Is there a relationship between a pet owner's personality and the species of the pet?

Do you think there is a relationship between the species of the pet and the owner's personality or simply who the owner is?

We all heard of the crazy cat lady stories. It sounds like ladies like cats more.
There is also saying of more girls like pony.
A lot more men are owning reptiles.
In China, most high end bird owners are retired old men.
Most recently, I saw a study show that single men are more likely to own aquarium fish. At least in the U.S.

What do you all think? Is it because these groups all have a specific personality?
Is there a truth to it or is it nothing but a coincidence?

I think it is basic human psychology. Different people/personality types like certain things. Not to stir up a debate on human tendencies, but men do tend towards reptiles, for one I think their is a "macho" thing with it, "I'm cool", or whatever you want to call it. But that will normally where off after a while. There is also something intellectual about it, which is what you see with dedicated reptile keepers who have allot of animals/species. It is a thinking persons animal, allot of studying, figuring out the best way to do things to keep the animal healthy. And the same could be said of fish, having to monitor the environment for the health of the animals, creating a mini version of the natural environment, same concept as with a reptile. If you go on to any of the chondro dedicated boards, and ETB dedicated boards, there are allot of guys who also keep fish, especially complex saltwater tanks. It goes towards the old jokes about men always wanting to tinker and fix things, these animals lend themselves to that.

Women tend towards animals with more of an emotional connection. My mother is a "crazy cat lady". Well, not THAT bad, but, you get the idea. I really have NEVER lived in a place without a cat. In almost 40 years. I blame her.

I am certainly not saying this is a clear cut thing, I know many women who are very good and dedicated snake keepers/breeders. And I would qualify in the "intellectual" reptile/fish category, but I also like cats, so... It is definitely dependent on the actual person.

Not sure about reptiles, but I've noticed a difference between cat and dog people. Bear in mind that these are GENERALITIES, and won't apply to everyone. In general, cats are room mates and dogs are kids. Cat owners seem to be more intellectual, free spirited, and independent. They enjoy interacting with a pet, but they want to comfortably co-exist without being tied down. I think they also appreciate the beauty and grace of cats; they're like living sculptures. They want a pet that is friendly and shows affection without being in-your-face about it. Dog owners want a pet that looks up to them. They enjoy being the leader, and they want a companion to go places and do things together with. They get joy out of being greeted at the door by someone happy to see them. They want a more interactive pet, who keeps telling them they're wonderful. I'm sure we'll get a debate going over how accurate this is, but you can't deny that dogs need housebreaking, training, grooming, and daily walking. Cats need the litter box scooped daily. So dogs are more high maintenance, and need an owner willing to do all this.

I agree with you completely Karen. But they are all generalities. There are certainly excetions to everything.

You know, I nearly laughed the moment I saw "single men are more likely to own fish". It seems to apply to most people in my friend circle.

The way I see it, it's mostly about upbringing and forced gender stereotypes. Men will like "tough", "cool" animals, while women go for "cute". Which I think it's really sad, since it would be best if everyone chose pets based on their personalities. Dogs are the most popular pet mostly because of tradition, I notice that a lot of dog owners don't have the patience for the dogs liveliness. Having a dog is almost like having a child, but a lot of people don't seem to realize that. Choosing a pet based on your personality would be ideal, since only then would the pet be a true companion, and both the guardian and the pet would be a lot happier.
I choose cats since they're more independent, and I can leave them for half a day if I need to without worry that they're lonely. They were on the perfect level of independence and cuddliness for me. The next pet I get might be even lower maintenance, like a tortoise, since I might be a bit too lazy even for cats.

(06-16-2013, 01:34 AM)ReneLeBeau Wrote: The way I see it, it's mostly about upbringing and forced gender stereotypes. Men will like "tough", "cool" animals, while women go for "cute". Which I think it's really sad, since it would be best if everyone chose pets based on their personalities. Dogs are the most popular pet mostly because of tradition, I notice that a lot of dog owners don't have the patience for the dogs liveliness. Having a dog is almost like having a child, but a lot of people don't seem to realize that. Choosing a pet based on your personality would be ideal, since only then would the pet be a true companion, and both the guardian and the pet would be a lot happier.

I agree with ReneLeBeau, men tend to choose animals that reflect their dominant roles in society. Men usually do not buy toy poodles or chihuahuas, for example. But again, this depends on how each society defines its scope of what is masculine and feminine. In France, it is not unusual for macho young men to keep poodles and little silky terriers, for example (and French men like to wear floral and pastel colored winter scarves), so this is quite culturally-dependent. But in general men are culturally conditioned to show off, hence the "tough" or "macho" pets. Women on the other hand (and this is really apparent in countries like Japan) are taught to like "cute" and "girly" pets from a young age.