Pet study

We Austrians live in a “cat country”!

A recent study shows that the most popular pet, the house cat, has broken the 2 million mark for the first time this year. In no other EU country do so many cats purr! In general, the number of pets in Austria continues to rise slightly, while at the same time dogs and cats are getting older and older. 

Around 28 percent of all Austrian households have a cat - more than ever before. This is shown by the latest survey of the Austrian Pet Food Association (ÖHTV) and the Austrian pet shop on the domestic pet population.

It is also striking that our four-legged friends are getting older and older. The proportion of dogs and cats that are over ten years old has risen continuously over the last five years. "This is due to a good, balanced diet combined with very good medical care," says ÖHTV President Hermann Habe.

Bernd Berghofer (GF ÖHTV), Hermann Habe (ÖHTV) and Andreas Popper (WKO) presented the latest results of the pet study. (from left to right)(Bild: ÖHTV - Österreichische Heimtierfuttermittel Vereinigung/APA-Fotoservice/Martin Lusser)

Dogs, cats, mice
But it doesn't always have to be cats or dogs, which have landed in second place in the domestic charts as "man's best friend" with 836,000 representatives. Other pets, such as rabbits, tortoises, ornamental fish or birds, live in 14 percent of households (around 544,000). This figure has fallen slightly by two percent since 2022. Dogs and cats live peacefully side by side in around 146,000 households, of which around 77,000 households also have other pets. "This shows that dogs and cats get along very well in many cases," smiles Habe.

Pets as an economic factor
Our pets are also an important economic factor. The Austrian pet market generates annual sales of over one billion euros with food, toys and accessories. Interesting fact: more and more experiments are also being carried out with plant-based raw materials for pet food! Vegan dog food is in vogue, but this is not possible for cats from a nutritional point of view.