Pets
More US households now own kittens than puppies
Market research firm Packaged Facts says kittens have overtaken puppies in US households for the first time, though dogs still outnumber cats overall.
Reported by The Guardian · · 1 min read
Cats may be catching up with dogs as America’s favourite pet. The market research firm Packaged Facts reports that, for the first time since it began tracking the numbers, more US households own kittens than puppies. The two were level last year, at a ratio of 1 to 1, and the ratio has now moved to 1 to 0.94.
The figures cover only young animals, and dogs are still ahead overall. In the UK, the 2026 Pet Food survey puts the dog population at 15.5 million, slightly ahead of 13 million cats, a gap of two and a half million. In the US, too, there are currently more dogs than cats.
Some observers believe the shift owes less to a new fashion for cats than to economics, since cats generally need less daily attention and walking than dogs. If kittens keep outselling puppies, the adult cat population is likely to grow with them.
