Bark River, Michigan is – apparently and ironically – a land of cat lovers.
Well, at least Delta County is (which is where Bark River is located), when comparing the number of cats and dogs adopted from animal shelters in 2021.
There were 563 cats adopted and 392 dogs adopted in Delta County in 2021, per records from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Of Michigan’s 83 counties, 60 had more cats adopted than dogs in 2021 while just 15 counties had more dogs adopted than cats. Two counties adopted out an equal number of cats and dogs (St. Joseph and Arenac), while no data is available for six northern Michigan counties.
In total, more than 51,000 shelter cats were adopted for the year compared to about 32,000 shelter dogs.
So, do you live in a cat county or a dog county? Here’s a look. (Hover over counties on the map below for details)
(Can’t see the map? Click here.)
Judging by shelter adoptions, Ingham County is Michigan’s largest cat county, with 2,127 more cats adopted than dogs in 2021. Midland County is Michigan’s biggest dog county, with 254 more dogs adopted than cats.
A few other notable places:
- There are two bodies of water named “Dog Lake” in Michigan. One seems to be an imposter. The larger of the two is in Cheboygan County, which adopts out more cats than dogs. The other is in Iron County, which adopts out more dogs than cats.
- Paw Paw, a seemingly neutral place in the cat/dog debate, is in Van Buren County – which adopts out nearly twice as many cats as dogs.
- Paradise, which is in Chippewa County, is apparently more of a paradise for cat people than for dog people. The county adopted out 397 cats and 170 dogs in 2021.
Of course, there are many caveats to the data – so don’t fret if you’re a dog lover stuck in cat-centric Washtenaw County.
Some shelters only take in certain types of pets, which can skew the data. Plus, the data doesn’t include cats and dogs purchased from pet stores or breeders. While all animal shelters in Michigan are required to report their numbers annually, some did not – including Genesee County Animal Control in Flint and Cascades Humane Society in Jackson.
Check out the searchable table, below, to see data for your animal shelter – including adoptions, euthanasia and intake.
(Can’t see the table? Click here.)
To see where cat and dog adoptions were highest in Michigan, per 1,000 residents, check out the map, below.
(Can’t see the map? Click here.)
For more animal shelter trends in Michigan, see the story below.
RELATED: These are Michigan’s busiest animal shelters – by intake, adoptions and euthanizations
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