and pet care companies are using deals to expand product breadth and strengthen local competitive position. (globalpetindustry.com)
The backdrop is a market that cooled after the pandemic-era surge, then began to stabilize. GlobalPETS reported that 2025 was comparatively quiet by recent standards, but not because the sector lost its appeal. Instead, analysts described it as a normalization period after an unusually hot run. By early 2026, that pause appeared to be easing: Capstone Partners said year-to-date pet deal volume had increased as transactions delayed in 2025 started to materialize, while Lincoln International said it was seeing strong interest from both strategic and financial buyers, with more sale processes expected to come to market through the year. (globalpetindustry.com)
One of the most consequential developments for veterinary professionals is the planned merger of Covetrus and MWI Animal Health, announced February 18, 2026. According to the companies, the combined business would bring together MWI’s distribution network with Covetrus’ pharmacy, software, and practice management tools. In the announcement, Covetrus CEO Ben Wolin said the combination would aim to improve logistics, generate savings, and expand support across the animal health ecosystem, including veterinarians, producers, manufacturers, distributors, and pet parents. AAHA reported the transaction is valued at roughly $3.5 billion and noted it is not expected to close before the end of Cencora’s fiscal year on September 30, 2026. (covetrus.com)
The services side is moving, too. Rover agreed to be acquired by Blackstone in a $2.3 billion all-cash transaction announced on November 29, 2023, and has since continued expanding internationally. On November 11, 2025, Rover said it completed its acquisition of Mad Paws, the leading online pet care marketplace in Australia, extending its footprint into the Asia-Pacific region. GlobalPETS has framed that deal as part of a broader pattern: scaled platforms using private-equity backing to add geography, users, and adjacent services rather than relying only on organic growth. (blackstone.com)
Pet food and pet care manufacturing are active as well, including in regional markets. In South Africa, GlobalPETS reported that RCL FOODS signed a binding sale agreement with Simrose Overseas to acquire Cape Town-based Martin & Martin for R695 million, or about $36.5 million. Martin & Martin makes pet food and pet care products including wet food, biscuits, treats, and care items sold under brands such as Husky, Pamper, Beeno, and Bob Martin. The deal is still subject to conditions including competition authority approval, and RCL FOODS said it would expand the company’s currently limited presence in wet pet food and pet care, with a focus on pet health and longevity. In a separate move, Monic Group, the family-owned parent of Montego Pet Nutrition, finalized its acquisition of Marltons Pet Care at the end of January. GlobalPETS said the combination is intended to strengthen local competition with multinational players by pairing Montego’s nutrition business with Marltons’ everyday pet care portfolio. Montego, founded in 2000, is present in more than 20 countries across five continents, while Johannesburg-based Marltons, founded in 1945, is a long-established pet products brand and distributor across major South African retailers. (globalpetindustry.com)
Industry observers say the rebound is being driven by both market conditions and category fundamentals. GlobalPETS cited Allianz Global Investors’ Oleksandr Pidlubnyy saying it is still early to call a full recovery, but that movement is returning to the acquisitions landscape. Lincoln International, after Global Pet Expo 2026, said pet health and wellness continues to drive sector growth and that buyer interest spans both branded platforms and manufacturing assets. Capstone Partners similarly pointed to sustained demand in premium, functional, and veterinary-backed nutrition as a factor supporting deal momentum. The South African transactions fit that pattern too, with acquirers targeting categories tied to everyday care, nutrition, and health-oriented product expansion rather than purely discretionary accessories. (globalpetindustry.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this isn’t just a finance story. Consolidation at the distributor and platform level can affect purchasing channels, inventory access, software integration, pharmacy workflows, and negotiating power for independent practices. If larger multi-service platforms gain share, clinics could benefit from more integrated logistics and technology, but they may also face fewer alternatives in some parts of the supply chain. The broader rise in acquisitions across pet nutrition and services also signals a more connected commercial ecosystem, where consumer brands, care marketplaces, and veterinary-adjacent businesses increasingly influence one another. That can create new partnership opportunities, but it can also raise questions around competition, margin pressure, and how much control practices retain over client relationships. Activity in markets such as South Africa also underscores that consolidation is not only a U.S. or European story; manufacturers are using acquisitions to build stronger positions in wet food, treats, pet health, longevity, and everyday care, categories that can shape client expectations and retail competition around veterinary recommendations. (covetrus.com)
There’s also a valuation story underneath the headlines. GlobalPETS, citing Cascadia Capital, reported that animal health has commanded some of the highest average EBITDA multiples in the pet sector over the past 15 years, ahead of veterinary, consumables, retail, and product categories. That helps explain why investors continue to target businesses tied to recurring demand, health, and operational infrastructure even when broader M&A markets are uneven. In other words, the current deal flow appears to reflect not only improving financing conditions, but also continued confidence that pet health and care remain defensible long-term categories. (globalpetindustry.com)
What to watch: The next key markers are whether the Covetrus-MWI merger clears review and closes on the expected timeline, whether more delayed 2025 processes convert into announced transactions in the second half of 2026, and whether deal activity spreads further into veterinary-adjacent software, diagnostics, therapeutics, and premium nutrition. It will also be worth watching whether regional manufacturers and distributors continue using acquisitions to build scale in pet food and care, including the pending competition review for RCL FOODS’ Martin & Martin transaction and whether combinations like Montego-Marltons intensify competition with multinational brands in local markets. (aaha.org)