What Are L.A.’s Most Popular Dog Breeds?
Los Angeles has more than 100,000 licensed dogs. Which one of these six breeds is L.A.’s most popular?
Chihuahua
The most registered dog in Los Angeles, with 18,849 registered Chihuahuas (both short- and long-haired) in 2016 alone.
Chihuahuas are perhaps the most iconic dogs in Hollywood. The breed experienced popularity in the 2000s thanks to its growing reputation as a “purse” dog. The number of them has almost doubled since 2010 and are still growing. Unfortunately, these figures do not show the homeless dogs in Los Angeles that would most likely show a growing trend of abandoned Chihuahuas.
German Shepherd
The second most popular dog in Los Angeles, with 9,378 registered in 2016, that’s about half the number of Chihuahua in Los Angeles.
German Shepherds were more popular in 2006, when there were as many as Chihuahuas and their number has increased in recent years. Bright and active, German Shepherds are known as “all-purpose dogs”, although they were originally bred for herding.
Labrador retriever
The third-most-registered dog in Los Angeles is Labrador retriever, with 9,116 registered in 2016, just behind the German Shepherd with 262.
The Labrador retriever, while not as iconic as the Chihuahua in Los Angeles, is undoubtedly one of the most iconic dog breeds in America. This is thanks to its reputation as an all-around family dog. They are known as friendly breeds, outgoing and energetic, and come in a variety of colors. Despite the reputation of Labrador retrievers, their registration has declined since 2010.
Terrier mix
Terrier mixes come in fourth place as most-registered dog in Los Angeles with 7,471 registrations in 2016. Terrier mix is not a breed, but enough dogs were registered as terrier mix for it to become the fourth-most-popular dog in Los Angeles.
The ranking bolsters the idea that Los Angeles has a soft spot for mutts. This is a hard group to categorize, since mixed breeds are melting pots of their ancestors’ traits and features.
Poodle
Poodles (which include toy, miniature, and standard poodles) are the fifth-most-registered dog in Los Angeles with 7,114 registrations in 2016.
Poodles are perhaps the best representation of Los Angeles. Their traditional coiffure is as iconic as L.A.’s image as the entertainment capital of the world. Perhaps this is the reason poodles are so popular, although their numbers are still dwarfed by the population of Chihuahuas in Los Angeles.
Pit Bull
Pit bulls are the sixth-most-registered dog in Los Angeles with 5,152 registrations in 2016. Although many breeds can be classified as pit bull, Los Angeles Times only looked at dogs registered as pit bull.
Pit bulls are nothing new in Los Angeles. If we include the American Staffordshire terrier, a breed generally recognized as a pit bull, in the total, the pit bull would be the second-most-popular dog in Los Angeles. Many dog-friendly places are not necessarily pit-bull-friendly. It is common for apartments and boarding facilities to charge extra for pit bulls or forbid them altogether. Nonetheless, the pit bull is still the top dog in Los Angeles.
