Majority (54%) of Canadian Dog and Cat Owners Lack Full Comprehension of Pain in Pets Caused by Symptoms of Periodontal Disease
Two-thirds (65%) of Canadians believe that `root exposure' is `painful' (42% very/23% somewhat) for their cat or dog, topping the list as the most painful symptom of periodontal disease in their pets. But when it comes to humans experiencing similar pain, nine in ten (89%, +24 pts.) believe this symptom of periodontal disease `painful' (56% very/33% somewhat). Canadians identify `swollen or bleeding gums' as the second most `painful' (32% very/31% somewhat) symptom of this disease in their cats and dogs, but substantially more (+19 pts.) believe this is more painful in humans (82%, 33% very/48% somewhat). The following table outlines symptoms of periodontal disease found in humans and their cats/dogs, how painful Canadians believe these symptoms to be in each, along with the overall difference between humans and their pets:
Even after being advised of the fact that veterinary researchers cite symptoms of periodontal disease are just as painful in cats and dogs as they are in humans, only a minority (46%) felt they `completely understood how painful it is, and that it is just as painful to cats and dogs as humans'. Two in ten believe they `understood it was painful, but not to the same extent as with humans' (21%) or they `knew there was a little pain, but didn't know it can be very painful' (20%). There are even some pet owners who didn't believe these symptoms are painful at all for their animals. 14% of Canadian cat/dog owners say they `did not realize it is painful to cats and dogs at all.
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between December 29th, 2012 to January 7th, 2013, on behalf of Royal Canin. For this survey, a sample of 1,017 Canadian cat and/or dog owners from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/- 3.5 percentage points had all Canadians cat and/or dog owners been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Sean Simpson
Associate Vice President
Ipsos Reid Public Affairs
416.572.4474
[email protected]
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Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. In October 2011 Ipsos completed the acquisition of Synovate. The combination forms the world's third largest market research company.
With offices in 84 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across six research specializations: advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, public affairs research, and survey management.
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