How many US families own dogs?

There is no doubt that dogs are an important part of many American families. In fact, according to the two-thousand-eight national pet owners survey, there are almost seventy-five million dogs living in U.S. households. That means almost forty percent of U.S. households include a canine companion.

Roughly three quarters of these doggie citizens are spayed or neutered, and about one in ten was adopted from a shelter.

Cat statistics are not too different. The same survey revealed that thirty-four percent of U.S. households include a feline friend, and on average those households include two cats. With numbers like that, there’s no doubt that pets have made an indelible pawprint on American culture!

- Dr. Larry McDaniel, DVM for the “Purina® Animal Instincts” Podcast Series

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