Victoria's love for Labradors and Lab-crosses persists according to the released by the City of Victoria on Jan. 8, which marks 10 years of the city's dog breed map.

In 11 of Victoria's 12 neighbourhoods Labs and Lab-crosses are the top dogs, including downtown where pugs have been dethroned. In North Park, however, the neighbourhood remains a Chihuahua-cross stronghold.

Overall, there are 6,437 licensed dogs in Victoria with Fairfield having the highest number at 944 dogs, or almost 15 per cent of the city's dogs. James Bay takes the second spot with 811 pooches, and Victoria West is third with 808 furry friends.

Despite the city's population increasing by 12,000 over the past decade, man's best friend has seen a decrease in population by less than one per cent, from 6,500 to 6,437.

Most owners B´ÎÔª¹ÙÍøÍøÖ·“ around 72 per cent B´ÎÔª¹ÙÍøÍøÖ·“ have one dog; about 11 per cent have two dogs; and less than two per cent of owners have three or more dogs.

The top five female dog names are Luna, Lucy, Poppy, Rosie and Bella. Luna is the most popular name in the city with about 68 pups named Luna in Victoria. For male dogs, Charlie tops the list and is followed by Max, Cooper, Murphy and Finn.

"A licence is required for all dogs over the age of four months and the first one must be bought in person. Dog licence fees help to offset the costs of operating the animal control and pound service and providing dog waste bags in parks. Hundreds of dogs are quickly reunited with their owners in Victoria each year because they are found wearing a current dog tag," noted a release from the City of Victoria, which is reminding dog owners to renew their licences for 2025.

Dog owners who renew before the end of February can save $20 and be entered to win the first dog tag (#0001) of the year and bragging rights of owning the city's "number one dog."

Those looking to renew their licence can do so at www.victoria.ca/dogs or at a City of Victoria dog licence vendor.