Dog waste statistics
The 89.7 million dogs in the United States produce about 67,275,000 pounds of waste every day. In Temecula Valley alone an estimated 98,764 dogs account for 74,072 pounds a day and 13,530 tons a year. Every number below is sourced, and our own figures show their method.
How many dogs there are
The ownership base every other number on this page rests on.
How much waste that is
The EPA's per-dog figures, multiplied out.
Why it is a pollution problem
The EPA has classified pet waste as a pollutant since 1991.
What owners actually do
The gap between the bag in your pocket and the bag you use.
The industry that cleans it up
A small market growing faster than most home services.
US households with a dog, then and now
Two published counts, twenty-eight years apart. Nothing is interpolated between them.
Source: AVMA, 2024 Pet Ownership Sourcebook.
A single gram of dog waste carries about 23 million fecal coliform bacteria. One large dog's output in a day carries enough to close 15 acres of shellfish beds.
Salt Lake County Stormwater CoalitionWhat owners say they actually do
Five self-reported figures, all percentages, all on the same scale.
Sources: Faunalytics survey of dog-owner scooping behavior, and Generocity on pickup rates.
The market for cleaning it up
Reported 2023 value against the 2031 projection, growing 8.6% a year.
Source: Verified Market Research, pet waste removal services market. The 2031 figure is a projection, not a measurement.
Temecula Valley, city by city
This table is our own calculation. National rates applied to local population counts, with the arithmetic shown underneath so anyone can check it.
Estimated dogs by city
Bars are directly labeled. Full numbers in the table below.
| City | Residents | Households | Dog households | Dogs | Waste / day | Waste / year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murrieta, CA 92562 | 113,006 | 37,260 | 16,953 | 25,430 | 19,072 lb | 3,484 tons |
| Temecula, CA 92592 | 110,810 | 36,536 | 16,624 | 24,936 | 18,702 lb | 3,416 tons |
| Menifee, CA 92584 | 106,365 | 35,070 | 15,957 | 23,936 | 17,952 lb | 3,279 tons |
| Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 | 71,505 | 23,576 | 10,727 | 16,091 | 12,068 lb | 2,204 tons |
| Wildomar, CA 92595 | 37,197 | 12,265 | 5,580 | 8,371 | 6,278 lb | 1,147 tons |
| All five cities | 438,883 | 144,707 | 65,841 | 98,764 | 74,072 lb | 13,530 tons |
How we calculated it
Four published inputs, one line of arithmetic per city. No survey of our own customers, and no estimate presented as a count.
households = population ÷ 3.03 — the Census puts Temecula at 110,810 residents in 36,536 households.
dog households = households × 45.5% — the AVMA's 2024 US dog ownership rate.
dogs = dog households × 1.50 — 89.7 million dogs across 59.8 million dog-owning households.
waste = dogs × 0.75 lb per day — the EPA's figure, which is 274 pounds a year.
These are estimates built on national averages applied to local population counts. There is no census of dogs in Riverside County, and we are not pretending otherwise.
Questions
Using these numbers?
Take them. Every figure on this page is free to quote, chart or republish with a link to scoop-king.com/dog-waste-statistics. If you want the per-city table as a CSV, email hello@scoop-king.com and we will send it.
Who published this
Scoop King is a dog waste removal service covering Temecula, Murrieta, Menifee, Lake Elsinore, Wildomar, Canyon Lake, Winchester and Sun City. Weekly yard cleanup starts at $89 a month with no contract. See pricing, services, or the areas we cover.