If the ratio of cats to dogs is 3:2 and there are 12 cats, how many dogs are there?

To find the number of dogs based on the given ratio of cats to dogs, we first need to understand the ratio itself. A ratio of 3:2 means that for every 3 cats, there are 2 dogs.

Given that there are 12 cats, we can set up a proportion to find the number of dogs. The ratio indicates that for every 3 cats, the relationship to dogs is represented by the fraction 2/3 (dogs per cat).

To find out how many sets of 3 cats are in 12, we divide 12 by the number of cats in the ratio (which is 3):

12 cats ÷ 3 = 4 sets of the ratio.

Since each set of this ratio corresponds to 2 dogs, we then multiply the number of sets by the number of dogs represented in each set:

4 sets × 2 dogs per set = 8 dogs.

Thus, the correct number of dogs is 8, confirming that there are indeed 8 dogs corresponding to 12 cats in the given ratio.