Recent research indicates that over 40 million households in America have a dog. This works out to about one in four households. Owning canine companions can be costly. Based on food, vet bills, toys and dog walkers, the figure can be more than $1,000 a year.
Dogs come in many shapes, sizes and temperaments. Some spend most of their time indoors and may not even get walked. Other breeds need to spend an hour or more exercising, which can be hard for people without a yard or that hour to spare.
Dog exercise is also different based on locations. In suburban or rural settings, a dog may be able to use an outdoor space of several acres. Some cities have small dog parks, but many city dogs must be walked by their owners or someone the owner hires.
Pet product purveyor Honest Paws has released its The Best U.S. Cities to Be a Dog report. The title is inaccurate of course. No one knows what a dog thinks, or whether a dog can think at all.
The information used to build the ranking includes data from Yelp, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Rent.com and the Hiking Project. Note that some states have “breed-specific” rules that legislate against pit bulls, Rottweilers and mastiffs.
Numbers of pet-friendly locations of varioius kinds, dog parks, vets and walking trails were used to create categories. Number grades were derived from nine factors, and the highest possible grade was 50.
Tampa finished first with a score of 40.36. The primary reasons, according to the authors of the study, were “The waterfront city has 16 dog parks, 52 pet-friendly breweries, and six dog-friendly beaches nearby, with a few allowing dogs to frolic in the water and roam off-leash.”
Portland was second with a score of 40.03. No other city ranked above 40. The worst city of the 50 measured was Detroit, with a score of 14.77.
These are the 10 best cities to be a dog:
- Tampa, Fla. (40.36)
- Portland, Ore. (40.03)
- Orland, Fla. (39.43)
- Seattle, Wash. (37.50)
- St. Louis, Mo. (35.81)
- San Diego, Calif. (34.70)
- Denver, Colo. (34.44)
- Pittsburgh, Pa. (34.22)
- Miami, Fla. (31.83)
- Richmond, Va. (31.63)
Click here to see which dogs stay puppies the longest.
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