There’s a lot to consider when it comes to finding a place to live.
Pet-owners have an added layer of finding areas that are as suitable for their four-legged friends as it is to bipeds. One city in Pennsylvania hits the mark in this regard while the other…not so much.
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Researchers at WalletHub launched this study by first comparing the United States’ 100 most populous cities across three main pet-related dimensions: “Pet Budget;” “Pet Health & Wellness”;” and “Outdoor Pet-Friendliness.”
From there the researchers proceeded to weigh each dimension by 23 relevant metrics (“Veterinary Care Costs;” “Pet Businesses per Capita;” Dog-Friendly Trails per Capita;” etc.) in order to deduce which cities were the most pet-friendly and, on the other end of things, the least.
The top five overall were Cincinnati, Ohio (number five); St. Louis, Mo. (number four); Portland, Ore. (number three); Tampa, Fla. (number two); and Scottsdale, Ariz. (number one).
When it comes to Pennsylvania’s cities specifically, Pittsburgh managed to land among the top 20 with a number 19 ranking.
Philadelphia, though, is another matter: The City of Brotherly Love doesn’t seem to encompass a love for pets, as the study bequeathed it the number 54 spot.
“The best way to evaluate [whether a place is pet-friendly] is to realize that humans and non-humans share many of the same needs largely because we share many of the same physiological and psycho-social needs,” states Phillip Tedeschi, director emeritus at the Institute for Human-Animal Connection and professor at the University of Denver.
“Understanding that animals are highly sentient, meaning the they experience complex cognitive and emotional lives, is important to be a good advocate for your companion related to where to live and many other aspects of their lives.”
The bottom five cities were, for the record, Chicago, Ill.; New York, NY; Honolulu, Hawaii; Baltimore, Md.; and Santa Ana, Calif.
