It’s important to find ways to keep your pup healthy and exercised, even if you’re confined to the indoors due to inclement weather.
Although it can be difficult to find things to do in the winter, the American Kennel Club suggests the following tips to get through the season.
Create an indoor agility course
This may sound complicated, but setting up an obstacle course in your house can be simple. Place a broom on top of two buckets (or even just hold it) to create a small jump for your dog. This is a great way to keep your dog engaged indoors. Always do your research to make sure that the activities you are doing with your dog are appropriate.
Set up a playdate
Whether with other dogs or humans, socialization is important for your dog. Even though winter can make us hibernate sometimes, it’s always beneficial to keep your pup socialized and provide reminders of what good behavior looks like. Make sure the other dogs are properly vaccinated.
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Gain a new skill
Set up a training routine to do with your dog each day. “Sit,†“down,†“come†and “stay†can all be taught indoors and in a small space.
Add a trick to your repertoire
Old and new dogs can learn new tricks. Not only will learning another trick exercise your dog’s body, but it will mentally stimulate his mind, too. Mental stimulation is as important as physical activity, and it will tire your dog out.
Consider doggy day care
Some doggy day care centers will offer socialization classes. This can be an ideal way to cut down on the time that your dog spends by himself and facilitate your dog’s interaction with other pups.
More dogs, fewer babies: What's guiding the shifts in pet ownership and parenting in American households?
More dogs, fewer babies: What's guiding the shifts in pet ownership and parenting in American households?
Amid shrinking households and declining birth rates, one family member is increasingly taking center stage: the pet. In fact, consider their pets to be as much a part of their family as human members, according to research from the Pew Research Center. Alongside their elevated status, pets are enjoying elevated living: American Pet Products Association data shows the American pet industry has surged from $90.5 billion in 2018 to in 2024.
Part of this growth is attributable to the overall increase in pets. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals found that adopted a cat or dog during the COVID-19 pandemic, partly due to the shift to work from home that enabled many remote workers to trade commute time for puppy playtime. Plus, thanks to advances in pet nutrition and veterinary science, both cats and dogs are living longer on average.
Pew found that roughly 3 in 4 (74%) Americans are on board with this increasing focus on pets in daily life. Additionally, nearly half (48%) of adults say there is a proper amount of emphasis on pets' well-being. In comparison, 1 in 4 (26%) believe there could be more, though just as many said there was too much. Interestingly, the generation most likely to consider their pets as equal members of the family, counterintuitively, also spends the least money on them.
To explore this dynamic and others, Ìý³Ü²õ±ð»å time use data and news reports to analyze the evolving dynamic between parenting children and owning pets in the U.S., particularly among younger adults.
Since 2021, more adults have been taking care of pets than children
For those who may have avoided pet ownership due to scheduling or cost hesitations, the COVID-19-induced shift to remote work allowed them to reconsider their capacity for pet care. In fact, 2021 was the first year in at least the last two decades that more adults looked after pets than children—the same year that 1 in 5 American households adopted a pet. As of 2024, there are now with at least one pet, according to the APPA national pet owners survey.
Now, there are more multipet owners than single-pet owners in America. Pew found that have multiple pets, and 27% have one pet, totaling 62% of Americans who share their home with another species.
Adding to the disparity in households without children is the increasing number of baby boomer-led households. Their children are most likely living independently from their parents. While pets have shorter life spans than humans, they remain consistently dependent on caretakers throughout their lives—unlike children, who generally develop independence and require fewer hours of direct caretaking as they age.
Younger adults shifting care from kids to pets
The fastest-growing generation of pet parents are those aged 25 to 34, which include millennials and Gen Zers. This age group, though, still has more households caring for kids (30.8%) than households watching over pets (22.9%), though the gap has narrowed in the last two decades. For those aged 45 to 54, the ratio evens out: They are as likely to take care of children as they are to care for pets. At 55, the odds shift the other way: By then, this age group is more likely to care for pets, coinciding with the transition into retirement.
In the U.S., are also most likely to view their pets as children, according to May 2024 data from the Statista Research Department. Still, they spend the least on their pets based on BLS data. (The dataset did not compare Gen Z figures due to a reporting error.)
This counterintuitive relationship may reveal some insights about the decline in households with children. Because wage growth has not kept pace with increasing housing costs, based on BLS and Federal Housing Finance Agency data, many adults must now prioritize developing their careers for years before they can afford to establish and care for families. According to a study by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, the home price-to-income ratio in many metros in 2022, the latest year measured. Additionally, the percentage of young workers with employers who provide health insurance has plummeted since 1989, further challenging those in need of maternal care or health insurance for their children.
While it is true that birth rates for millennials and Gen Zers taken together have declined, this is still subject to change. As of 2024, about are choosing to have their first child after age 35, and the average age of first-time mothers is at a and climbing, according to 2021 data from the CDC, the latest available. But no matter how family structures and dynamics continue to evolve, pets appear to be along for the ride for the foreseeable future. As animal shelter populations continue to increase, hopefully the households welcoming multiple species will too.
Story editing by Carren Jao. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick.
This story originally appeared on Ollie and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
