Gen Z and ‘Cat Dads’ are driving the cat boom in the US

Cat ownership in the US continues to grow. According to the latest cat report from the American Pet Products Association (APPA), a total of 53 million US households owned a cat in 2025 – 39 per cent of all households. This represents a 5 per cent increase on the previous year. By 2024, the number of cat-owning households had already risen by 23 per cent.

The report “Strategic Insights from the 2025 National Pet Owners Survey” shows that it is not just more households that are taking in cats. The number of households with multiple cats, as well as spending on food and grooming products, is also on the rise. The number of households with two cats rose by 7 per cent compared with the previous year and by 16 per cent since 2018. For households with three or more cats, the year-on-year increase was also 7 per cent, and as much as 45 per cent since 2018.

Spending on cat food also rose. In 2025…