Hungary had the highest share of dog-owning households in the European Union, with almost half of the population owning at least one dog in 2023. Other countries, like Poland and Romania, had a little more than a third of households with at least one pet dog. Pet ownership in Europe Germany had the highest pet dog population in Europe, with more than ten million dogs in 2022. In comparison, Romania had approximately 4.2 million dogs in that same year. However, pet dog ownership was more prevalent among Romanian households, where 43 percent of households owned at least one dog in 2022, compared to only 21 percent of German households who were dog owners in that same year. In the last decade, both the number of pet cats and pet dogs increased significantly in Europe. Pet food trade Due to a growing pet population in the European continent, the pet industry flourished, and pet food trade is one indicator of that growth. The import value of cat and dog food more than tripled in the last decade, increasing from 480 million U.S. dollars in 2011 to over 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. European exports of pet food followed a similar trend, reflecting a general expansion in pet food industry and trade in Europe.

Idaho had the highest dog ownership rate in the United States (U.S.), with ** percent of households owning a dog in 2025. In Tennessee, around ** percent of households were dog owners in that year. Dog food industry in the U.S. The sales value of dog food in the U.S. amounts to a total of approximately **** billion U.S. dollars annually, excluding treats. Among the various dog food categories, dry dog food makes up the largest share of sales, with just under ***** billion U.S. dollars. The leading dog biscuit, treat, and beverage vendor in the U.S. in terms of sales is Big Heart Pet Brands, which generates sales of over * billion U.S. dollars annually. The sales of Big Heart Pet Brands are more than twice as much as those of its biggest competitor, Nestlé Purina PetCare. The leading frozen and refrigerated dog food vendors in the U.S. is Freshpet. The company dominates the market by a considerable margin. Dog ownership in the U.S. Nationwide, approximately ** million U.S. households own at least one dog. Dogs are the most widely owned type of pet among American households. Within the last 12 years, the number of dog-owning households grew by more than ** percent. In general, there has been an increase in the household penetration rate of pet ownership in the U.S. during the last 35 years. In 2023, about ********** of households owned at least one pet. Since the state of Idaho has the highest percentage share of dog owners among U.S. states, it is unsurprising that its state capital, the city of Boise, has the largest number of dog parks per 100,000 residents in the country. There are *** off-leash dog parks per 100,000 residents in Boise, Idaho.

This statistic shows the share of pet owners in the population of selected countries all over the world as of 2016. During the survey, ** percent of respondents in Argentina stated they own a dog, while ** percent said they own a cat.

In 2023, Germany had the highest pet dog population in the European Union, with more than 10 million dogs. Spain ranked second with a dog population of 9.5 million. Other countries, like Greece and Denmark, had comparatively smaller dog populations of approximately 652,000 and 641,000, respectively. Pet dogs in Europe The number of pet dogs in Europe has witnessed a notable increase since 2010, increasing from around 73 million in 2010 to more than 106 million in 2023. This positive trend was accompanied by a similar growth in the number of pet-owning households in Europe, which has increased by nearly double in the period between 2010 and 2023. Pet food industry in Europe Despite a marked increase in the dog population along with the number of pet-owning households in Europe, this has not been translated in a similarly significant increase in pet food sales in the continent. The annual sales volume of pet food products remained relatively stable in the last decade, reaching about 9.9 million tons of pet food products in 2023. The largest pet food manufacturer in Europe was the Belgian company United Petfood Producers, with an annual revenue stream of approximately 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2024.

This statistic shows the average share of pet ownership worldwide as of 2023, by pet type. Across all surveyed countries, ************* are the most popular pet type around the world.

In 2023, Romania ranked highest for cat ownership among countries in the European Union, with 48 percent of households in Romania owning at least one cat. Poland followed in second with about 41 percent of cat-owning households. That year, the overall pet cat population on the continent was estimated at around 108 million. Pet food production in Europe The pet food industry in Europe gained pace in recent years and presently holds a prominent position on the global level. In 2024, Europe was the largest pet food producing region in the world, with a production volume of approximately 11.73 million metric tons, compared to 11.44 million metric tons produced in North America. In the previous, Europe’s pet food production volume was, however, was the only decreasing in the world. The Oceania region was the fastest-growing. European pet food companies Europe’s growing pet food industry also means there are many players in the pet food market competing for profits. In 2024, United Pet Food Producers, a Belgian pet food manufacturer, garnered the highest revenues of approximately 1.5 billion U.S. dollars. Other leading pet food companies in Europe included Partner in Pet Food from Hungary and Agrilomen SA from Spain, with annual revenues totaling 857 million and 850 million U.S. dollars, respectively.

In 2018, Brazil was the country with the highest amount of dogs from the presented Latin American countries, with **** million dogs. Mexico followed, with **** million. In 2021, the pet food market in Latin America is expected to reach a value of nearly ** billion U.S. dollars.

With over 470 million dogs kept as pets worldwide, dogs came out on top as the leading type of pet in 2018. Within the same year, there were roughly 370 million pet cats in the world.

Pets in the European Union

While dogs were globally speaking the most common type of pet, cats were more common in the European Union in 2018. Roughly 75 million people within this region had a pet cat in 2018, compared to the 65 million pet dogs. That year, Germany had about nine and a half million pet dogs, making it the country with the highest number within the European Union. Other top dog-loving countries included the United Kingdom, Poland, and France.

Other pets in Germany

Besides cats and dogs, Germans had many other household pets in 2018. About five and a half million small pets, such as hamsters and rabbits, were kept by Germans that year. Additionally, about two million households in Germany owned an aquarium and roughly one and a half million households owned a garden pond.

From 2010 to 2024, the share of cats in Swedish households was higher than the share of dogs. In 2019, ** percent of households owned at least one cat, while there were ** percent of dog-owning households. In 2024, the share amounted to ** percent of cat owners as well as ** percent of dog owners. The number of the popular pet animal cats grew in this period from **** million to **** million cats.    Most popular cat breeds  The Ragdoll cat breed came first in the popularity ranking measured by number of purchased animals in Sweden in 2021. In this year, nearly ***** animals of this breed were bought. The Maine Coon ranked second with a number of around ***** purchased cats, ahead of the Siberian Cat cat and the Norwegian Forest cat.  Pet dogs  In Sweden in 2010, there were *** thousand pet dogs. This number increased by almost *** thousand and, in 2022, peaked at about **** million animals. As of 2019, the Labrador Retriever was the most purchased dog breed in the country, reaching over *** thousand animals. It was followed by approximately **** thousand purchased Golden Retriever dogs as well as German Shepherd dogs.

As of 2023, an estimated *** million European households owned at least one pet. During the past two decades, the number of pet-owning households has increased by nearly double. Pets in the European Union The most popular pets in the European Union (EU) are cats. There are approximately ****** more cats than dogs in the EU. Besides cats and dogs, other popular pets are ornamental birds, such as canaries, parakeets, parrots, and small mammals, like mice, hamsters, guinea pigs, or rabbits. The number of cats in Europe has steadily increased during the last decade. In 2010, there were about ****** cats in Europe. By 2021, this figure had reached over *******. A similar trend has been observed in the number of dogs in Europe. Cats in the European Union While cats are popular companions for households in many EU countries, Germany and France have the highest numbers of cats among EU countries by a considerable margin. However, these countries are also the most populous in the EU. Taking a look at the share of households who own at least one cat in the EU shows that the share of cat lovers in Romania is the highest. Almost half of Romanian households own a cat. The share of cat-owning households seems to be comparatively high in many eastern European countries.

Pet cat and dog ownership in Russia showed similar dynamics during the period under consideration. Over ********* of Russian households owned at least one cat on average, while the share of families having a pet dog was measured at ** percent in 2023. Russia, the country of cats The number of domestic cats across Russia outnumbered the population of pet dogs in the country by roughly ***********. However, while **** the domestic dogs were pedigree, the majority of cats owned by Russian households were outbred, making them the most widespread types of domestic animals in the country. This fact can be explained by the social affinity to pick up small domestic friends in the streets. Cats and dogs worldwide From a global perspective, the count of pet dogs was greater than that of cats. Germany was the leading country in the European Union (EU) by number of domestic cats and dogs over that year. Nonetheless, the German pet cat population was lower than that in Russia.

In 2018, Brazil was the country with the highest amount of dogs and cats from the presented Latin American countries, with **** million cats. Mexico followed, with **** million. In 2021, the pet food market in Latin America is expected to reach a value of nearly ** billion U.S. dollars.

From 2010 to 2024, the share of Norwegian households which owned a cat remained steady at around *********. By comparison, over this period, around ** percent of households owned at least one dog. Cats seemed to be a very popular pet in Norway; the number increased recently and peaked in 2021 and 2022 at ******* animals.    Pet cats in Sweden In Norway’s neighboring country Sweden, the situation was similar. Since 2012, the share of households owning at least one cat remained between ** and ** percent, while ** to ** percent of Swedish households owned a dog. In this country, too, cats were more common to have as a pet than dogs. As of 2024, there were around **** million pet cats registered in Sweden. Pet cats in Denmark The population of pet cats in Denmark in 2023 was estimated to be *******. Unlike in Norway and Sweden, the share of households owning cats as a pet in this year was much lower than households owning a pet dog. It is striking that the situation was different before. From 2016 to 2019, the share of households owning at least one dog remained stable at around ** percent, while it was about ** percent for pet cats.          

The share of households owning a pet in the United Kingdom remained relatively stable between 2012 and 2018, hovering around an estimated percentage of 47 to 45 percent. However, pet ownership levels peaked to an unprecedented high of 62 percent in 2022, likely as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and increased time spent at home. In 2024, this figure shrank to 60 percent. Pet ownership in the UK With more than half of UK households owning at least one pet in 2024, dogs and cats were the most common household pets in that year, with an estimated 13.5 million dogs and 12.5 million cats living in homes. As of 2023, the United Kingdom was the highest-ranking European country in terms of its dog population, followed by Germany. Consumer spending on pets in the UK As the pet population in the United Kingdom increased in size, so did consumer spending on pet food and pet-related products and services. Spending on pets and related products reached 11.3 billion British pounds in 2023, a notable increase from a mere 2.9 billion British pounds in 2005. Among the most expensive pet-related expenditures are veterinary and pet services, which constituted 7.2 billion British pounds in 2023.

In 2023, the share of households owning a pet dog in the Philippines accounted for **** percent, which was an increase compared to the previous year. In the same year, the number of households owning such pet reached nearly ***** million in the country.

Cats and dogs are European households’ favorite animals to keep, although more unconventional choices such as reptiles and small mammals are chosen as pets in high numbers too. In 2023, the population of pet cats in Europe was over 108 million. Germany and France were the two countries where the number of cats was the highest. What about dogs? The number of dogs in Europe was lower than the number of cats, although dogs are a constant presence for a considerable share of Europeans as well. In 2023, about one in four households in Europe owned at least one pet dog. Dog ownership per household showed a slight increase compared to previous years and the number of dogs in Europe generally increased as well. Pet care in Europe Pets are invaluable companions to us all, but also predictably tied to a valuable industry. Fressnapf, headquartered in Germany, was the leading pet care retailer in Europe based on turnover. UK-based Pets at Home ranked in second place among pet care retailers. Typically, pet care products consist of pet food as well as accessories and veterinary supplies.

According to a 2019/2020 survey, eight out of ten households in Paraguay have at least one pet, while in Peru nearly seven out of ten households have a domesticated animal. In 2019, there were approximately ** million dogs and nearly ** million cats as pets in Brazil.

In selected years from 2010 to 2023, the share of Danes owning cats and dogs fluctuated. Noticeable is, that from 2010 to 2014, more people were dog owners (around ** percent) than cat owners (around ** percent). This changed in the following years to ** percent having cats and approximately ** percent having dogs. By comparison, in the neighboring country Sweden, there were always more households with cats than dogs in the same years (except in 2020 when the share was the same).  Cat and dog population in Denmark  In numbers, the cat population decreased slightly from *** thousand in 2010 to *** thousand animals in 2022. The dog population grew between 2010 to 2020 from *** to *** thousand, before decreasing again in 2021.  Cat and dog population in Sweden The number of cats as well as the number of dogs increased in recent years. As of 2022, the cat population was measured at approximately *** million animals and the dog population at **** million animals.

Since 2012, the share of households in Turkey with at least one dog or cat has fluctuated. According to the most recent report published by the European Pet Food Industry, as of 2023, **** percent of Turkish households have at least one pet dog. This share is higher for those who cohabit with cats, at about ** percent. Nevertheless, compared to other countries in the European Union, this is quite a low ratio. Cats and dogs inside and outside Turkish households This is not to say that Turkish households are not friendly with pets, though. In 2023, the estimated number of pet cats and dogs in Turkish households was over ***********, yet Turkey is known for its streets accommodating many stray cats (and dogs), loved and looked after by residents, established as a familiar presence in citizens’ everyday lives. Pet food and pet animal stores in Turkey In Turkey, there are almost ** thousand retail stores where pet animals and pet food are available for purchase. These stores also include and specialize in the sales of flowers, plants, seeds, and fertilizers.

The share of pet dog-owning households in Hungary increased significantly in 2023. In that year, **** of households in the country owned at least one pet dog. The share of households with at least one pet cat decreased slightly from the previous year.