Vermont: We’re Number One! (According to the AVMA, Anyway)

By Karin Krisher

We have big news, folks. OK, for us it’s pretty big news. The American Veterinary Medical Association has released its latest national pet ownership survey results, which indicate statistics as of December 31, 2011.

And guess what state is at the top of the pet ownership stack? It’s Vermont!

We’re pretty proud of the fact that the whole state really loves pets as much as Pet Naturals of Vermont does. And it really does: 70.8 percent of Vermont households own a pet. Over 3 % separates the Green Mountain State from the number two pet-owning state: New Mexico, at 67.6 percent.

We must admit, we’re surprised by some other stats, like that Vermont didn’t end up in the top ten for percentage of dog-owning households, but is number one (#1!) on the cat-owning household list. We see dogs everywhere, but maybe it’s because our company is chock full of both dog and cat lovers and our day-to-day work is filled with canine talk. (A Retriever’s happy face hanging out the back window of a Subaru Outback is also a remarkably familiar sight.)

Did you catch the part about Vermont being number one in cat owning households, though?! For all of those here that fancy felines, that’s quite a good feeling. Nearly half (49.5 percent) of all Vermont households make their homes with at least one cat. It won’t be long before taking them on walks will become common practice.

But for all the awesomeness of this survey, there was one statistic that disappointed us. Since 2006, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of households in this country that don’t ever take the cat to the vet. For dog owners, that increase was 8 percent. For cat owners? 24 percent. While 81 percent of dog owners made at least one trip to veterinarian in 2011, only 55.1 percent of cat owners did the same.

WHAT!? Take your cat to the vet, darn it! We aren’t telling you what to do (we kind of are), but this is incredibly important. Cats need care. We know it’s difficult to get your cat to the vet; scratches and bites and resentment are not good motivators. But figuring out a way to make it work is worth it. One such way is to try a calming supplement that supports relaxation in the face of environmental stressors, like the impending doom of the traveling crate.

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That’s our final word on the subject. What’s yours? Do you live in a state in the top or bottom ten lists of pet ownership? Tell us about your state’s stats—and what you think about them—on our Facebook page!