Why Do People Choose a Particular Dog? A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Factors Owners Consider Important When Acquiring a Dog, on a Convenience Sample of Austrian Pet Dog Owners

Simple Summary Choosing the right dog that fits well with an owner's lifestyle is important for the happiness of both the dog and the owner. This study looked into why and how people in Austria choose their dogs by surveying over a thousand dog owners. Unlike past studies, we asked open-ended questions so that the owners could freely share their reasons. On average, the owners gave two to three reasons for their choice. The most common reasons included the dog's breed, picking a dog on a whim, the dog's abilities for work or sports, and rescuing a dog. Surprisingly, less than 1% of owners prioritized guarding abilities, and 1% considered basic traits like the dog's sex, age, or health as key factors. If an owner picked a dog for its looks or skills, they often chose their next dog for the same reasons. Factors like the owner's age, household composition, previous experience with dogs, and the intended role of the dog also played a part in the decision. For instance, owners with children preferred dogs that were friendly, calm, and easy to train, and they were less likely to adopt from shelters compared to those without children. Overall, our study shows the wide range of reasons that people have for choosing their dogs, which can help ensure better matches between dogs and their owners, improving the well-being of both.Abstract Selecting a dog that is incompatible with the owner's expectations can negatively impact both parties. Previous studies on dog acquisition have primarily focused on shelter environments, using closed-ended questions to assess hypothetical preferences. In contrast, our study employed open-ended questions with a convenience sample of Austrian dog owners (N = 1077) to retrospectively explore why the owners chose their dogs. We also examined consistency in owners' responses and the influence of owner characteristics (age, education, household composition, previous dog experience, purpose of acquisition) on their reasons. Content analysis revealed 24 codes; the frequency of codes was 2.4/response. The most frequent codes were breed-based choice (29%), choosing on a whim, without careful consideration (24%), work/sport skills (22%), and rescuing a dog (17%). The least frequent were the age (1%), health (1%), sex (1%), and guarding skills (0.6%) of the dog. Twelve codes were consistent over time, and ten were consistent across dogs, indicating that the owners showed a consistent preference for certain traits. Except for the owner's education level, all characteristics affected the likelihood of mentioning at least one code. Most associations were found with the presence of children in the household: owners with children preferred friendly, easily manageable, and easy-to-train dogs and were less likely to adopt or rescue compared to owners living without children. Our findings also highlight discrepancies between spontaneous (free-text) reports and responses to closed-ended questions, underscoring the importance of qualitative data in better understanding the motivations behind and the factors influencing dog acquisition. Selecting a dog that is incompatible with the owner's expectations can negatively impact both parties. Previous studies on dog acquisition have primarily focused on shelter environments, using closed-ended questions to assess hypothetical preferences. In contrast, our study employed open-ended questions with a convenience sample of Austrian dog owners (N = 1077) to retrospectively explore why the owners chose their dogs. We also examined consistency in owners' responses and the influence of owner characteristics (age, education, household composition, previous dog experience, purpose of acquisition) on their reasons. Content analysis revealed 24 codes; the frequency of codes was 2.4/response. The most frequent codes were breed-based choice (29%), choosing on a whim, without careful consideration (24%), work/sport skills (22%), and rescuing a dog (17%). The least frequent were the age (1%), health (1%), sex (1%), and guarding skills (0.6%) of the dog. Twelve codes were consistent over time, and ten were consistent across dogs, indicating that the owners showed a consistent preference for certain traits. Except for the owner's education level, all characteristics affected the likelihood of mentioning at least one code. Most associations were found with the presence of children in the household: owners with children preferred friendly, easily manageable, and easy-to-train dogs and were less likely to adopt or rescue compared to owners living without children. Our findings also highlight discrepancies between spontaneous (free-text) reports and responses to closed-ended questions, underscoring the importance of qualitative data in better understanding the motivations behind and the factors influencing dog acquisition.

Eotvos Lorand Univ
MTA ELTE Lendulet Momentum Compan Anim Res Grp
Eötvös Loránd University
Veterinärmedizinische Universität Wien
ELTE NAP Canine Brain Research Group
Eotvos Lorand University