Cats over kids?

Thailand is having fewer babies, and its cats are getting considerably more attention. Annual births have fallen below 500,000, according to UNFPA. That doesn’t mean Thai people are giving up on being parents – they might just be opting for a furrier option. 

Seasia Stats’ ranking puts Thailand among the world’s top five countries for cat ownership, with a 42 percent ownership rate, behind the Philippines (43 percent), Indonesia (47 percent), Romania (48 percent) and Russia (59 percent), which takes the top spot.

With the future in our cat children comes an entire economy built around keeping them at their healthiest and happiest. Thailand’s pet industry is growing to meet the demands of increasingly devoted pet parents, with everything from premium cat food and smart pet gadgets to professional pet sitters, cage-free cat hotels and rescue cat cafés. 

TTB Analytics estimated that Thailand’s whole pet market grew 13.2% in 2025 and forecast it would pass B100 billion in 2026. It put annual spending at around B50,500 per pet among owners who treat their animals as family members – a figure covering pets generally, rather than cats alone. Premium food and specialised nutrition are part of that growing bill. Because when your cat is your child, ordinary kibble simply won’t do.

Of course, a cat comes with its own routines and demands and very specific expectations. At least you don’t have to wake this child up for school every morning. It will happily wake you when breakfast is running late.