A new study by ConsumerAffairs has revealed 57 per cent of millennials love their pets more than their siblings, with another 50 per cent saying the same about their mums, and even romantic partners still came second to a pet for 30 per cent of respondents. A vast majority (81 per cent) of millennials admitted to loving their pets more than at least one family member — and this doesn’t mean a weird uncle or an estranged cousin.
Researchers spoke to 1,000 pet owners, nearly half of whom were millennials between 27 and 42-years-old, to determine how their pets ranked against family members. 58 percent of millennials said they’d prefer to have pets over human children. This was especially true for cat owners, among whom the percentage jumped to 63 per cent.
When it comes to taking care of their pet, most millennials were pretty confident they could afford a life-saving treatment for their pets within the next month. The study adds, "If push came to shove and millennials truly couldn’t afford a life-saving treatment for their animal, they reported a willingness to take on a part-time second job (49 per cent) or sell possessions such as TVs (43 per cent), laptops (41 per cent) or jewellery (29 per cent).