What share of U.S. households own at least one cat?
Answer32.6%
That's about 43.1 million households — fewer than the 42.6% that own dogs.
Source: American Veterinary Medical Association, U.S. Pet Ownership Statistics (2025) avma.org
Animals · Facts & sources
Cat facts & stats
5 sourced facts about cats, each with the context behind the number. 4 more are in today's round and appear here after it closes.
The basics
About how many cats entered U.S. animal shelters in 2025?
Answerabout 3 million
Slightly more cats than dogs (2.8 million) entered shelters that year.
Source: ASPCA, U.S. Animal Shelter Statistics (2025) aspca.org
Going deeper
About how many shelter cats were adopted in the U.S. in 2025?
Answerabout 2.2 million
Another 362,000 cats were returned to their owners or the field.
Source: ASPCA, U.S. Animal Shelter Statistics (2025) aspca.org
Expert level
A major study estimated how many birds free-ranging domestic cats kill each year in the contiguous U.S.?
Answer1.3–4.0 billion
The same study estimated 6.3–22.3 billion mammals killed per year, calling free-ranging cats a top human-linked cause of wildlife deaths.
Source: Loss, Will & Marra, Nature Communications (2013) nature.com
In that study, what share of cat-caused bird deaths was attributed to unowned (stray and feral) cats?
Answerabout 69%
Unowned cats accounted for most of the toll — about 89% of mammal deaths too — rather than pet cats let outdoors.
Source: Loss, Will & Marra, Nature Communications (2013) nature.com
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