Owning a cat or dog might boost your happiness as much as an $89,000 raise, a new study from the University of Kent suggests.
Drawing on survey data from 2,500 British households, researchers found that living with a pet increased life satisfaction by 3 to 4 points on a 7-point scale. The researchers used the “life satisfaction approach,” a method economists use to assign monetary value to things like clean air or green space.
“It’s often used to put a value on civic amenities … things you can’t buy in a supermarket,” Adelina Gschwandtner, the study’s lead author, told British news outlet The Times.
The University of Kent study also found that pet owners were more extroverted, conscientious and open — with dog lovers more emotionally stable and cat owners ranking higher in intellectual curiosity.
Ms. Gschwandtner says she hopes policymakers will take the findings seriously, suggesting changes like looser pet rules in rentals or expanded therapy animal programs.
“We only have information about cats and dogs as these are the most prevalent pet types,” she told The Times, “but we do not wish to underestimate the importance of other types of pets for wellbeing such as fish, hamsters, rabbits, reptiles or horses.”
A PLOS One study found in 2021 that during the pandemic, dog owners felt more loved and showed fewer signs of depression than those without pups, despite equal human contact.
