Did you know that there are more dog owners than cat owners in America, but more cats than dogs in those homes? According to the 2007 “U.S. Pet Ownership and Demographic Sourcebook” (Sourcebook) published by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) there are 43 million dog owning households compared with 37.5 million cat owning households, but 81.7 million cats compared to 72 million dogs. Not surprisingly, women were the primary caregivers to most of them. About 64% of pet-owning households owned more than one pet, and all pet owners spent a total of $24.5 billion on veterinary care in 2006. These are just a few of the fascinating facts offered up about owners, pets, and veterinary medicine in the latest edition of the Sourcebook, which is published every five years.

“Veterinarians aren’t the only ones who will find this data interesting. People involved in every aspect of the pet industry, veterinary medicine and the general public will find facts and figures in this study that interest them. In fact, the data is considered so important that even the U.S. Census Bureau cites our statistics,” said Dr. Gregory S. Hammer, president of the AVMA.

“The Sourcebook is the most complete source of data and analysis on pet populations, veterinary care and spending on veterinary care, and pet owner demographics. The data used in the development of the book is drawn from responses from nearly 48,000 U.S. households-a much larger sample than that used by other pet studies,” explained Allison Shepherd, senior manager of market research with the AVMA.

The “U.S. Pet Ownership and Demographic Sourcebook” is available from the AVMA for $189 ($174 in a downloadable PDF) for AVMA members and $279 ($264 in downloadable PDF) for the non-members. The study can be ordered calling (800) 248-2862 at or here.

American Veterinary Medical Association