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Japan has more pets than children, with 15.9 million dogs and cats compared to 14.0 million children under 15
Source: JPFA / Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (2024)
Source
Japan Pet Food Association National Pet Survey 2023 + Statistics Bureau JapanJPFA / Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (2024)
Methodology
JPFA: Online survey of 50,000 individuals. Children: Statistics Bureau official count as of April 1, 2024
Scope
Pet cats (9.07M) + dogs (6.84M) vs children under 15
Notes
Reflects Japan's declining birth rate (44th consecutive year of child population decline) and stable pet ownership
JPFA / Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. (2024). Japan Pet Food Association National Pet Survey 2023 + Statistics Bureau Japan. As cited in Cat Cognition. https://catcognition.com/statistics/population/#jp-pets-exceed-children-2024
9.07M cats vs 6.84M dogs
Japan has 9.07 million cats compared to 6.84 million dogs, with cats outnumbering dogs since 2017
Japan Pet Food Association (JPFA) (2023)
9.07 million
There are 9.07 million pet cats in Japan, outnumbering dogs for the seventh consecutive year
Japan Pet Food Association (JPFA) (2023)
8.9%
8.9% of Japanese households own at least one cat
Japan Pet Food Association (JPFA) (2021)
90.4%
90.4% of pet cats in Japan are kept exclusively indoors according to JPFA national survey
Japan Pet Food Association (JPFA) (2020)
