Are Millennials really Picking Pets over People? Taking a Closer Look at Dog Ownership in Emerging Adulthood

Abstract

This paper draws on the work of Bourdieu to understand how experiences with dog ownership become embodied and how these experiences influence young people’s development as they leave home and learn to mobilize any capital to which they have access. Our results show that dogs can provide everyday routine during a stage in life when young people often experience instability. Additionally, dogs may help to shift the focus beyond self, thereby influencing how, and with whom, millennials spend their time. Nonetheless, balancing dog ownership with education, work, dating, social life, and other obligations could become challenging. Overall, this paper highlights that young people’s access to resources, including housing, may influence their capacities to experience all the benefits that pet ownership purports to offer. Dog ownership has numerous implications for healthy development among millennials, yet greater support may be needed to facilitate smoother transitions.

Healthy publics as multi-species matters: solidarity with people’s pets in One Health promotion

“…"They call me Kitty Momo", he said (cited in Graveland, 2014). So-called boomerang moves have become commonplace among members of the so-called millennial generation; but not all millennials have parents who are willing or able to accommodate their adult children, along with their pets (Graham et al, 2019).…”

“…Tenants and would-be tenants adopted several strategies to find and keep rental housing. To keep their pets with them, meanwhile, many tenants stayed in housing and neighborhoods that they perceived to be unsafe (Graham et al, 2019;Toohey and Rock, 2018). Of note, many tenants were obliged to live in basement suites that were illegal at the time.…”

“…Meanwhile, the Government of Canada continues to privilege homeownership in its policies, which relegates lower-income people to less-desirable housing in the rental market (Suttor, 2017;Dunn et al, 2006;Carroll and Jones, 2000;MacLeod et al, 2017). These policies have combined to compound risks among people who feel strongly attached to their pets, yet who have little by way of economic, familial, or community support (Toohey and Rock, 2018;Toohey et al, 2017;Graham et al, 2019).…”

“…Prior to preparing this article, previous research within the team had highlighted a perennial lack of housing for lowerincome Calgarians along with their cats and dogs (Graham et al, 2019;Toohey et al, 2017;Toohey and Rock, 2018;Toohey and Krahn, 2017). Furthermore, policy debates culminating in reforms to The City of Calgary's rental housing policy have ignored this issue (Levanda et al, 2020).…”

From more‐than‐human solidarity to multi‐species biographical value: insights from a veterinary school about ethical dilemmas in One Health promotion

“…In turn, human–animal bonds can enhance people's interactions with neighbours and even with strangers (Graham et al . , Toohey et al . , Wood et al .…”