Rise of the Fur Children: PD Pet Insurance said age has created distinctive generational attributes between pet owners.
With pets increasingly seen as fur children or cherished family members, it’s no surprise that 91 percent of PD Insurance policyholders consider their dogs and cats when making major life decisions such as moving home, travelling, or even changing jobs.
This is just one thought-provoking insight from PD Insurance’s latest biannual pet parent survey. The pet insurance specialist aimed to discover how pet parenting differs across generations, how our attitudes toward pets evolve, and the differences in approaches between Baby Boomers, Millennials, Gen X, and Gen Z.
More than 1,500 pet owners weighed in and while some findings might be expected, others come as a complete surprise.
For this research, the generations are categorised as:
- Baby Boomers – aged 60 to 78
- Generation X – aged 44 to 59
- Millennials – aged 28 to 43
- Generation Z – aged 18 to 27
“No, we’re not looking to stoke any intergenerational fires,” said Michelle Le Long, PD Insurance COO.
“But rather, we’re looking for common ground and how pets fit into families from one generation to another.”
The biggest surprise? It’s Gen Z who are most likely to consider their dogs and cats as children. “This finding made us look twice,” confessed Le Long.
“Most might assume that Baby Boomers would predominantly view pets as replacement children in an empty nest.”
Additionally, 28.9 percent of Millennials also think of their pets as children. (In our April 2024 survey 36 respondents reported purchasing a pet stroller for their fur child). While not deemed children, nearly four-fifths (77.9 percent) of Baby Boomers consider their pets to be beloved family members. Gen X is a fraction behind at 77.8 percent.
When asked, ‘Do you think of your pet(s) as substitutes for having children’, almost 50 percent of Gen Z and Millennials collectively answered ‘yes, definitely’, or ‘yes, somewhat’.
Intergenerationally, the notion of ‘fur kids / beloved family members’, or pets on an equal footing with human children is absolutely growing. And fast!” shared Le Long.
“Ah, the big question. And one where you’d expect – and we found – a big variation between the generations. That’s because many of us will think of our pets as direct substitutes for children right up to the point that we actually have children.”
Generation Z didn’t disappoint, with 25 percent saying ‘yes definitely’ to pets as child substitutes and a further 38 percent adding ‘for now’. Among Millennials, 23 percent said ‘yes definitely’ with eight percent in the ‘for now’ category. There’s a notable drop for Gen X with 20 percent saying ‘yes definitely’ and Baby Boomers were the least likely to describe their pets as children, with 40 percent saying ‘no, not at all.
Splurging on the kids is a time-honoured tradition and with pets being treated as children, there’s no surprise that the fur children get priority in the budget. Setting aside vet bills, Gen X leads the pack in spending, with a staggering 21.7 percent spending more than $3,000 on their fur babies every year.
Millennials aren’t far behind, with 20.3 percent and Gen Z is also generous with 18.2 percent allocating a big chunk of change to their fur children. Only 10.2 percent of Baby Boomers allocate so much in their budgets.
“That’s staggering,” said Le Long.
“But notably, people across generations are very good to their pets as is clear in the vast percentage affording significant spend to fur children.”
That’s clear in the other end of the question asking, ‘Excluding vet bills, how much do you estimate you spend on your pet/s in a year?’. For Generation Z, 79.5 percent spend more than $1000, going up to 85.7 percent of Millennials, 84.1 percent of Gen X, and 75.6 percent of Baby Boomers.
For some time, PD Insurance has noted the trend of bringing pets into the workplace, and there’s even a ‘Take Your Dog to Work Day’ that took place on 21 June this year. An earlier survey from April 2024 showed that only 13 percent of respondents were allowed to bring pups to work, while nearly 30 percent said they’d be willing to take a pay cut for the privilege.
But how do the generations view this growing trend? No surprise, perhaps, that Gen Z is top of the pops for pups in the office, with 78 percent in favour. Close behind, 71 percent of Millennials give the idea the thumbs up, dropping to 67 percent for GenX and 65 percent for Baby Boomers.
“There’s a growing body of research indicating that pets in the workplace can help defuse stress,” said Le Long.
“And it’s safe to say the younger generations are keen on the idea. It must be noted, though, that not all workplaces are right for a pet, and not all pets are suitable for an office job either!”
Looking for quality conversations? Sometimes pets are just the best for listening, and it turns out Millennials are most likely to chat away like the dogs and cats understand every word, with 92.5 percent saying this is them. Mind you, never mind the specific generation – most pet lovers love a good old chinwag with the fur children, with 90.9 percent of Gen Z, 89.1 percent of Gen X and 85.2 percent of Baby Boomers humouring.
It’s not just an office dog (or cat) that can boost morale, there’s emerging evidence that letting pets share your bed offers mental and physical benefits. But how do the generations approach sleeping arrangements?
Those between 18 and 27 years are most likely to accede, with 64.8 percent of Gen Z being okay with the pup or kitty competing for the covers. There’s a fair drop to Millennials; just over half (50.2 percent) of whom allow pets to sleep on the bed, down to 49.3 percent of Gen X and 44.3 percent of Baby Boomers.
“Younger generations may find comfort and companionship in sharing their bed with pets,” said Le Long. “But perhaps over time, many of us start to value having a bit more space at night.”
Additional generational insights further reinforce Le Long’s contention. When the survey asked if people consider pets when making major life decisions like moving, travelling or changing jobs, Boomers and Gen X are overwhelmingly looking out for fur babies at 90.3 percent and 89.9 percent respectively. That went up to 93 percent of Millennials, and 96.6 percent of Gen Z.
However, across generations, Le Long said the biannual PD Insurance survey has shown one consistent finding: we all love our pets, lots.
“That’s a clear result: PD pet parents treasure their pets, no matter the generation to which they belong.”
Read more here.
