Diversions April 29, 2010

Are Dogs Better Listeners than Spouses?

Sometimes it’s nice to talk to someone who doesn’t have an opinion.

Reported by

That could be why a third of pet-owning married women said their pets are better listeners than their husbands, according to a new poll from The AP-Petside.com. It seems when men are “in the doghouse,” dogs are in the therapist’s chair.

But women are not out of the doghouse. Eighteen percent of pet-owning married men said pets are better listeners than their wives.

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Dogs are the pet therapist of choice. One-quarter (25%) of dog owners said their canines listened better than a spouse, while only 14% chose cats.

Overall, the poll found that one in 10 pet owners like to talk their problems over with their pets, which included mostly cats and dogs but also a wide range of other pets.

“As much as we love our spouses or significant others, sometimes they are not there, sometimes they have their own thoughts about how we should deal with situations,” veterinarian Karen Sueda told the Associated Press. “And sometimes, especially when it’s a husband or male significant other, they want to solve the problem rather than just listening to the problem.”

GfK Custom Research North America conducted the telephone poll April 7 to 12 among 1,112 pet owners age 18 or older.

Data & Research April 28, 2010

Retirement and Uninsured Medical Expenses Top Financial Concerns

A new survey found uninsured medical expenses rival retirement savings as the most pressing financial concern for Americans.

Reported by

Fred Schneyer

The survey by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) found that while 12% of respondents cited having a sufficient retirement nest egg as their most serious money concern, 11% pointed to uninsured health expenses, up from 8% in 2009.

According to a release of the results, 86% reported having some form of health insurance; however, 58% of those with coverage have seen their premiums go up in the past year. Just over half of the insured say their premiums have increased up to 10%, while a quarter said their premiums went up 11% to 20%. A total of 17% said their premiums have increased more than 21%.

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For the uninsured, the most common reason why they don’t have health insurance is that they can’t afford it (47%). Seventeen percent indicated their employer doesn’t provide health insurance or that they are currently unemployed (16%).

The AICPA participated in the Harris Interactive March 2010 Harris Poll Quorum telephone omnibus study. The interviewing took place from March 17 to 21 among 1,009 U.S. adults ages 18 and older.