Everyone knows that all it takes to turn a ruff day into a good one is a furry friend! Here in Chicago, there’s certainly no shortage of love for our canine companions and it turns out Chicago is actually ranked one of the top 10 best cities in the world for dog lovers.
The ranking was based on a study carried out by Protect My Paws, measuring cities by ratios of dogs to people, dogs per km2 (~0.39 square miles), and the best dog facilities by collecting data from academic reports, the number of registered dogs (strays not included) and official government statistics.
Out of the 54 world cities studied, Chicago came out at #5 for the best city in the world for dog lovers.
Paris was ranked as the #1 city for dog lovers while having the most dogs per km2 (approximately 2,857 dogs per square km). Chicago followed Buenos Aires, Bern, and Havana with the fifth most dogs per km2 with 1,037 dogs per square km. Of the top 10, four cities made it from the U.S.: NYC, Philadelphia, Houston, and of course, Chicago.
According to the study, Chicago has a population of 2,746,388 people & 1,037 dogs, making a ratio of 22.2 dogs to 100 humans.
From dog-friendly cafes to offices and our plethora of green spaces, you’re bound to see dogs all over Chicago and we’re not surprised we made it into the top 5!
[Image from Shutterstock]