Cats keep coming through the door. Whether they keep coming back is another question. Feline clinical visits at US veterinary practices rose 2.7% in the third quarter of 2026 compared with the same quarter of 2025. Canine visits declined over the same period, according to CATalyst Council’s Feline Veterinary Market Insights: Volume VII.1 The report draws on Vetsource data from 6,595 practices. It counts any visit in which a patient received medical care, wellness or otherwise. Cat visits have now grown in each of the last 12 quarters. Cats’ share of companion animal visits reached 24% in the latest quarter, up from 21% 3 years earlier.1 Visits across all species fell 1.9% year over year. A tale of two pipelines The report also offers the first look at kitten and puppy visits for the fiscal year that began in July. The gap between the two is wide. Kitten visits from July through September dipped 0.9% compared with the same months of 2025.1 Even so, the kitten numbers remain on track to finish the year about 11% above the 2018-2019 baseline, before the COVID-19 pandemic. If the pace holds, kitten visits would top that baseline for the seventh straight year. Puppy visits fell 10% from July through September and are on pace to finish 44% below the baseline.1 The council explains why a shrinking puppy class matters well beyond puppyhood