Number of dogs in the European Union 2023, by country

In 2023, Germany had the highest pet dog population in the European Union, with more than 10 million dogs. Spain ranked second with a dog population of 9.3 million. Other countries, like Greece and Denmark, had comparatively smaller dog populations of approximately 655,000 and 643,000, respectively. 

Pet dogs in Europe

The number of pet dogs in Europe has witnessed a notable increase since 2010, increasing from around 73 million in 2010 to more than 92 million in 2021. This positive trend was accompanied by a similar growth in the number of pet-owning households in Europe, which has increased by an estimated 20 million in the period between 2010 and 2021.

Pet food industry in Europe

Despite a marked increase in the dog population along with the number of pet-owning households in Europe, this has not been translated in a similarly significant increase in pet food sales in the continent. The annual sales volume of pet food products remained relatively stable in the last decade, until increasing in 2021 to about 10.2 million tons of pet food products. The largest pet food manufacturer in Europe was the Belgian company United Petfood Producers, with an annual revenue stream of approximately 800 million U.S. dollars in 2021.