Thursday, April 11 is National Pet Day, a holiday dedicated to those “pets who may not always get the companionship and attention pets deserve,” according to the National Day Calendar.
Pet ownership has jumped from 56% of U.S. households in 1988 to 66% in 2024, or 86.9 million homes, states Forbes. 97% of pet owners consider Fido and Fluffy to be a part of their family.
And why not? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says benefits to owning a pet include:
How long do turtles live?:Here are the expected lifespans for pet, wild tortoises.
PetMD, citing American Pet Products Association statistics, says the most popular pets in 2023 are (number in parenthesis the number of households):
Dogs (65.1 million). The French bulldog is the most popular dog breed, said Charlotte Reed, a pet trends expert and host of The Pet Buzz podcast. For 31 years prior to 2023, it was the Labrador retriever.
Cats (46.5 million). The Domestic shorthair cat is the most popular feline in the United States — but not for the reason you think. “When a cat’s breed is unknown a veterinarian will list the cat as a ‘DSH’ (i.e., domestic shorthaired cat), ‘DMH’ (i.e. domestic medium haired cat), and ‘DLH’ (i.e. domestic longhaired cat),” said Bonnie Bragdon, president and co-founder of the Independent Veterinary Practitioners Association.
Freshwater fish (11.1 million).
Small animals, such as rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, mice and ferrets (6.7 million).
Birds (6.1 million).
Reptiles, such as turtles, geckos or bearded dragons (6 million).
Horses (2.2 million).
Saltwater fish (2.2 million).
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Mirroring the United States, dogs are the No. 1 pet in New York, followed by cats.
According to U.S. News & World Report, the most popular dog breeds in the Empire State are:
If you’re wondering what the top 5 dog names are for New York, they are:
The top 10 girl dog names in 2023 submitted to the American Kennel Club’s purebred dog registration page were (by order of most favorite): Luna, Bella, Daisy, Maggie and Willow. The top 10 favorite boy dog names were Max, Charlie, Cooper, Teddy and Milo.
Previous Gannett stories were used in this report.
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