Kentucky in Top 10 Most Pet Loving States In America

Fact Checked by Nate Hamilton

There’s nothing like the bond between man and man’s best friend, whether that be a dog or a cat.  

That sentiment seems to be especially true in states like Kentucky, which had the ninth-highest rate of pet ownership in the country, at 64.1%.  

Overall, Kentucky ranked just behind Oklahoma (65.0%) and ahead of North Dakota (63.7%), securing the state a spot in the top-10 nationally for pet ownership rates.  

With April 11 being National Pet Day, Kentucky sports betting talk will have to wait. Which states love their pets the most? BetKentucky.com sought to find out. 

Pet-Loving States Ranked

BetKentucky.com used data from the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook to calculate which states had the highest percentage of pet ownership. 

RankState% of Pet Ownership
1Wyoming71.8
2West Virginia71
3Idaho70
4Vermont70
5Indiana69.2
6Arkansas69
7Mississippi65.5
8Oklahoma65
9Kentucky64.1
10North Dakota63.7
11Maine63.5
12Missouri63.5
13Washington63
14Kansas62.8
15Michigan62.4
16Ohio62.4
17Montana62
18South Carolina62
19Tennessee61.7
20Pennsylvania60.6
21New Mexico60
22Alabama59.8
23Oregon59.2
24Iowa59
25North Carolina59
26Wisconsin59
27Utah58.5
28Texas58.2
29Arizona58
30Delaware57.9
31Florida56
32Virginia55.5
33Louisiana54
34Minnesota54
35Nevada53
36New Hampshire52
37Nebraska51.3
38Georgia51
39Connecticut50
40New York50
41Massachusetts49
42Illinois48.6
43Maryland48.6
44New Jersey47.4
45Colorado47.2
46South Dakota46
47Rhode Island45.4
48California40.1
49*Alaska0
50*Hawaii0
* — Limited information available on Alaska and Hawaii.

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Where Kentucky’s Pet Ownership Rates Rank Nationally

On a national level, Kentucky’s pet ownership rate is slightly behind the top five of Wyoming (71.8%), West Virginia (71.0%), Idaho and Vermont (70% apiece), and Indiana (69.2%).  

The Bluegrass State does rank well ahead of most of its neighbors, with Ohio ranking 16th overall at 62.4%, while Tennessee (19th, 61.7%), and Missouri (12th, at 63.5%). The only bordering states ahead of Kentucky were West Virginia (2nd, 71%), Indiana (5th, 69.2%), and Arkansas (6th, 69%).  

On a national level, the lowest pet ownership rates on a state-by-state basis were in Colorado (47.2%), Rhode Island (46.0%), California (40.1%), Alaska, and Hawaii (0% apiece).

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Author

Christopher Boan

Christopher Boan is a staff writer for BetKentucky.com. He has covered sports and sports betting for more than seven years and has worked for publications such as ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.

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