Expectations for dog ownership: Perceived physical, mental and psychosocial health consequences among prospective adopters

Lauren Powell; Debbie Chia; Paul McGreevy; Anthony L Podberscek; Kate M Edwards; Brendon Neilly; Adam J Guastella; Vanessa Lee; Emmanuel Stamatakis

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0200276

Expectations for dog ownership: Perceived physical, mental and psychosocial health consequences among prospective adopters

PLoS One. 2018 Jul 6;13(7):e0200276. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0200276. eCollection 2018.

Authors

Lauren Powell¹, Debbie Chia¹, Paul McGreevy², Anthony L Podberscek³, Kate M Edwards⁴, Brendon Neilly⁵, Adam J Guastella⁶, Vanessa Lee¹, Emmanuel Stamatakis¹

Affiliations

¹ Charles Perkins Centre, Prevention Research Collaboration, Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
² Sydney School of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
³ Charles Perkins Centre, Sydney School of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁴ Charles Perkins Centre, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁵ Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) NSW, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁶ Autism Clinic for Translational Research, Brain and Mind Centre, Central Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia.

Abstract

Dog ownership is popular worldwide, with most human-dog dyads forming successful attachment bonds. However, millions of dogs are surrendered to animal shelters annually, possibly due to mismatches between owner expectations and the realities of dog ownership. The aim of the current study was to explore the benefits and challenges people expect from dog ownership and how these expectations vary with previous ownership history. An Australian-wide sample of 3465 prospective adopters completed a self-administered online questionnaire about the physical, mental and psychosocial health benefits and challenges they associated with dog ownership. Among the potential benefits, respondents expected increased walking (89%), happiness (89%) and companionship (61%) and decreased stress (74%) and loneliness (61%). Among the challenges, they expected increased responsibility (64%) and dog training (62%). Ownership history influenced respondents' expectations, with previous/current dog owners having consistently greater odds of expecting benefits and reduced odds of expecting challenges than non-owners. A possible explanation is that previous/current dog owners' exhibit bias when considering dog ownership by selectively recalling positive experiences from previous ownership. Our findings support the need for education of prospective dog owners to ensure their expectations align with the reality of ownership, based on current scientific evidence.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Animals
Anticipation, Psychological*
Australia
Dogs
Female
Human-Animal Bond*
Humans
Loneliness / psychology
Male
Middle Aged
Motivation*
Ownership*
Pets / psychology*
Prospective Studies
Surveys and Questionnaires
Walking
Young Adult

Grants and funding

This work was supported by a research donation offered by Ms Lynne Cattell [grant ID: 183100] (ES). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.