156,000 new dogs in Belgium in 2012

No fewer than 156,000 new dogs were registered by the Belgian Association for Canine Identification and Registration (ABIEC) last year, report the Sudpresse papers. In total, there are about 1.12 million dogs in Belgium. ABIEC recorded 156,643 new dogs last year, compared to 154,857 in 2011. Some dogs, however, are not listed because their owners did not inform the association, even though it is a legal requirement. In total, more than two million dogs are registered in Belgium. However, this figure must be qualified because many owners do not inform ABIEC when their dog dies. According to the latest estimate, Belgium has 1.12 million dogs. The most popular breed in 2012 registrations is the chihuahua (16,169 registrations), ahead of the border collie (5,912) and the shih tzu (4,598).