Abstract
Dog ownership satisfaction relates to the quality of life of both owner and dog, and when seriously compromised may even lead to dog abandonment. Knowledge on determinants of dog ownership satisfaction is limited, obstructing solutions for promoting satisfaction, and here we quantified causes making dog owners less than very satisfied with their dog. We focused on the owner perceived relationship with the dog, unwanted dog behaviour, and dog obedience class attendance. The study population included only few seriously dissatisfied dog owners, preventing discrimination of multiple levels below ‘very satisfied’. Consequently, existing relationships in the entire population may have been missed or underestimated and the findings apply specifically to dog owners that are relatively contented with dog ownership. Nine hundred seventy-seven Dutch dog owners completed an online questionnaire and we found the probability of being very satisfied to associate with all three subscales of the Monash Dog Owner Relationship Scale. Most strongly with perceived costs of ownership and less so with shared activities between owner and dog, and perceived emotional closeness to the dog. Aggression and/or disobedience related directly to high perceived ownership costs and to an increased probability of being less than very satisfied. Interaction effects indicated that dog disobedience was less influential on ownership satisfaction at high levels of aggression. Surprisingly, dog ownership satisfaction was unrelated to dog obedience class attendance, raising questions about the effectiveness of these classes in establishing satisfying dog-owner relationships. Training aids used during classes could play a role here, as choke chain use associated with high perceived costs and increased probabilities of being less then very satisfied with dog ownership. Ownership satisfaction in relatively contented dog owners, seems more influenced by unwanted dog behaviour and perceived costs of ownership, than by perceived emotional closeness to the dog, shared activities and dog obedience class attendance.
Highlights
Dog ownership has the potential to support personal development and well-being by means of the dog fulfilling its owner’s psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness [1]
We found no statistically significant difference for dog ownership satisfaction level between first time owners and experienced owners
Knowledge of what determines dog ownership satisfaction may be utilized for strategies to improve the owner-dog relationship, possibly even lowering abandonment rates of dogs [5, 6]
Summary
Dog ownership has the potential to support personal development and well-being by means of the dog fulfilling its owner’s psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness [1]. Dog ownership satisfaction reflects several aspects of the owner-dog relationship such as owner-dog attachment strength [5] When this attachment strength is compromised it increases the risk of the dog being relinquished [6]. It remains unclear what makes dog owners (very) satisfied with their dog and here we quantify the relative importance of obvious determinants of such satisfaction, based on known risk factors for dog abandonment such as unwanted dog behaviour, the owner perceived relationship with the dog and attendance to dog obedience classes [5, 7, 8, 9]. Biting people and being perceived as overly active, increased a dog’s risk of abandonment in a comparative study with 2,092 people who relinquished their dog to a shelter and 3,434 people who kept their dog [14]
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