Number of cats in the Netherlands 2010-2022

The Dutch are cat-loving people. In 2022, the total cat population in the country amounted to almost two million. By comparison: according to the most recent figures, there were about 1.5 million pet dogs in the Netherlands.

 The most popular furry friend

Cats are the most frequently kept pets in the Netherlands. In 2022, one quarter of Dutch households owned a pet cat. This was slightly higher than the share of households owning a dog (21 percent), another beloved four-legged friend. Popular cats include the European Shorthair as well as various mixed breeds.

Cats in Europe

 The number of pet cats amounted to over 127 million in Europe in 2022. Germany had a cat population of roughly 15.2 million that year, or over five times as large as the Netherlands. Other cat-loving nations included France and Italy (14.9 and 10.2 million cats respectively). The share of households owning a cat was highest in Romania though, where nearly half of all households owned at least one furry friend. In Poland and Hungary too, at least three out of ten households were cat owners. On the other hand, in Greece just 13 percent of households were ruled by one or more cats.