TABLE 1.
Characteristics of the dogs enrolled in the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study at enrollment (N = 3035), in full compliance with study requirements at the end of year 1 (N = 2626), and noncompliant at the end of year 1 (N = 192). Total values for each category are followed by percent of total within each cell (n, [%])
| Characteristic | Category | All dogs (n = 3035) | Year 1 total compliance (n = 2626) | Year 1 owner noncompliant (n = 192) | Univariable P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex a | .49 | ||||
| Male intact | 1028 (33.9) | 882 (33.6) | 68 (35.4) | ||
| Female intact | 874 (28.8) | 745 (28.4) | 55 (28.7) | ||
| Male neutered | 507 (16.7) | 453 (17.3) | 25 (13.0) | ||
| Female spayed | 626 (20.6) | 546 (20.8) | 44 (22.9) | ||
| Age (months) | <.01 | ||||
| <12 | 1034 (34.1) | 926 (35.3) | 48 (25.0) | ||
| 12‐23 | 1413 (46.6) | 1211 (46.1) | 93 (48.4) | ||
| 24‐35 | 579 (19.1) | 485 (18.5) | 46 (24.0) | ||
| 36‐48 | 9 (0.3) | 4 (0.2) | 5 (2.6) | ||
| Geographic region | .09 | ||||
| South | 721 (23.8) | 632 (24.1) | 38 (19.8) | ||
| Mountain | 412 (13.6) | 360 (13.7) | 22 (11.5) | ||
| Northeast | 636 (21.0) | 568 (21.6) | 38 (19.8) | ||
| Pacific | 428 (14.1) | 353 (13.4) | 40 (20.8) | ||
| Midwest | 838(27.6) | 713 (27.2) | 54 (28.1) | ||
| Health insurance | .21 | ||||
| Yes | 577 (19.0) | 509 (19.4) | 30 (15.6) | ||
| No | 2458 (81.0) | 2117 (80.6) | 162 (84.4) | ||
| Clinic AAHA status | .11 | ||||
| Member, accredited | 786 (25.9) | 675 (25.7) | 52 (27.2) | ||
| Member, non‐accredited | 318 (10.5) | 287 (10.9) | 12 (6.3) | ||
| Not a member | 1931 (63.6) | 1664 (63.4) | 128 (66.7) | ||
| Dogs in study per vet | .06 | ||||
| 1–5 | 2779 (91.6) | 2390 (91.0) | 183 (95.3) | ||
| 6‐10 | 216 (7.1) | 198 (7.5) | 9 (4.7) | ||
| >11 | 40 (1.3) | 38 (1.5) | 0 (0) | ||
| Activity level | .04 | ||||
| Very active | 1542 (50.8) | 1329 (35.5) | 111 (57.8) | ||
| Less active | 1493 (49.2) | 1297 (49.4) | 81 (42.2) | ||
| Primary activity | .05 | ||||
| Companion/pet | 2519 (83.0) | 2187 (83.3) | 152 (79.2) | ||
| Obedience | 83 (2.7) | 75 (2.9) | 4(2.1) | ||
| Show | 134 (4.4) | 103 (3.9) | 16 (8.3) | ||
| Breeding | 43 (1.4) | 37 (1.4) | 2 (1.0) | ||
| Agility | 105 (3.5) | 100 (3.8) | 3 (1.6) | ||
| Hunting | 41 (1.4) | 32 (1.2) | 5 (2.6) | ||
| Field trials | 58 (1.9) | 47 (1.8) | 7 (3.7) | ||
| Search and rescue | 12 (0.4) | 12 (0.5) | 0 (0) | ||
| Service dog | 35 (1.2) | 29 (1.1) | 3 (1.6) | ||
| Other | 5 (0.2) | 4 (0.2) | 0 (0) | ||
| Spends most time | .01 | ||||
| Indoors | 2041 (67.3) | 1786 (68.0) | 110 (67.3) | ||
| Outdoors | 127 (4.2) | 104 (4.0) | 9 (4.2) | ||
| Both | 867 (28.6) | 736 (28.0) | 73 (28.6) | ||
| Sleeps at night | <.01 | ||||
| In bedroom on bed | 634 (20.9) | 559 (21.3) | 32 (16.7) | ||
| In bedroom elsewhere | 1607 (53.0) | 1409 (53.7) | 85 (44.3) | ||
| Elsewhere in house | 719 (23.7) | 602 (22.9) | 64 (33.3) | ||
| Garage | 22 (0.7) | 13 (0.5) | 5 (2.6) | ||
| Outside (kennel, run, yard) | 53 (1.8) | 43 (1.6) | 6 (3.1) | ||
| Travel | .24 | ||||
| Yes | 476 (15.7) | 403 (15.4) | 36 (18.8) | ||
| No | 2559 (84.3) | 2223 (84.7) | 156 (81.3) | ||
| Leash walk frequency | .02 | ||||
| At least daily | 1847 (60.9) | 1628 (62.0) | 101 (52.6) | ||
| Less than daily | 1188 (39.1) | 998 (38.0) | 91 (47.4) | ||
| Professional grooming | .04 | ||||
| >once/month | 269 (8.9) | 227 (8.6) | 28 (14.6) | ||
| 2–4 times/year | 875 (28.8) | 765 (29.1) | 54 (28.8) | ||
| Yearly | 83 (2.7) | 72 (2.7) | 7 (3.7) | ||
| Never | 1808 (59.6) | 1562 (59.5) | 103 (53.7) | ||
| Home grooming | .02 | ||||
| >once/month | 1628 (53.6) | 1394 (53.1) | 110 (53.6) | ||
| 2–4 times/year | 1147 (37.8) | 1009 (38.4) | 58 (37.8) | ||
| Yearly | 35 (1.2) | 33 (1.3) | 1 (1.2) | ||
| Never | 225 (7.4) | 190 (7.2) | 23 (7.4) | ||
| Heartworm prevention‐all year | .20 | ||||
| Yes | 2088 (68.8) | 1815 (69.1) | 124 (68.8) | ||
| No | 947 (31.2) | 811 (30.9) | 68 (31.2) | ||
| Flea/tick prevention‐all year | .18 | ||||
| Yes | 595 (19.6) | 507 (19.3) | 45 (23.4) | ||
| No | 2440 (80.4) | 2119 (80.7) | 147 (76.6) | ||
| Rabies 1 year vaccine | .24 | ||||
| Yes | 1659 (54.7) | 1432 (54.5) | 95 (50.5) | ||
| No | 1376 (45.3) | 1194 (45.5) | 97 (49.5) | ||
| All vaccines missing | .01 | ||||
| Yes | 300 (9.9) | 250 (9.5) | 30 (15.6) | ||
| No | 2735 (90.1) | 2376 (90.5) | 162 (84.4) | ||
| Owner‐directed aggression | .07 | ||||
| 0–1 | 2933 (96.6) | 2536 (96.6) | 188 (97.9) | ||
| >1 | 62 (2.0) | 56 (2.1) | 1 (0.5) | ||
| Chasing behavior | 0.22 | ||||
| 0–1 | 94 (3.1) | 78 (3.0) | 9 (4.7) | ||
| >1 | 2864 (94.4) | 2479 (94.4) | 179 (93.2) | ||
| Excitability | 0.01 | ||||
| 0–1 | 807 (26.6) | 710 (27.0) | 37 (19.3) | ||
| >1 | 2208 (72.8) | 1897 (72.2) | 155 (80.7) |
a
Not included in multivariable model due to P‐value.