ATLANTA -- Man's
best friend might just be treated like any other animal depending on
where the owners live. A study by David Blouin, assistant professor of
the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Indiana University South
Bend, found that people who think of animals as children tend to have a
city background.
"To think of pets
as just another animal is not uncommon in rural areas," Blouin said,
"which makes sense given the utilitarian relationships people in rural
areas are more likely to have with a range of different animals -- from
farm to wild animals."
But no matter where
someone lives, having children often changes the owners' thoughts on
their pets.
"If you have kids,
you have less time to spend with your pets," said Blouin, who discussed
his study on Sunday at the American Sociological Association 2010 Annual
Meeting. "That's part of it, but not the whole story. People who think
of their pets as their children often re-evaluate this thought when they
have human children of their own."
Here are some of
the findings of Blouin's study, which involved pet owners in Indiana:
People often have
very intense attachments to their pets and pets are often an integral
part of their daily routines.
Ninety-three
percent of dog owners and 77 percent of cat owners took their pets to
the veterinarian at least one time a year.
Eighty-one percent
of dog owners and 67.5 percent of cat owners spent two or more hours
daily with their respective pets, while only 2 percent of dog and cat
owners spent time with their pets less than every day.
In interviews many
of the pet owners confided that their pet's health was a major concern,
especially as their animals got older. Some admitted that they spent
significant sums of money on their pet's health, addressing routine
care, such as vaccinations, as well more serious conditions such as skin
allergies, Crohn's disease and diabetes.
The frequency of
interactions owners had with their pets, as well as how often they took
them to the veterinarian, were closely tied to how owners viewed their
pets -- whether as a child, a companion, or just another, albeit, useful
animal, Blouin said.
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