Pet Facts

2014 Pet Ownership Facts

There are 179 million pet dogs and cats in America today. That’s 84 million dogs and 96 million cats!
Shelters take in 6-8 million pets, rehome 3-5 million, and kill 2.7 million healthy and adoptable animals.
That’s a kill rate of only 1.5% of the pet population.
Americans acquire 15-17 million dogs and cats every year, growing the total pet population by more than 4.5 million cats and 2.6 million dogs.
“Pet Overpopulation” is not a valid excuse. There are enough homes and demand for every shelter pet.
Hobby breeders produce only 2 million dogs per year, so breeders are not to blame for shelter killing.
The only thing that kills a shelter pet is a failed shelter.

The absolute number and percent of dogs and cats that are killed each year in American shelters is at an all time low, the continuation of a rapid and sustained downward trend for the last forty years. The HSUS, which has a vested interest in maximizing the public perception of the shelter problem [because it makes a lot of money promoting the issue and very little on any sort of solution], reports that the number of dogs+cats killed in shelters each year is down to an estimated 2.7 million.  That’s out of a population of 178.9 million dogs and cats combined according to the American Pet Product Association.  A mere 1.5% shelter kill rate, down from 1.8-3.0% two years ago.

U.S. shelter and adoption estimates for 2012-13
There is no central data reporting system for U.S. animal shelters and rescues. These estimates are based on information provided by the (former) National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy. Just as the U.S. has come a long way over the last few decades in terms of increased pet ownership, it’s also progressed in terms of euthanasia. The number of dogs and cats euthanized each year in shelters has decreased, from 12–20 million to an estimated 3–4 million. However, there’s still work to do: An estimated 2.7 million healthy shelter pets are not adopted each year, and only about 30 percent of pets in homes come from shelters or rescues.

• 3,500—Number of animal shelters
• 6 to 8 million—Number of cats and dogs entering shelters each year
• 25 percent—Percentage of purebred dogs in shelters
• 3 to 4 million—Number cats and dogs adopted from shelters each year
• 2.7 million—Number of adoptable cats and dogs euthanized in shelters each year
• 30 percent—Percentage of shelter dogs reclaimed by their owners
• 2 to 5 percent—Percentage of shelter cats reclaimed by owners

The last time I reported on this a year and a half ago, both the ASPCA (which hasn’t released new estimates) and the HSUS were quoting 3-5 million dog plus cat deaths in shelters per year.  So we’re down anywhere from 10 to 45% over the last two-year interval.  It appears that a resolution of 2 years is as good we’re going to get as these new numbers represent the first update since my last report and coincide with the publication of the summary results from the American Pet Products Association’s National Pet Owners Survey which comes out in two year intervals.

Over those two years (2011-2012 report vs. 2013-2014 report)  the estimated population of dogs in the USA has risen from 78.2 million to 83.3 million, and cats have risen from 86.4 million to 95.6 million.  Dogs are still the most popular choice in pets from a household perspective with 56.7 million homes owning at least one dog and 45.3 million homes owning cats.  Overall, 68% (up from 62% since ’11-12 and 56% since 1988) of U.S. households–totaling 82.5 million homes–own a pet.  Over 10 million more homes have opened their door to a dog and 6.4 million more homes have acquired cats in the last two years.

Over the last ten years the U.S. population has increased at a rate of 2.6 million people per year and the number of households has grown an average of 1.2 million per year.  This means that dog and cat popularity are increasing greater than simple population expansion.

Other published estimates of the yearly shelter kill rate are as follows:

• Maddie’s Fund claims “3 million healthy or treatable dogs and cats put to death in shelters each year” and that 17 million people are planning on acquiring a pet in the next year.
• American Humane Association claims “about 3.7 million — nearly half [of 8 million stray and unwanted animals taken in by shelters] — of these animals must be euthanized because good homes cannot be found for them.
• No Kill Advocacy Center claims “there are roughly three million dogs and cats killed in U.S. shelters annually because they lack a home.”
• ASPCA claims “Approximately 5 million to 7 million companion animals enter animal shelters nationwide every year, and approximately 3 million to 4 million are euthanized (60 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats).”

NAIA offers some historical insight and pet sourcing breakdowns.

Rowan and Patronek reported [20 years ago] that 52 million dogs lived in 35 million US households. About 6.2 million dogs died each year, 3.8 million in homes, veterinary hospitals and under the wheels of a vehicle, and an additional 2.4 million in shelters. Each year, owners acquired about 7.3 million dogs, including 5.8 million puppies from pet stores and breeders, one million dogs from animal shelters, and 500,000 as adult strays or previously owned pets.

Patronek, G. and Rowan, A. (1995). Determining dog and cat numbers and population dynamics. Anthrozoos 8: 199-205.

Puppies come from 3.3 percent of dog-owning households as follows:

Show breeders, 1.8 million (31 percent);
Amateur breeders, 1.3 million (23 percent);
Mixed breeds, 2.6 million (46 percent).
Pet stores, 500,000(7 percent)

Embrace Pet Insurance says that the UK pet population recycles itself every 14 years. This is important in estimating the break-even birth and death rate for dogs and cats.  One method of doing this is to assume no growth or decline and divide the population by the average life-span.  14 years is pretty generous, the average lifespan of most dogs is actually more like 11 years.

The American Human Pets Fact Sheet offers a wealth of demographic information on pets:

Source of pet dogs –
Family/friends (38%),
Shelter/Rescue Organization(22%),
Breeder (16%)
– American Humane Association survey (2012)

Other types of dogs

Military Working Dogs (MWD) – Internet sources report that there are
on average about 3,000 MWD on active duty MWD in all branches of the military. About 300 to 350 MWDs retire each year.

Service Dogs – There are approximately 20,000 service dogs in the U.S.,
which includes 10,000 guide dogs

Pet Health – Morbidity and Mortality Trends
Obesity – Obesity is considered an “epidemic” for dogs, cats and people.
56% of dogs, 54% of cats, and 69% of humans (adults over the age years
of 20 years) in U.S. were considered overweight or obese in 2011.

Diabetes – Diabetes is reported to be increasing in both dogs (up 32%)
and cats (up 16%) since 2006 [Banfield hospital data – 800 hospitals]

Common health problems seen in dogs at veterinary clinics –
dental disease, ear infections, allergies, skins infections/growths,
vomiting/diarrhea, arthritis, bladder infections, bruises/contusions,
hypothyroidism. Some pet insurance companies also provide data on
health issues most likely to affect a specific breed

Regional diseases – Some diseases are more common in certain
geographic locations; examples:
Southern states – Heartworm disease, flea and tick infestation
Southwest – Valley Fever

Cancer – Cancer is the #1 cause of death in dogs over the age of
two years
• One in two dogs will acquire cancer; one in four will
die from cancer
• Golden retrievers – 60% will die from cancer
• Certain breeds of dogs are at-risk for certain type of cancer;
examples:
Greyhounds – Bone cancer
Scottish terriers – Bladder cancer
Pugs – Mast cell cancer
Bernese Mountain Dog – Histiocytic sarcoma
Boxer – Brain cancer
Collie – Nasal cancer
Chow Chow – Stomach cancer
Golden retrievers – Hemangiosarcoma and Lymphoma
Labrador retrievers – Hemangiosarcoma and Lymphoma
Poodles – Mammary tumors (incidence greatly reduced in dogs
neutered prior to puberty)

Euthanasia of Dogs – Euthanasia, often of healthy unwanted dogs, is the
#1 cause of death in dogs under the age of two years

An AVMA study which looked at population estimates from 2006 to 2011 actually found that Pet Ownership might have dropped slightly over that time:

The following statistics are from AVMA’s 2012 U.S. Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook:

Dogs

The dog population was 70 million, down from 72 million.
36.5% of households had a dog, down 1.9%.

Cats

The cat population was 74.1 million, down from 81.7 million.
30.4% of all households had a cat, down 6.2%.

Birds

The pet bird population was 8.3 million, down from 11.2 million.
3.1% of households owned birds, down 20.5%.

Horses

The pet horse population was 4.9 million, down 32.9%, from 7.3 million.
1.5% of households had horses they considered pets, down 16.7%.

Specialty and exotic pets

6.5% of households owned fish.
10.6% had exotic or specialty pets, which includes fish, ferrets, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, rodents, turtles, snakes, lizards, reptiles and livestock kept as pets.
Exotic and specialty pet ownership was down 16.5%.

Animal Folks MN compile some similar information:

74.1 million – estimated number of pet cats in the United States
Source: 2012 U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook, AVMA

70 million – estimated number of pet dogs in the United States
Source: 2012 U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook, AVMA

10,000 – estimated number of puppy mills in the U.S. (licensed and unlicensed)
Source: HSUS Fact Sheet, 2013

2.15 million – estimated number of puppies sold annually who originated from puppy mills – USDA licensed and non-USDA licensed
Source: HSUS Fact Sheet, 2013

3 million – estimated number of puppies euthanized by shelters every year in the U.S.
Source: HSUS Fact Sheet, 2013

114,457 – estimated number of female dogs kept for breeding at USDA licensed facilties

2,024 – number of USDA Class A and B licensed facilities that breed dogs for the pet trade

NOTE: For other Puppy Mill Fact and Figures: HSUS Fact Sheet

7-9 million – approx. number of dogs acquired in the United States each year
Source: MSNBC

11,500-12,000 – approx. number of pet stores in the United States
Source: Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)

3,500-3,700 – number of total U.S. pet stores that sell cats and dogs
Source: Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)

300,000-400,000 – estimated number of puppies sold every year through pet stores,
Source: Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)

25%-30% – estimated number of animals euthanized in shelters who are purebred. In some regions, 50% are purebred.
Source: HSUS; Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science

4,000-6,000 – estimated number of animal shelters in the United States
Source: Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

38% – percentage of public who acquire pet from breeders or pet stores; 14% acquire from shelters; 48% get pets as strays, from friends or from animal rescuers
Source: HSUS; The Bill Foundation

Anyone who wants to Buy Me This, I’d love to parse the data therein to bring you more interesting articles:

https://www.avma.org/KB/Resources/Statistics/Pages/Market-research-statistics-US-Pet-Ownership-Demographics-Sourcebook.aspx

https://www.avma.org/news/pressroom/pages/Sneak-preview-of-AVMA-Pet-Demographic-Sourcebook-at-2012-convention-in-San-Diego.aspx