"Whoever takes the dog gets the house": How older adults negotiate, budget, and deploy resources for multispecies family health and well-being.

Applebaum, Jennifer W.; Ellison, Carlyn

In this study, we interrogate the ways that older adult pet owners exercise their agency within the limits of their social statuses to allocate their resources for the management of the health needs of their multispecies families. Guided by fundamental cause theory, we consider how the participants' memberships in socially constructed categories can impact their experiences with household health management. We conducted focus groups with 30 community-dwelling older adults who owned pets. Using a thematic analytic approach, we found that the participants' bonds with their pets led them to negotiate priorities and make concessions for the benefit of the household.

WELL-being; FOCUS groups; FAMILY health; PETS; SOCIAL status; INDEPENDENT living; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; RESEARCH funding; BUDGET; THEMATIC analysis; DATA analysis software; SERVICE animals; OLD age

Social Work in Mental Health, 2023, Vol 21, Issue 6, p757

1533-2985

Academic Journal

10.1080/15332985.2023.2265005