‘Pawternity’ leave
In this season of Lent, let us turn to creatures that 64 percent of our households consider part of the family, according to a 2023 Social Weather Stations study.
Dogs top the roster, with a whopping 78 percent of those surveyed owning at least one, followed by cats, cared for by 50 percent.
Birds, rabbits, hamsters, fish and other animals are also increasingly popular.
Even before the pandemic, Filipinos already are in love with pets, according to Rakuten Insight, which measured 83 percent pet ownership rates in our country in 2018, the highest in Asia.
And when COVID-19 confined us to our homes, many of us turned to pets for companionship, solace, and unconditional love, fueling an exponential boom in adoption, with Google searches on the topic totaling more than 7.5 million in 2023.
Filipinos are serious about pet parenting, according to communications consultancy firm Vero, who surveyed pet owners in 2024.
Among respondents, 83 percent consider their pet their “child” or “baby,” (with 8 percent viewing their pet as a “sibling”), 82 percent prioritize their pet’s food and dietary needs in the budget, 55 percent feel a sense of responsibility for their pets, 49 percent view pet ownership as both a need and a luxury.
We adore Hershie, our gentle 14-year-old Maltese, and a decade ago, I was already promoting pet therapy to help students with depression and anxiety.
Our programs, spearheaded by fellow faculty and counselor pet lovers, was a huge hit for young people, particularly before exams.
Bonding with supportive animals that “do not judge,” say several students, is so comforting that some say they are more inclined to adopt pets rather than have children later on.
USA Today highlighted this trend in 2023, when 67 percent of American subjects age 18 to 28 who were polled chose to have a dog rather than a child.
Whether or not this preference may burgeon in our family- and child-centric culture, it is evident that pets have become an integral part of most families.
It is but logical to ask: We have maternity and paternity leaves, so what about pet care leaves?
According to insurer Petplan, one in 20 pet owners in the UK are given leave to care for their new or sick animals.
The Scottish company Brewdog and UK pet care provider Pets at Home extend leaves to employees who adopt pets.
Seattle insurance provider Trupanion, Kimpton Hotels, software firm VMWare, ice cream company Ben and Jerry’s, cloud computing business Salesforce grant pet bereavement leave.
Sapienza University in Rome gave an employee paid leave to care for her sick dog.
Global food giant Mars Inc. has long given pet care leave to its staff in Europe, the US and Japan.
This year, Southeast Asian employees will get one day of leave to adopt or mourn pets.
“As a company that is pet- and pet parents-obsessed, we want to acknowledge that the welcome and goodbye of pets are important to us,” Anastasia Timoshina of Mars Pet Nutrition tells “The Straits Times” (TST).
Employees are also allowed to bring pets to the workplace.
Singapore is taking the lead with “pawternity” leaves in Asia.
Marketing firm Brave Communications gives three days of pet leave a year for employees to take care of ill pets, two days to adopt pets, and three days to mourn pets.
“The definition of family has evolved, and many people consider pets to be family members,” says Brave’s owner Emilyn Ang in TST.
“As employers, we should adapt and know what drives our employees to be physically and mentally healthier.”
Advertising agency TBWA, digital publishing firm Mothership, Google Singapore offer flexible leave policies, which can be used for pet needs.
“The concept of offering pet care leave is a relatively new one, but we do see it as one of the evolving benefits in a company’s talent hiring and retention strategies,” Monty Sujanani of recruitment company Robert Walters tells TST.
This is so, particularly with many young employees, for whom pets are valued members of the family.
Queena N. Lee-Chua is on the Board of Directors of Ateneo’s Family Business Center. Get her print book “All in the Family Business” at Lazada or Shopee, or e-book at Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks. Contact the author at blessbook.chua@gmail.com.
