by researchers Sharon Chou, Oliver Wang, Larissa Kuo, and Ron Liu

chinese version below 點擊此處閱讀中文版本

This research team decided to investigate the topic of attitudes towards factors which contribute to suitability for keeping a pet because we think that many dogs become strays because the owner has not thought about whether they have the ability to keep a dog. If they have no ability to take care of a dog but then adopt/buy dogs, they may throw them on the streets and abandon them. Therefore we think that we should research this topic, share the information, and give suggestions to policy makers about the conditions which should be met in order to reasonably be able to adopt or buy a dog. This research will study and rank the different factors which people feel are important to consider when deciding if a potential owner has the ability to keep a pet. This research group will hypothesize about the thinking behind these considerations. Finally, we will offer suggestions to help the general public in their decision making process.

This research team conducted face to face interviews using a set questionnaire. The subjects consisted of a total of 47 people. The team conducted a pre-research step in which we identified the possible factors that the general public agrees are important to consider when getting a pet. A total of 5 main factors were identified. These 5 factors were then used as the response items in our research questionnaire

What different factors do you feel a person needs to consider when deciding if they have the ability to keep a pet?

When we consider whether a person has the ability to keep pets, rank the importance of the following items in this decision making process: (1~5 most important to least important)

_ _ _Economic ability for the owner

_ _ _Activity space size for the pet

_ _ _The living environment is tidy/ clean for the pet

_ _ _Time spending on pets

_ _ _The personality of the owner

The numbers show us that a large number of men think that personality is the least important factor out of the 5 choices when thinking about suitability to have a pet. This research team feels that this may be because they didn’t think of the consequences that would happen if the owner does not have a good personality fit with the potential pet. This factor is important to consider because a poor personality fit may result in difficulty in matching the lifestyle needs and habits of the owner and dog.

This may be because when people think about a dog, they think that a dog is a follower and they should do everything that the owner tells them to do. But this is wrong because dogs are animals like us and they don’t know the owner's thinking and wishes. Therefore, we suggest that potential owners. should consider if there is a personality match between themselves and the dog's personality. This may be especially important for men to consider, as the results show that men often don’t give enough emphasis to this factor.

More men than women picked time as their most important factor . This may be because they think about this issue in a similar way that they think about their wife/girlfriend. For example, men may think even if work is hard they still have to make time for their wives or girlfriends. It may be the same when thinking about dogs.This idea may seem old fashioned but it is the belief of this research group. If you don’t have the time for your girlfriend then that means you don't have enough time for your dog. Girlfriends/wives can break up with you but dogs can't, which means they have less options. That also means they have no freedom of choice in this situation. We suggest that women should think more like men with regards to this factor so that you can make sure that you have time for your pet before bringing it home.

More men picked “space” as their most important factor over women. This might be because lots of men are bigger in size in general so they think they need a lot of space. Therefore, they empathize with the dog and think that they need a lot of space too. Dogs also need space to live and run around just like kids. Since dogs are like kids and they need space to run around, this group suggests that before looking for a dog potential owners should make sure that they have the right environment, especially space. However when looking at the numbers, space is consistently a factor which is under-considered with only 5% of women and 8.3% of men choosing it as the most important factor. It would be a good idea for potential owners and organizations in charge of animal shelters to consider this factor when deciding the suitability of owning a pet.

What this group suggests is that people look more closely at what environment they have and if they have the right resources for getting a dog, and most of all taking care of a dog. Factors that people don’t spend enough care on are space, cleanliness, and personality fit. The information from this research may be useful for charity and nonprofits who attempt to help homeless animals find new families. The factors that this research has uncovered as under-emphasized should be given more thought and care when matching dogs to potential owners. We would also like to talk with the policy makers to set up regulations to prevent people that don’t have the ability to take care of a pet to make sure they will not be given a dog until they are able to meet basic requirements. . Even though this might be a small change, this could help a lot of animals. Keeping a pet is a great responsibility, and every life must be taken seriously.

這個研究團隊決定去調查有助於飼養寵物的的態度做主題，因為我們認為許多狗成為流浪狗是因為主人沒有考慮過他們有沒有能力飼養狗。 如果他們沒有能力照顧一隻狗，但是後來還是收養/購買了狗，他們可能會把牠丟到街上。 因此我們認為我們應該研究這個問題，分享訊息，並向決策者提出建議。 這項研究將調查人們在決定自己是否有能力養寵物時，會考慮的不同因素並將這些因素進行排名。 同時，推斷為何人們所想到的因素會是這些而不是其他的。 最後，我們將提供建議，幫助人們在準備收養或購買狗時做出合理的決定。

我們使用問卷進行了面對面的採訪。 受試者共47人。 團隊進行了一項預研究步驟，在步驟中，我們確定了人們認為在養寵物時需要考慮的重要因素。 一共確定了5個重要因素。 然後將這 5 個因素用作為我們研究問卷中的回答項目

什麼不一樣的條件是你覺得一個人需要先考慮自己有沒有能力去養一隻寵物？

當我們衡量一個人是否有能力飼養寵物時，請排名以下條件的重要性：（1 ~ 5 於最重要到沒那麼重要。）

主人的經濟能力

活動空間

居住環境整潔

陪寵物的時間

__ 主人的個性

在思考是否適合飼養狗的時候要考慮到的因素的重要性排名：

在思考是否適合飼養狗的時候要考慮到的因素的重要性排名”

在思考是否適合飼養狗的時候要考慮到的因素的重要性排名”

在思考是否適合飼養狗的時候要考慮到的因素的重要性排名”

數字告訴我們，將近一半的男性覺得個性是最不重要的。我們覺得這個選擇很可能是因為他們並沒有想到主人可能需要好的個性去飼養這隻寵物。這個可能性是非常高的，這也是一個非常嚴重的問題。主人的生活習慣可能和這隻寵物不一樣，因此導致狗或主人感到不滿。

也有可能是因為人們在想到狗狗時，他們覺得狗狗就是要聽人類的話，主人說的他們都必須做到。但是如果有這種想法是錯誤的，因為我們跟狗一樣都是動物，牠們也不會知道牠們自己的主人在想甚麼。因此我們建議想要飼養寵物的人，先思考你有沒有辦法做到同理牠們，這個意見男性需要多思考一點。

有比女生更多的男生選擇“時間”去作為他們最重要的，可能是因為他們會考慮自己老婆/女友的情況,就算工作再辛苦，他們還是會為她們空出時間，對狗也一樣。如果你沒有時間陪你的女友那就表示你更沒有時間去照顧狗。老婆或女友她們能選擇離開你但是狗不行，牠們跟人不一樣，牠們沒有很多選項，因此牠失去許多自由，牠們很可憐。我們建議女性在這個因素上應該像男性一樣思考，這樣您就可以確保在將寵物帶回家之前有時間照顧牠。

更多的男生選擇“空間”作為他們對狗最重要的因素。這個有可能是因為男生的活動量比較大佔的空間也比較多，所以他們會比較同情狗因為有一些狗他們像小孩一樣需要很多空間跑來跑去。主人應該確保它們擁有足夠的環境，尤其是空間。 但空間是一個被低估的因素，只有 5% 的女性和 8.3% 的男性選擇它作為最重要的因素。在決定是否適合擁有寵物時，負責動物收容所的潛在所有者和組織最好考慮這個因素。

我們的要建議是人們要更仔細地觀察他們擁有的環境，以及他們有沒有適合的資源來養狗，最重要的是有沒有時間照顧和陪伴狗。 人們經常忘記考慮的點是是居住空間、清潔度和與狗的契合度。 這項研究的結果，可能可以幫助到在為無家可歸的動物找領養家庭的慈善機構和非營利組織。 當他們準備將狗與潛在主人配對時，希望他們也能考量這項研究所發現的一些經常被忽視的重點。 我們還想與政府交流，請求他們制定一些法律去防止沒有能力養寵物的人，在達到某些條件前，不可以養寵物。 儘管這可能是一個很小的變化，但也會幫助到很多動物。養寵物是一個很大的責任，因為每條生命都很珍貴。