Pet Facts and Figures - the chart
results!
A new study has found that the UK domestic cat and dog population
is larger than previously reported by industry figures.
Cats and dogs are popular pets in the UK but it has been over 20
years since domestic cat and dog population estimates in the UK
have been published in scientific peer-reviewed journals.
The paper published in the Veterinary Record by Dr Jane Murray
in the Department of Clinical Veterinary Science at Bristol University
and colleagues, aimed to estimate the number of UK domestic cats
and dogs and identify the characteristics of their owners. The figures
are also useful to the animal health and welfare professions, including
rescue charities, which can use these and future estimates to assess
population changes.
In 2007, a telephone survey of households randomly selected from
the electoral roll revealed that cats and dogs were owned by 26
per cent and 31 per cent of households, respectively. The number
of owned cats and dogs were predicted by two variables: the number
of people in the household and the geographical location (London/rest
of UK) of the household. UK census information and mid-year population
estimates of the number of households and the average household
size in 2006 in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland were
used to estimate that UK households owned approximately 10.3 million
cats and 10.5 million dogs in 2006.
Characteristics associated with cat and dog ownership were also
identified. Cats were more likely to be owned by; households with
gardens, semi-urban/rural households, households with someone qualified
to degree level, respondents who were female and respondents who
were aged less than 65 years. Cats were less likely to be owned
by households with one or more dogs.
The likelihood of dog ownership increased as the household size
increased. Dogs were more likely to be owned by households with
gardens, rural households and less likely to be owned by households
with someone educated to degree level and households with cats or
children aged less than 11 years.
Female respondents and those aged less than 55 years were more
likely to report dog ownership than other respondents. Dogs were
less likely to be owned by households with one or more cats.
Dr Jane Murray, Cats Protection Lecturer in Feline Epidemiology,
commenting on the research, said: “The study has shown many
common factors relating to cat and dog ownership, such as a garden
and rural location, but it has also identified some notable differences.
“In particular, the difference in the level of education
achieved by a household owning cats and dogs. The reason for this
association is unclear. It is unlikely to be related to household
income as this variable was not shown to be significant but it could
be related to household members with longer working hours having
less time available to care for a dog.
“Past reports have suggested that the number of pet cats
exceeds the number of pet dogs in the UK. However, results from
our study suggest that there are similar numbers of domestic cats
and dogs.”
The researchers recommend the study is repeated in 2011, (the year
of the next scheduled UK census), as any increase or decrease in
population numbers will enable pet ownership trends to be monitored.
Top 10 Pets in the UK for 2009
The Top 10 Pets in the UK for 2009, starting with the most popular,
are:
(the total number of species, rounded in Millions)
1. Fish (over 50.0M) Indoor and Outdoor)
2. Dogs (around 8.0M)
3. Cats (around 8.0M)
4. Rabbits (around 1.0M)
5. Birds (around 1.0M - Indoor)
6. Domestic Fowl (around 0.5M)
7. Guinea Pigs (around 0.5M)
8. Hamsters (around 0.5M)
9. Horses/Ponies (around 0.3M)
10. Tortoises/Turtles (around 0.2M)
fish_on_white_background_181006.jpg
Top 10 Dogs in the UK in 2008
1. Labrador (0.6M)
2. Border Collie (0.6M)
3. Jack Russell Terrier (0.5M)
4. Yorkshire Terrier (0.4M)
5. German Shepherd (0.3M)
6. Bischon Frise (0.2M)
7. Rottweiler/ Dalmation (0.1M)
8. Cocker Spaniel/ Shitzu (0.1M)
9. Labradoodle/ Golden Retriever (0.1M)
10. Greyhound (incorporating Whippets)/ Chihuahua (0.1M)
NB: There was 5.5M Pedigree and 1.0M Mixed breeds and 0.8M cross-breeds
of dog in the UK
Top 5 Cats in the UK in 2008
1.
Bengal (0.1M)
2.
British Short Hair (0.1M)
3.
Burmese (0.1M)
4.
Manx (0.1M)
5.
Siamese (0.1M)
NB: There was 0.6M Pedigree and 6.6M Non- Pedigree cat in the UK
Please note: 2008 was the first year that we have looked at the
top 5 cats and the sample size was fairly low. This means that there
was always a higher level of statistical uncertainty but for general
reference you may find these results useful.
(ref:PFMA/TNS)
Rabbits
It is estimated that there are between 1.6 and 2 million pet rabbits
in the UK.
In 2004, 4.6% of UK households owned a rabbit
There are 67 breeds and 531 varieties of rabbit. The smallest breed
is the Netherland Dwarf Rabbit, weighing just 1kg when fully grown,
and one of the largest is the Flemish Giant Rabbit, which weighs
up to 6kg.
Rabbits usually live to about seven or eight years old, but many
live over 10 years
A rabbit chews 120 times a minute and has 17,000 tastebuds. That's
7,000 more than humans and 15,000 more than dogs
Litters usually contain between six and eight kittens. However,
the largest litter ever recorded had 24 kittens
Pet Names
Pet names are being influenced by celebrity figures across TV,
film and sport. Lord of the Rings characters have also become popular,
with nearly 500 pets named Pippin and over 100 Gandalf insured with
Direct Line alone.
Other pets with celebrity names insured with Direct Line include
six Dumbledore's, four Harry Potter's, four Beyonce's, two Miriah's
and fifteen Whitney's. Naming our pets after celebrities is a growing
trend and the Direct Line research has thrown up some interesting
results – from the Great Dane named Gandalf The Great, to
the moggy called 50 Cent
How our pet ownership affects the way food companies target pet
lovers
Total retail value sales for pet food and pet care products in
the UK approached £2.6 billion in 2006 per Euromonitor International's
latest research. This represents growth of more than 5% from the
previous year.
With pet anthropomorphism gathering pace in the UK, manufacturers
are increasingly able to persuade pet owners to trade up to the
super-premium and premium products that have driven value sales
growth in recent years. Consumers are driving this demand as they
are increasingly aware of their pet's nutritional requirements.
In the UK, value sales for premium dog and cat food grew 9.2% during
2006 to £655 million. This growth has been driven by a raft
of new health focused multi-functional foods aimed at weight management
and improving pets' paws, claws, eyes, coats, skin, teeth, digestive
health, and brain power. Key terms appearing on packaging have included
omega 3 & 6, macro-nutrient profile, wheat and gluten free,
and hypoallergenic.
2006 also saw significant innovation for pet life-stage and life-style
products. Greater UK consumer interest for such products proved
especially beneficial to Masterfoods' Whiskas cat food brand, which
increased its share of total premium dog and cat food nearly 2 percentage
points to claim 19.4% of value sales according to Euromonitor International
research.
If you want to know the size of the pet food market in the UK then
follow
this link
source: PFMA, Euromonitor, Direct Line insurance
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