If you have ever suspected that your dog or cat makes your retirement a little richer, a new study from Prudential Financial suggests you might be onto something.
David Blanchett, Ph.D., Head of Retirement Research at Prudential Financial and Portfolio Manager at PGIM, included pet ownership as a variable in a recent retirement survey. The goal was simple: understand how having a pet connects to how retirees feel about their lives.
What the Research Found
The short answer is that dog owners came out slightly ahead. Blanchett told The Street that dog owners reported a somewhat better life outlook than those without pets. Seniors who owned both a dog and a cat also fared well. Those who owned only cats showed a smaller difference.
Blanchett is careful not to overstate the finding. He notes that people who prefer cats may simply have different personality traits than people who prefer dogs and that those differences, not the pets themselves, could explain the gap. It is a correlation, he says, not necessarily a cause.
Still, the pattern is interesting. And for anyone who has ever had a dog nudge them out the door for a morning walk, it may not be surprising at all.
One Pattern That Stood Out
Here is something the survey made clear: pet ownership declines significantly as people age. The older the respondent, the less likely they were to have a pet.
And for those who do have pets in retirement? It almost always follows a pattern. Pre-retirees who planned to have a pet in retirement were, by and large, people who already had pets. New pet ownership in retirement appears to be uncommon. Most people who have a dog or cat in their later years simply never stopped.
The Real Cost of Pet Ownership
Blanchett is direct about one thing: pets can be expensive. Veterinary bills, food, and care add up. He recommends treating pet expenses as a real line item in your retirement budget, not an afterthought.
Blanchett says that for retirees who are not in a strong financial position, the cost of a pet can be a genuine barrier. That needs to be factored in before bringing an animal home.
What a Pet Can Give You
Beyond the budget question, the conversation kept coming back to something harder to measure: meaning.
Blanchett points out that a pet gives you someone to spend time with: a companion, a daily routine, a reason to get outside and be among people. Those things matter in retirement, especially for anyone who finds the quieter pace of post-work life a little too quiet.
His advice on where to find one is straightforward. All of his family’s pets came from the local humane society. He recommends anyone thinking about getting a pet do the same.
Whether you are Team Dog, Team Cat, or somewhere in the middle, the research makes a simple case. Having something to care for and something that needs you and is glad you are there can make retirement feel a little more like living.
