Distribution of dog breeds

The terms “pet” and “domestic animal” are sometimes difficult to distinguish between they are usually used synonymously in everyday language. In scientific terms, domestic animals are animals that have been kept and domesticated by humans for specific purposes (e.g. as livestock). Pets, on the other hand, can be domesticated, but do not necessarily have to be. Most of them are mammals, but many species of bird, reptile, amphibian, fish and a range of invertebrates are also kept as pets. In the case of reptiles and invertebrates which are usually kept in terrariums, this can also include relatively dangerous animals such as scorpions, spiders, poisonous snakes and boa constrictors. Almost all non-mammal pet species (such as lizards) are therefore classed as wild animals, not domestic animals.
The dog has the longest history as a domestic animal and sources estimate that its domestication dates back to between 100,000 and 15,000 years before our time. Cats, on the other hand, were only domesticated 9,500 years ago. The domestic use of pigs, cattle and sheep began around 8000 BC in the Middle East. From the 4th millennium BC, pigeons were bred in the Middle East and the mulberry silkworm moth was cultivated in China. The breeding of horses also began around this time. Goldfish have been bred in China for ornamental purposes since the 9th century, while budgerigars have only been bred since the 19th century. The breeding of rodents and flies for experimental purposes began in the 20th century.

Pets in Switzerland
As at 2020, 44% of all households in Switzerland have a pet and the most popular pet by a long way is the cat. Around 1,722,000 cats currently live in approximately 30% of Swiss households, followed by dogs at 503,000 in around 12% of Swiss households and there are 20 cats and six dogs for every 100 inhabitants. There are also 389,000 rabbits and hares, 260,000 rodents, 302,000 birds and 283,000 reptiles in Switzerland.

Dogs
If you look at dogs in Switzerland in terms of breeds, almost two hundred different dog breeds can be identified. The mongrel was top of the list of dog breeds at the start of 2020, with 134,500 different types. Far down the list are the purebred Chihuahua (27,600), the Labrador Retriever (23,700), the Yorkshire Terrier (18,600), the Jack Russell Terrier (16,700), as well as the French Bulldog and the Border Collie, with about 13,000 animals respectively. The Bernese Mountain Dog is top of the list of officially recognised Swiss dog breeds, with almost 7,500 of them across Switzerland, followed by the Appenzeller Sennenhund (3,900), the Entlebucher Sennenhund (1,700), the Great Swiss Mountain Dog (1,100) and the St. Bernard (1,000). There are approximately 800 White Swiss Shepherds while there are fewer than two hundred Swiss Hound and Small Swiss Hound dogs in Switzerland.