The ratio of cats to dogs is 5 to 16. If there are 84 total cats and dogs,how many cats are there?

Sure, let's solve this step by step:

1. First, add the two parts of the ratio together. So, 5 (for cats) + 16 (for dogs) = 21.

2. Now, divide the total number of cats and dogs (84) by this number. So, 84 ÷ 21 = 4. This is the value of 1 part in the ratio.

3. To find the number of cats, multiply the number of parts for cats (5) by the value of 1 part. So, 5 * 4 = 20.

So, there are 20 cats.

To solve this problem, we first need to understand that the ratio of cats to dogs is 5:16, which means for every 5 cats, there are 16 dogs.

Step 1: Add the two parts of the ratio together. 5 (for cats) + 16 (for dogs) = 21.

Step 2: Now, we know that this 21 represents the total number of pets, which is 84. To find out what 1 part of the ratio represents, divide the total number of pets by the total parts of the ratio. So, 84 ÷ 21 = 4. This means 1 part of the ratio represents 4 pets.

Step 3: To find out how many cats there are (which is 5 parts of the ratio), multiply the value of 1 part of the ratio by 5. So, 4 x 5 = 20.

Therefore, there are 20 cats.