UK lost and stolen pet statistics (2026)

• About 11.1 million pet dogs: 30% of UK adults have a dog (PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report, 2025).
• About 10.5 million pet cats: 24% of UK adults have a cat (PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report, 2025).
• More than 9 million pet cats in England alone (GOV.UK, June 2024).

• 90% of dogs are microchipped, a figure that has stayed the same for several years since microchipping became compulsory in 2016 (PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report, 2023).
• 75% of cats are microchipped, up from 46% in 2011 (PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report, 2023).
• 60% of vet professionals say they've come across owners whose microchip details weren't up to date (PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report, 2023).
• Microchipped dogs are more than twice as likely to be reunited with their owner (GOV.UK, June 2024).
• Microchipping and registration cost around £25 on average (GOV.UK, June 2024).
• Dogs in the UK must be microchipped by 8 weeks old, and cats in England by 20 weeks old. Owners can be fined up to £500 if they're not.

• Around 2,000 dog theft crimes may be reported to police each year in England and Wales (Pet Theft Taskforce, 2021).
• In 2020, just over a fifth (22%) of stolen dogs were reunited with their owners (Pet Theft Taskforce, 2021).
• Less than 1% of recorded dog theft cases in 2020 resulted in a charge (Pet Theft Taskforce, 2021).
• Recorded cat thefts rose from 150 in 2015 to 441 in 2020, in the police forces that responded (Pet Theft Taskforce, 2021).
• During the first lockdown, the price of some of the most sought-after breeds rose by almost 90% (Pet Theft Taskforce, 2021).
• Under the Pet Abduction Act 2024, stealing a pet in England or Northern Ireland can lead to up to five years in prison, a fine, or both (GOV.UK, May 2024).

Most dogs are microchipped, but a chip only helps if the details are right, so check yours are up to date. A chip can only be read with a scanner, while a tag can be read by whoever finds your pet. Our guides to protecting your dog from theft and QR pet tags explain how to use both.

You're welcome to use these statistics in articles, blogs and reports. Please credit the original source listed below, and link to this page if it helped. We check the figures when new reports come out, and the date at the top shows when this page was last updated.