1 in 10 Seoul households has pet dog, Maltese most common

Seoul has about 612,000 registered pet dogs, accounting for 1 in every 10 households, with Maltese being the most common breed, a report showed Thursday. The Seoul Digital Foundation, affiliated with the Seoul city government, released the report based on pet dogs registered with the city in accordance with the Animal Protection Act. The pet dog population in Seoul represents 17.5 percent of the total 3.5 million pet dogs registered nationwide and accounts for 14.9 percent of the city's 4.1 million households, roughly 1 in 10 families. Maltese, Poodle, Mongrel, Pomeranian and Shih Tzu were most common breeds in Seoul, together accounting for 62.4 percent of the total. Of them, Maltese was the most common, at 19.8 percent. The southern district of Gangnam had the biggest pet dog population at 39,792, followed by Songpa at 38,005 and Gangseo at 37,800. Of the 924 animal hospitals in Seoul, the largest number of 85 was located in Gangnam. According to data released by Democratic Party Rep. Eoh Kiy-ku, abou t every second pet dog in South Korea had not been officially registered as of 2021. Source: Yonhap News Agency