A family dog can get kids moving — and the effect is biggest for girls. Australian researchers found that having a dog in the household boosts children’s physical activity, particularly for girls. Girls with a dog increased their daily activity by nearly an hour. The researchers also found that children who lost a pet dog reduced their physical activity, with the drop larger for girls.
How the Study Was Conducted
Researchers from the University of Western Australia and the Telethon Kids Institute followed 600 children aged two to seven for three years to see how a pet dog affected activity levels. They measured active time with accelerometers, small devices the children wore on their hips for seven consecutive waking days. Parents’ perceptions of their children’s activity were collected as well.
Half of the children never had a dog during the study. 204 participants had a dog throughout all three years. Fifty-eight children got a dog during the study, while 31 lost their dog during that time.
What the Researchers Discovered
The researchers found that girls who acquired a dog during the study increased their light-intensity daily activity — like playing or leisurely walking — by about 52 minutes. Girls who lost a dog saw their activity fall by about 62 minutes per day. Girls who never had a dog showed no change in activity levels.
Both girls and boys who got a dog during the study increased their unstructured physical activity — playing in the yard or taking walks in the park, including with the dog — by roughly seven occasions per week.
Children who lost a dog reduced their unstructured activity as well: girls decreased by an average of 10.2 activities per week, while boys decreased by 7.7 activities per week.
Lead author Emma Adams said the benefits of dog ownership appear from early childhood. She said having a dog in the family can encourage healthy physical activity and help reduce children’s risk of chronic disease.
Adams cautioned that the study isn’t a call to rush out and get a dog — pet ownership brings responsibilities that don’t suit every family. Families who already have pets should use them more deliberately to get kids moving, since not all children with dogs actually walk or play with them.
The results were published in the International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity. The paper is the first to show a pet dog’s impact on children’s physical activity.
