Love me, love my dog! (or my cat!)
Kudos to Lisa Spector for a great article about our beloved pets!
Dr. Justine Lee
By Lisa Spector, Canine Music Expert, Juilliard Graduate, and co-creator of Through a Dog’s Ear.
In 2006 there were more than 72 million pet dogs in the U.S. and nearly 82 million pet cats, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook (2007 Edition). In the same year, nearly half of pet owners, or 49.7 percent considered their pets to be family members.
How many of those consider their pets to be their sweethearts? In a poll taken of 3,000 British dog and cat owners, 19 percent stated that they would rather have a pet than be involved in a romantic partnership. For 81 percent of the dog owners polled, it would be an instant deal breaker if their date didn’t like their pet. And 79 percent polled stated that they wouldn’t give up their pet for a romantic partner.
A study by the National Institutes of Health revealed that having a pet can help to diminish feelings of loneliness, particularly for women living alone, and compensate for the absence of human companionship. However, owning a pet doesn’t have to disallow meeting a human mate. In the British study cited above, 5 percent of dog owners have been on a date with someone they met walking their dog, with 1.5 percent still dating that person. I am in the U.S. and am amongst those who have been on a date with someone I met while walking my dog (while not being in the 1.5 percent still dating that person.) I have been known to fall in love with a Golden Retriever in a heartbeat, and it may have been possible that I confused who my attraction was for when I looked up at the other end of the leash. However, I believe that how you do anything is how you do everything. So, observing someone’s relationship with their pet can also reveal a lot about the person.
That may account for the recent popularity of online dating sites for pet owners. DateMyPet.com, LoveMyPet.com, and PetPeopleMeet.com are three such sites. On the latter, I read a success story from a woman who met her match when she fell in love with a man who also rescues dogs. Yet, once in a human relationship, people often state they crave the kind of unconditional love they receive from their pets. Can Pets Improve your Relationship?, an article by Dr. Suzanne Phillips, Psy.D., ABPP, states that all the qualities we often want in our mate appear similar to those we experience with our pets. Her reports show that a person in a relationship often wants to be spoken to with the same affection shown to their pet.
According to a survey by Sealy mattresses, 67% of people regularly bed down with their cats and dogs, and many prefer to share their beds with their furry friends than with human partners. Why is that? 51% say their sleep is disturbed by their partner, compared to 38 percent who claim their canines and felines wake them up constantly. But, does the real answer go much deeper than quality of sleep? What do you think? Have our beloved pets replaced human partners or enhanced those relationships? Thanks for clicking on “comment” below and sharing your thoughts. Also feel free to share stories if you met your human partner because of your pet or if you stayed away from someone because you listened to your pet.
Whether your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day is human, furry, feathered, or all of the above, Sanchez and Gina and I wish you all a very Happy Valentine’s Day. To show my appreciation to Care2 readers, I am offering a 25 percent discount on all product purchases at ThroughaDogsEar.com, valid through the end of the day on Valentine’s Day, February 14. Enter the coupon code “care2vday” at checkout. (May not be combined with other special offers or bundles.) Enjoy music with your human and canine families that has been clinically demonstrated to calm the canine and human nervous systems. Click here to listen to a sound sample from our Music to Calm your Canine Companion series.
Lisa Spector is a concert pianist, Juilliard graduate, canine music expert, and Facebook coach. By combining her passion for music with her love of dogs, she co-created Through a Dog's Ear, the first music clinically demonstrated to relieve anxiety issues in dogs. For the past 14 years, she has owned Lisa Spector’s Music School in Half Moon Bay, CA. She shares her home and her heart with her two adorable "career change" Labrador Retrievers from Guide Dogs for the Blind, Sanchez and Gina.
Dr. Justine Lee
By Lisa Spector, Canine Music Expert, Juilliard Graduate, and co-creator of Through a Dog’s Ear.
In 2006 there were more than 72 million pet dogs in the U.S. and nearly 82 million pet cats, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook (2007 Edition). In the same year, nearly half of pet owners, or 49.7 percent considered their pets to be family members.
How many of those consider their pets to be their sweethearts? In a poll taken of 3,000 British dog and cat owners, 19 percent stated that they would rather have a pet than be involved in a romantic partnership. For 81 percent of the dog owners polled, it would be an instant deal breaker if their date didn’t like their pet. And 79 percent polled stated that they wouldn’t give up their pet for a romantic partner.
A study by the National Institutes of Health revealed that having a pet can help to diminish feelings of loneliness, particularly for women living alone, and compensate for the absence of human companionship. However, owning a pet doesn’t have to disallow meeting a human mate. In the British study cited above, 5 percent of dog owners have been on a date with someone they met walking their dog, with 1.5 percent still dating that person. I am in the U.S. and am amongst those who have been on a date with someone I met while walking my dog (while not being in the 1.5 percent still dating that person.) I have been known to fall in love with a Golden Retriever in a heartbeat, and it may have been possible that I confused who my attraction was for when I looked up at the other end of the leash. However, I believe that how you do anything is how you do everything. So, observing someone’s relationship with their pet can also reveal a lot about the person.
That may account for the recent popularity of online dating sites for pet owners. DateMyPet.com, LoveMyPet.com, and PetPeopleMeet.com are three such sites. On the latter, I read a success story from a woman who met her match when she fell in love with a man who also rescues dogs. Yet, once in a human relationship, people often state they crave the kind of unconditional love they receive from their pets. Can Pets Improve your Relationship?, an article by Dr. Suzanne Phillips, Psy.D., ABPP, states that all the qualities we often want in our mate appear similar to those we experience with our pets. Her reports show that a person in a relationship often wants to be spoken to with the same affection shown to their pet.
According to a survey by Sealy mattresses, 67% of people regularly bed down with their cats and dogs, and many prefer to share their beds with their furry friends than with human partners. Why is that? 51% say their sleep is disturbed by their partner, compared to 38 percent who claim their canines and felines wake them up constantly. But, does the real answer go much deeper than quality of sleep? What do you think? Have our beloved pets replaced human partners or enhanced those relationships? Thanks for clicking on “comment” below and sharing your thoughts. Also feel free to share stories if you met your human partner because of your pet or if you stayed away from someone because you listened to your pet.
Whether your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day is human, furry, feathered, or all of the above, Sanchez and Gina and I wish you all a very Happy Valentine’s Day. To show my appreciation to Care2 readers, I am offering a 25 percent discount on all product purchases at ThroughaDogsEar.com, valid through the end of the day on Valentine’s Day, February 14. Enter the coupon code “care2vday” at checkout. (May not be combined with other special offers or bundles.) Enjoy music with your human and canine families that has been clinically demonstrated to calm the canine and human nervous systems. Click here to listen to a sound sample from our Music to Calm your Canine Companion series.
Lisa Spector is a concert pianist, Juilliard graduate, canine music expert, and Facebook coach. By combining her passion for music with her love of dogs, she co-created Through a Dog's Ear, the first music clinically demonstrated to relieve anxiety issues in dogs. For the past 14 years, she has owned Lisa Spector’s Music School in Half Moon Bay, CA. She shares her home and her heart with her two adorable "career change" Labrador Retrievers from Guide Dogs for the Blind, Sanchez and Gina.
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