When’s the last time you saw a dog house? I’ll bet you can’t remember. Seems they've pretty much disappeared from the landscape.
It’s not hard to figure out why. These days, most pet owners would recoil at the thought of tying their dog outside, all day or night, in cold or heat, to an uninsulated little house.
The absence of dog houses indicates just how much, as a culture, we’ve embraced pets - dogs, cats and other domesticated animals - as members of our family.
Consider a few of these stats: In 2020 Americans spent $42 billion on pet food and treats, $22 billion on pet supplies and $31 billion on vet bills, according to a new study by the American Pet Products Association.
The group also found that in 2020 84.9 million households in the U.S. owned at least one pet, the vast majority being a cat or dog. The study found that 63.4 million households owned a dog and 42.7 million owned a cat.
Those figures likely skyrocketed during 2020 when millions of Americans, homebound by the pandemic, adopted a dog or cat to keep them company. According to The Humane Society pet ownership in this country has more than tripled since the 1970s, And the more we surround ourselves with cats and dogs, the more we have humanized them.
These day, department stores carry a large array of pet toys, beds, treats and other supplies. There are “puppy cams” and “kitty cams” so you can keep tabs on your cat or dog while they're home alone.
You can buy your dog a real couch, miniaturized for their size, for about $100. Cat houses have become elaborate affairs with decks and terraces. Pet medical care is nearly as specialized as human medical care and you can buy pet medical insurance as well.
The birth rates among young women are dropping in the U.S. at the same time that pet ownership among millennials and younger generations is going up.
Our dogs and cats are now “fur babies.” We have become “pet parents.”
Some pet parents make their own dog food because they want their cat or dog to eat fresh, natural, even organic, meals.
The Human Animal Bond Research Institute says our growing attachment to animals is a good thing, for us and them. Pets have benefited from being coddled by their human companions. We, in return, enjoy a myriad of mental and physical health benefits from our pets.
“Literally 97 of doctors say there are health benefits from owning a pet … simply owning a dog can make a person healthier in a variety of ways,” the group says.
*Editor's note: We're holding a contest for the cutest pet among our readers. Email us your cute pet pics at gary.perrelli@lifestylepubs.com.