Have you ever wondered in which countries people preferred cats over dogs or the other way round? Where are people most likely or least likely to own a dog? As usual a picture is worth a thousand words.
Americans are in fact the most likely to have a dog as a pet, with an amazing 63% of households who do have a canine friend as a family member. That is 16% more than the most dog friendly country in Europe: Romania. In average only 20 to 25% of Europeans have a dog. The Icelanders, Swiss, Austrians and Greeks are the least likely to have a dog, with respectively 8%, 12%, 13% and 14% of households having one. That is way higher than in most Muslim countries though, where dogs are generally shunned for religious reasons (the Quran makes quite a few negative references to dogs), so that less than 1% (often 0.1%) of households actually have one. One exception is Turkey with 7% of dog owners.
Cats are much more common in Muslim countries and the European average is also slightly higher than for dogs, hovering around 30%. Romanians are the biggest fans of cats, with 47% of households have one, followed by Americans (43%) and Ukrainians (42%). Other sources mention Russia on top with 59%, followed by Ukraine at 49%.
Icelanders and Greeks are once again among the least likely to own a cat.
So which countries have a marked preference for cats over dogs, with lets say over 10% more owners? These include:
Austria : +17% for cats
Switzerland : +16%
Norway : +14%
France : +11%
Latvia : +11%
Countries biased in favour of dogs are:
The United States : +20% for dogs
Czechia : +20%
Ireland : +19%
Spain : +15%
Slovakia : +14%
Americans are in fact the most likely to have a dog as a pet, with an amazing 63% of households who do have a canine friend as a family member. That is 16% more than the most dog friendly country in Europe: Romania. In average only 20 to 25% of Europeans have a dog. The Icelanders, Swiss, Austrians and Greeks are the least likely to have a dog, with respectively 8%, 12%, 13% and 14% of households having one. That is way higher than in most Muslim countries though, where dogs are generally shunned for religious reasons (the Quran makes quite a few negative references to dogs), so that less than 1% (often 0.1%) of households actually have one. One exception is Turkey with 7% of dog owners.
Cats are much more common in Muslim countries and the European average is also slightly higher than for dogs, hovering around 30%. Romanians are the biggest fans of cats, with 47% of households have one, followed by Americans (43%) and Ukrainians (42%). Other sources mention Russia on top with 59%, followed by Ukraine at 49%.
Icelanders and Greeks are once again among the least likely to own a cat.
So which countries have a marked preference for cats over dogs, with lets say over 10% more owners? These include:
Austria : +17% for cats
Switzerland : +16%
Norway : +14%
France : +11%
Latvia : +11%
Countries biased in favour of dogs are:
The United States : +20% for dogs
Czechia : +20%
Ireland : +19%
Spain : +15%
Slovakia : +14%