Pet Holidays — National Today

Where would we be without the fluffy friends that show us an endless amount of love? We love to appreciate our pets all year with 75 pet holidays.

Date	Holiday	Category	Tags	Region
Wed Jan 2	Happy Mew Year for Cats Day	Animals	Cat	U.S.
Sat Jan 5	National Bird Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Mon Jan 14	National Dress Up Your Pet Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sun Jan 20	National Penguin Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Mon Jan 21	National Squirrel Appreciation Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Tue Jan 22	National Answer Your Cat's Questions Day	Animals		U.S.
Wed Jan 23	World Spay Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Feb 2	National Hedgehog Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Sun Feb 3	Doggy Date Night	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sun Feb 3	National Golden Retriever Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Wed Feb 20	National Love Your Pet Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Fri Feb 22	National Walking the Dog Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Feb 23	International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day	Animals	Pet	World
Sat Feb 23	National Dog Biscuit Day	Animals		U.S.
Sun Mar 3	National If Pets Had Thumbs Day	Animals		U.S.
Wed Mar 13	National K9 Veterans Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Mar 23	National Puppy Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Mar 28	Respect Your Cat Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Apr 6	National Siamese Cat Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Wed Apr 10	National Hug Your Dog Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Apr 11	National Pet Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sun Apr 21	National Bulldogs Are Beautiful Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Wed Apr 24	International Guide Dog Day	Animals	Dog	World
Tue Jun 4	National Hug Your Cat Day	Animals	Cat, Pet	U.S.
Mon Jun 17	National Take Your Cat to Work Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Jun 20	Ugliest Dog Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Fri Jun 21	National Take Your Dog to Work Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Wed Jul 10	National Kitten Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Mon Jul 15	National Pet Fire Safety Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Wed Jul 31	National Mutt Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Aug 1	DOGust 1st: Universal Birthday for Shelter Dogs	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Mon Aug 5	Work Like a Dog Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Thu Aug 8	International Cat Day	Animals	Cat, Pet	World
Sat Aug 10	National Spoil Your Dog Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Aug 17	International Homeless Animals Day	Animals		World
Sat Aug 17	National Black Cat Appreciation Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Aug 22	National Take Your Cat to the Vet Day	Animals	Cat	U.S.
Mon Aug 26	National Dog Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Fri Aug 30	National Holistic Pet Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Thu Sep 19	National Meow Like a Pirate Day	Animals	Pet	World
Mon Sep 23	National Dogs in Politics Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Sep 28	National Bunny Day	Animals		World
Sat Sep 28	World Rabies Day	Animals	Pet	World
Tue Oct 1	National Black Dog Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Tue Oct 1	National Fire Pup Day	Animals	Dog	U.S.
Fri Oct 4	World Animal Day	Animals	Pet	World
Wed Oct 9	National Pet Obesity Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Wed Oct 16	Global Cat Day	Animals	Cat	U.S.
Wed Oct 16	National Feral Cat Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Oct 19	National Fetch Day	Animals		U.S.
Sun Oct 20	International Sloth Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Mon Oct 21	National Pets for Veterans Day	Animals, Cause		U.S.
Mon Oct 21	National Reptile Awareness Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Mon Oct 21	National Reptile Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Sun Oct 27	National Black Cat Day	Animals	Cat, Pet	U.S.
Sun Oct 27	National Pit Bull Awareness Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Tue Oct 29	National Cat Day	Animals	Cat, Pet	U.S.
Fri Nov 1	National Cook For Your Pets Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Sat Nov 2	National Bison Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Thu Nov 7	National Canine Lymphoma Awareness Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Mon Dec 2	National Mutt Day	Animals	Pet	U.S.
Mon Dec 9	National Llama Day	Animals	Wildlife	U.S.
Fri Dec 13	National Horse Day	Animals		U.S.
January	National Train Your Dog Month	Animals		U.S.
January	Unchain a Dog Month	Animals		U.S.
January	Walk Your Dog Month	Animals		U.S.
February	Dog Training Education Month	Animals		U.S.
February	National Cat Health Month	Animals		U.S.
February	Pet Dental Health Month	Animals	Cat, Dog	U.S.
February	Responsible Pet Owners Month	Animals		U.S., World
April	National Pet Month	Animals		U.S.
April	Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month	Animals		U.S.
May 1–8	National Pet Week	Animals		U.S.
August 1–8	International Assistance Dog Week	Animals	Dog	U.S.
September	Animal Pain Awareness Month	Animals	Cat, Dog	U.S.

Where did pet holidays come from?

Did you know that pet holidays weren't created just to celebrate the animals we love? They actually originated to "bring attention to the plight of animals and encourage adoption." That's according to Colleen Paige, who started some of the first pet holidays in America.

In 2004, she originated National Dog Day (Aug. 26) to draw attention to all the dogs that need adoption—and all the dogs who work tirelessly every day to make sure we're happy and healthy. After it rocketed to success, she spun it off into other holidays like National Puppy Day, National Mutt Day, and National Cat Day to celebrate all types of animals large and small.

She unwittingly started a holiday movement—and now we have holidays celebrating everything from feral cats to ugly bulldogs! Do you have a favorite pet holiday?

Submit Your Favorite Pet holidays

If you don't see your favorite pet holiday here, submit it to us at our holiday submission page. Give us a little bit of information about your holiday when you submit it. Who started it? How many people celebrate it, and where? Once you've compiled a bit of background, we'd love to hear from you!

Submit a holiday!

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