Eurispes: pets in italiano households
Pets and the role they play have undergone a radical transformation over the years: from ’helpers’ to emotional pillars. Dogs, cats and other small companions are now increasingly integrated into the household as fully fledged members of the family, providing important psychological and social support. This love of animals not only improves the lives of the animals themselves, but also enriches the lives of the people who welcome them into their homes.
Those who have a pet regard its health and well-being as a primary ethical duty. Italians tend to give priority to the welfare of their four-legged companion, perceiving the financial aspect of taking in and caring for an animal not as a burden, but as an act of responsibility towards a member of the family.
For several years now, the Eurispes Foundation has regularly explored and monitored the relationship between Italian households and pets and, to mark the forthcoming World Animal Day on 4 October, it has decided to produce a brief analysis of the most interesting findings to emerge from its surveys.
The Eurispes data confirm that the presence of animals in Italian homes is widespread, despite the organisational difficulties and costs involved. One Italian in three lives with pets (2026); 17.6% have a single animal, 7.6% have two and 8.5% have three or more.
Looking at the time series for these data, a slight decline can be seen in 2026 compared with the previous two years: in 2024 and 2025, 37.3% and 40.5% respectively of the Italians surveyed stated that they owned an animal. Taking the time series for the years 2014-2026, it is possible to observe a trend with peaks in certain years (2016, 2021 and 2025). The high percentages recorded in the two-year period 2020-2021 (39.5% and 40.2%) are attributable to the pandemic phase, with the resulting lockdowns and the peak in remote working, which was followed by a ’normalisation’ and a more fluctuating trend. In Italy, over the past decade, a share ranging between one third of Italians and 4 Italians in 10 has lived with one or more animals. It is interesting to note how modest the gap is between those who own a single pet and those who own more than one: many pet lovers choose to welcome more than one four-legged friend into their home, partly in order to provide the animals themselves with a further playmate and company.
The significant increase in the number of pets compared with past decades may be due to demographic factors, such as the fall in the birth rate and the rise in single-person households, and/or to cultural factors, such as the ever greater sensitivity towards animal welfare and the well-being that animals bring to people. On the other hand, the phenomenon of abandonment and of stray animals has not yet been overcome, and the economic crisis has made it more difficult to meet the costs associated with caring for pets, although many people are willing to make sacrifices out of love for their animal.
Dogs and cats are confirmed as the undisputed protagonists in Italian homes. In 2026 the dog is the most widespread animal (41%), followed by the cat (37.1%). The other species appear with decidedly lower percentages: birds (4.1%), tortoises and turtles (4%) and fish (3.3%). Below the 3% threshold are hamsters (2%), reptiles (1.6%), rabbits (1.6%), horses (1.2%) and exotic animals (1.1%).
Observation of the time series highlights some interesting dynamics. The first concerns the fact that the percentage of dog owners has returned to growth over the past year (+4% between 2025 and 2026), interrupting the negative trend that began in 2023. The percentage of cat owners, by contrast, remains substantially stable: in 2026, therefore, the dog once again overtakes the cat, following the parity recorded in 2025.
This growing importance of animals and their humanisation has meant that the pet economy, too, has become a rapidly expanding sector. Each year Eurispes also explores this aspect in detail. In 2026, the majority spend between 31 and 100 euros per month on their pets (57.9%). More than a quarter of owners, on the other hand, face higher costs, in excess of 100 euros per month; a smaller 2.6% exceed 300 euros, while only 16% of the sample report spending less than 30 euros per month. The lowest bracket (less than 30 euros) has shrunk almost threefold in a decade, while the medium-to-high brackets have grown steadily, a consequence of the unfavourable economic climate.
If we look at how spending habits have changed over the years, Italians therefore appear to be settling into a mid-range spending bracket. Looking after an animal on a limited budget is now becoming the exception rather than the rule: in 2015 almost half of those surveyed (45.9%) spent less than 30 euros per month. The share of those spending more than 100 euros per month has increased steadily over the years, with a marked surge in the past two years, particularly in the 101-200 euro spending bracket. This is also due to the rise in prices resulting, in particular, from inflation.
Food, predictably, is the item that weighs most heavily: more than half of owners (50.8%) spend over 50 euros per month. Health, too, requires a financial commitment: although many seek to keep veterinary expenses below 30 euros per year (30.9%), 40.1% of respondents fall between 31 and 100 euros and almost 30% of owners exceed the threshold of 100 euros per year for treatment. By contrast, Italians appear more prudent when it comes to ‘extras’ (clothing, toys, dog sitters/boarding kennels). Italians spend more on what is necessary for the well-being of their animal, confirming that love of animals is, first and foremost, a matter of everyday care and welfare.
Confirming the fact that the economic crisis has had an impact on the relationship between Italians and animals, our surveys have found that, owing to financial difficulties, 23% of pet owners have given up the idea of taking in further animals (2025). Moreover, among those who do not currently have animals, more than one tenth (11.4%) state that they have had to forgo taking an animal into their home because of financial constraints. It is therefore not uncommon for many Italians to have to go without the affection and companionship of an animal, despite wishing for it, because they are unable to meet the related expenses (2025).
As regards the origin of pets, around 4 Italians in 10 state that they made a choice of the heart, rescuing them from the street or choosing them from a dog or cat shelter (2024). The comparison between 2017 and 2024 shows a significant shift in the way animals enter the family: whereas in 2017 purchase from a shop represented an important channel (34.4%, the most frequently cited option), in 2021 the shop was cited by only 12.3%, in favour of animals received as a gift (20.7%), from a dog or cat shelter (19.3%) and from the street (17.1%); in 2024, animals taken in from the street (20.3%) and from a dog or cat shelter (19.4%) prevail, together accounting for almost 40%, while purchase from a shop remains unchanged at 12.8%. The current preference for adopting strays or animals from a shelter, rather than through the commercial channel, constitutes a further indicator of cultural change in the perception of the animal as a member of the family to be welcomed, protected and loved.
Other data recorded in recent years reflect the widespread attitude in our country towards animals, which are no longer regarded as mere domestic creatures, but as true members of the family. One Italian in five (20.2%) among those who own at least one pet states that they have seriously considered the possibility of leaving part of their estate to their pet or pets (2023).
One fifth of pet owners have taken out an insurance policy covering legal protection and third-party liability.
