Dog ownership in the European Union 2023, by country

Hungary had the highest share of dog-owning households in the European Union, with almost half of the population owning at least one dog in 2023. Other countries, like Poland and Romania, had a little more than a third of households with at least one pet dog. 

Pet ownership in Europe

Germany had the highest pet dog population in Europe, with more than ten million dogs in 2022. In comparison, Romania had approximately 4.2 million dogs in that same year. However, pet dog ownership was more prevalent among Romanian households, where 43 percent of households owned at least one dog in 2022, compared to only 21 percent of German households who were dog owners in that same year. In the last decade, both the number of pet cats and pet dogs increased significantly in Europe.

Pet food trade

Due to a growing pet population in the European continent, the pet industry flourished, and pet food trade is one indicator of that growth. The import value of cat and dog food more than tripled in the last decade, increasing from 480 million U.S. dollars in 2011 to over 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. European exports of pet food followed a similar trend, reflecting a general expansion in pet food industry and trade in Europe.