Most popular dog, cat breeds in Geelong revealed

The most popular cat and dog breeds in the region have been revealed with a beloved British canine reigning supreme. SEE THE DATA FOR YOUR SUBURB.

Jan Juc resident Michael Forkgen with his border collie Marlo. Picture: David Smith

When Jan Juc’s Michael Forkgen and his family brought home their eight-week-old border collie puppy, Marlo, it was love at first sight.

Five years later, he said life would not be the same without their beloved pet.

“He was the quietest pup in the litter and he is a very chilled border collie,” Mr Forkgen said.

“It was definitely meant to be.”

The Forkgens are one of thousands of families who have a border collie, which is the most popular dog breed in the region, according to data from the Central Animal Records (CAR).

Mr Forkgen’s children had always wanted a family dog, but they lived in rental properties.

When they bought a house in Jan Juc six years ago, the family was finally able to get a puppy of their own.

“That is when we found Marlo,” he said.

“We were actually going to buy a border doodle but (the breeder) said he had two border collies left ... as the old saying goes, we all fell in love with him.”

Marlo enjoying the sunshine at the beach in Jan Juc. Picture: David Smith

The data from CAR, which is Australia’s largest animal microchip registry, revealed border collies reign supreme in 40 per cent of all local postcodes including 3211, 3220 and 3228.

Mr Forkgen said he saw quite a few border collies and golden retrievers in Jan Juc.

Labradors topped the list in 3226 and 3227, which covers Barwon Heads, Ocean Grove and Breamlea, while Jack Russell terriers dominated in 3212 (Lara and Avalon), 3218 (Geelong West, Herne Hill, Manifold Heights and Fyansford) and 3223 (Portarlington, St Leonards and Indented Head).

Collies and their owners on Torquay beach. Picture: Stephen Harman

The data revealed there were 169,267 pets, which includes dogs (114,683), cats (52,743) and other companion animals (1,841), registered in the Greater Geelong, Bellarine and Surf Coast region.

The 3216 postcode, which encompasses Belmont, Highton, Grovedale, Waurn Ponds, Wandana Heights and Marshall has 29,157 pets registered, the highest number in all local postcodes.

This was followed by 3214 (Corio, Norlane and North Geelong) with 17,454 pets registered and 3212 (Lara and Avalon) with 14,028.

The data also shows domestic short hair cats dominate the region and are the most popular feline in all postcodes followed closely by domestic medium hair, domestic long hair and Burmese breeds.

CAR business development manager Reece Weeder said there was nearly 3 million pets listed on its database in Victoria and more than 5 million registered nationwide.

“While council registrations assist local government with managing the number of pets in their area, the national database listing is the primary tool used to reunite lost pets with their family and is not restricted by local government or state borders,” he said.

Mr Weeder said it was important for families to microchip their pets and was a small cost for a lifetime peace of mind.

“The important thing for owners to remember is that if their pet were to go missing and was found with an unlisted microchip or with no microchip at all, it is very unlikely that they will ever be reunited with their pet, particularly if the pet is found outside of their council area,” he said.

Originally published as Most popular dog, cat breeds in Geelong revealed