- Over 120,000 new Pet Profiles are added to Life360 each week, with 62% belonging to households without children
- 60% of childless pet parents say they are prioritizing spending their time, love, and money on their pet rather than planning for children right now
- Nearly half of pet parents bring them on vacations, while 30% include them in weddings, and 22% in engagement proposals
SAN FRANCISCO, May 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Life360 released a new international Pet Parenthood Report, The Rise of the “Furry First Child,” revealing that pets are increasingly reshaping modern family dynamics. As traditional milestones like homeownership, marriage, and parenthood feel less accessible – or less essential – to younger generations, the findings suggest pets have emerged as a new priority.
More than 120,000 new Pet Profiles are now added to the family connection and safety app each week, with 62% of those pets belonging to SIPP (Single Income Pet Parent) and DIPP (Double Income Pet Parent) households. Citing emotional benefits like reduced stress (81%), adding structure and a sense of responsibility (77%), and notably, reminding them to find joy in everyday life (79%), this generation of pet parents is not avoiding traditional commitments; they're embracing a different form of commitment, one that society broadly understands as offering more freedom and flexibility.
The report also highlights how deeply pets are integrated into daily routines, relationships, and lifestyle decisions, with two dominant trends reinforcing pet parenthood as more of a chosen path than a placeholder, including:
The Constant Companion
The modern pet is not housebound. Over 75% of SIPPs and DIPPs’ daily routines are shaped by their pets, who now have a pronounced public presence as they accompany their parents just about everywhere. Nearly a third (31%) of SIPPs and DIPPs admit to bringing their pets to at least three public venues each week. This includes restaurants and cafés (20%), grocery stores (16%), offices (14%), and even bars (14%). A well-traveled 9% have been on flights, and another 14% regularly use public transportation.
The Rise of the “Furry First Child”
While 62% of general survey respondents agree that pets allow people to maintain more freedom and flexibility than having children, 27% of current SIPPs and DIPPs plan to have children eventually. Meaning a fair amount of these pets will graduate from only child to oldest child in the coming years. Pet parenthood also serves as a rehearsal for building parental skill sets. More than half (55%) say a furry first child is a good way for couples to see if they are ready for children, noting that it has helped in developing patience (57%), time management (48%), playfulness and optimism (45%), emotional nurturing (43%), and even financial planning skills (32%).
“I’m one of those pet parents who takes their pup with them around town,” said Lauren Antonoff, Chief Executive Officer at Life360. “It’s not surprising to me that this study reveals that pets are deeply woven into everyday life, both in the U.S. and abroad—from daily routines to major life decisions. Adding pets to Life360 with Pet Profiles and Pet GPS trackers was the obvious way to give pet parents the same peace of mind we’ve been giving families from the start.”
Pet-first households are emerging as the dominant model of living for younger generations, becoming a primary way for them to build connection, routine, and a sense of home.
View the full report here.
ABOUT LIFE360
Life360, a family connection and safety company, keeps people close to the ones they love. The category-leading mobile app and hardware tracking devices empower members to stay connected to the people, pets, and things they care about most, with a range of services, including location sharing, safe driver reports, and crash detection with emergency dispatch. As a remote-first company based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Life360 serves approximately 95.8 million monthly active users (MAU), as of December 31, 2025, across more than 180 countries. Life360 delivers peace of mind and enhances everyday family life in all the moments that matter, big and small. For more information, please visit life360.com.
CONTACT
DKC, on behalf of Life360
[email protected]
METHODOLOGY
Research conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Life360 was conducted between April 8, 2026, and April 14, 2026, surveying 6,000 single-income pet parents and double-income pet parents without children across the UK, USA, and Australia. Research conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Life360 was conducted between April 8, 2026, and April 14, 2026, surveying 6,000 respondents (aged 18-45) across the UK, USA, and Australia.