Spain leads European pet dog ownership per capita 2021

More populous nations inherently will tend to have more pets. However, ordering the top five cat and dog populations in Europe by per capita pet ownership causes different patterns to emerge.

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Countries in Europe remain major players in a global pet food market. (Andrea Danti | AdobePhoto.com)
Countries in Europe remain major players in a global pet food market. (Andrea Danti | AdobePhoto.com)

The rankings of pet populations in various European countries don’t necessarily reflect the prevalence of pet ownership. More populous nations inherently will tend to have more pets. However, ordering the top five cat and dog populations in Europe by per capita pet ownership causes different patterns to emerge.

Last year, Russia had the highest pet dog and cat populations in Europe, according to the FEDIAF report "Facts & Figures 2021." Italians owned the most pet birds, while France was home to the most reptile pets. The United Kingdom had the most aquariums.

Considering the six nations with highest dog and cat populations, I divided that FEDIAF pet data by the human population in 2021, according to World Bank statistics using Eurostat data. Russia dropped from the top spot to the fifth, while Spain proved to have the most dogs per person. Likewise, when considering the cat population, Russia went to fifth. France proved to have the most cats per person. Spain and France were opposites in pet preference, with France having the lowest per capita dog numbers. Spain had the fewest cats per person.

6 highest dog populations per capita in Europe 2021

  1. Spain
  2. United Kingdom
  3. Italy
  4. Germany
  5. Russia
  6. France

6 highest cat populations per capita in Europe 2021

  1. France
  2. Germany
  3. United Kingdom
  4. Italy
  5. Russia
  6. Spain

Cat and dog populations per capita in Europe 2021


Dog population

Cat population

Human population 2021

Per capita dog

Per capita cat

France

7,500,000

15,100,000

67,499,340.00

0.111

0.224

Germany

10,300,000

16,700,000

83,129,290

0.124

0.201

Italy

8,700,000

10,050,000

59,066,220

0.147

0.170

Russia

17,550,000

22,950,000

143,446,060.00

0.122

0.160

Spain

9,313,000

5,859,000

47,326,690.00

0.197

0.124

United Kingdom

12,000,000

12,000,000

67,326,570.00

0.178

0.178

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