State
posted
Jan 17, 2013
On Jan. 15 - The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)
recently released its U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics
Sourcebook, which revealed that Vermont ranks first for pet
ownership with 70.8 percent of households owning a pet.
In 2006, which was the last time the AVMA put together the
sourcebook, Vermont again ranked first with 74.5 percent of
households owning a pet. Vermont also ranked as the top state for
cat ownership in 2011.
The survey is conducted by the AVMA every five years and always
includes a breakdown of pet ownership by state. The most recent
survey, conducted in 2012 but based on December 31, 2011 numbers,
reveals that the top 10 pet-owning states are:
Vermont where 70.8 percent of households owned a pet, New Mexico
with 67.6 percent, South Dakota with 65.6 percent, Oregon with 63.6
percent, Maine with 62.9 percent, Washington with 62.7 percent,
Arkansas with 62.4 percent, West Virginia with 62.1 percent, Idaho
with 62 percent, and Wyoming with 61.8 percent.
The 10 states in 2011 with the lowest percentage of pet-owning
households are: Rhode Island where 53 percent of households owned a
pet, Minnesota with 53 percent, California with 52.9 percent,
Maryland with 52.3 percent, Illinois with 51.8 percent, Nebraska
with 51.3 percent, Utah with 51.2 percent, New Jersey with 50.7
percent, New York with 50.6 percent, and Massachusetts with 50.4
percent. The District of Columbia had a far lower rate of pet
ownership at 21.9 percent.
The AVMA, founded in 1863, is one of the oldest and largest
veterinary medical organizations in the world, with more than
82,500 member veterinarians worldwide engaged in a wide variety of
professional activities.
