Table 4.
Responses to the question, “Were the following reasons important to your decision to choose this particular pet?”
| Reasons | Cats | Dogs | ||||||
| Kitten | Adult | Puppy | Adult | |||||
| N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | |
| Physical appearance | 86 | 62.8 | 353 | 65.6 | 238 | 76.8 | 380 | 75.4 |
| Age | 107 | 78.1 | 344 | 63.9 | 232 | 74.8 | 330 | 65.6 |
| Behavior with people | 95 | 69.3 | 419 | 77.9 | 229 | 73.9 | 393 | 78.3 |
| Playfulness | 92 | 67.2 | 288 | 53.5 | 199 | 64.2 | 293 | 58.3 |
| Sex | 60 | 43.8 | 189 | 35.1 | 138 | 44.5 | 173 | 34.5 |
| Health | 69 | 50.4 | 276 | 51.3 | 139 | 44.8 | 247 | 49.1 |
| Energy level | 61 | 44.5 | 239 | 44.4 | 174 | 56.1 | 281 | 56 |
| Behavior when by himself/herself | 35 | 25.5 | 137 | 25.5 | 104 | 33.7 | 147 | 29.2 |
| Behavior towards other animals | 26 | 19 | 135 | 25.1 | 85 | 27.4 | 162 | 32.2 |
| Recommendation from staff/volunteer | 18 | 13.1 | 120 | 22.3 | 49 | 15.8 | 119 | 23.7 |
| A special adoption offer | 3 | 2.2 | 32 | 5.9 | 9 | 2.9 | 35 | 7 |
| Wanted to help animal | 18 | 13.1 | 113 | 21 | 70 | 22.6 | 119 | 23.7 |
| Other | 8 | 5.8 | 35 | 6.5 | 18 | 5.8 | 27 | 5.4 |