Prague Named 4th Most Dog-Friendly City in the World

While dog adoptions and sales soared during the coronavirus pandemic, some pet owners have realized that their surroundings are not necessarily suited for their new puppy pals.

The study was released today (August 26) in honor of International Dog Day.

Berlin-based insurance company Coya has curated a list of the best cities around the world for our furry companions.

The 2020 Best Cities for Dogs Index compares and analyzes the conditions for our four-legged friends in 50 major dog-friendly cities around the world.

Researchers have looked at several different metrics related to dog ownership, including the number of veterinarians, dog-friendly restaurants, and lifetime costs of owning a pup.

The survey also takes into account other factors such as the number of abandoned dogs per year, and the minimum fine a dog owner would need to pay for not removing dog waste.

“To complement our findings, we also asked residents in each city to rate responsible dog ownership in their area with regard to how responsible dog owners are in cleaning up their pet’s poop,” according to Coya.

The top city for dog owners and their pet is San Francisco, California, which ranks high on parameters like the number of pet stores, dog-friendly restaurants, and dog parks.

Seattle, Tel Aviv and Prague are also among the best cities in the world for our four-legged companions, all of them performing well when it comes to dog-friendly restaurants, dog-friendly hotels, and the dogs/capita ratio.

These three destinations also register low rates of pet abandonment— an issue that increasingly worries shelters and nonprofit rescues since stay-at-home measures have been relaxed in various countries around the world.

Discover the ten most dog-friendly cities in the world below:

1. San Francisco, USA
2. Seattle, USA
3. Tel Aviv, Israel
4. Prague, Czech Republic
5. Hamburg, Germany
6. Barcelona, Spain
7. Warsaw, Poland
8. Chicago, USA
9. Toronto, Canada
10. Lisbon, Portugal