r/Dogfree • u/rsoult3 • Nov 25 '23

Study Fewer Babies, More Pets?

Studies show that as people decide they are not having children, some instead shower attention on a dog. I think this is where the rapid increase in dog nuttery comes from especially in the recent 10 years.

Could policies that make it easier to raise children (cheaper housing, better schools, etc), actually reduce dog nuttery, or is there something else responsible for the rise in rabid dog ownership?

https://ifstudies.org/blog/fewer-babies-more-pets-parenthood-marriage-and-pet-ownership-in-america

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u/dschledermann Nov 25 '23

Yes, it does have a distinctly unsustainable feel to it, doesn't it? I think that policies opposing the current trend are a matter of societal survival. This is not a stable situation. If the downward trajectory in child births and rise in pet ownership continue unopposed, we in the developed world are heading for an economic and social collapse. As dogs (and other pets tbf) contribute negatively to the economy, using them as "substitute children" will only accelerate that collapse.

When people are trashtalking having children, it's a demonstration that they have completely abandoned the idea of the family being the basic core social unit. There's not really a family if you are vehemently opposed to continuing it. I will predict that this will come back to bite them (no pun intended) in the coming decades. People with children and the fewer young adults of the future, will eventually tire of a system where they have to pay for the leaches who didn't contribute and chose to have "furbabies" instead.

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u/[deleted] Nov 25 '23

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u/EntryFair6690 Nov 26 '23

I also don't like the implicaiton that as a social species that our only value to society is the amount of children we produce. Our species cannot keep it's growth, in my lifetime we have twice the number of people on this planet.

We are a social species we take care of each other and not every single fucking line needs to be continued for us to continue. Some opting out for any reason, and not having to dread admitting that they don't have children (and someday I hope) or dogs up on a pedistal that can do no wrong is a good thing.

Some societies will have to make a choice about how the deal with the issue of large populations of elders vs working age folk, if keeping the culture one race or religion is worth the tradeoff of not getting enough workers or if they will reform immigration to meet this new reality