1
00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:07,120
Speaker 1: Welcome to brain stuff from how stuff works. Hey, brain stuff,

2
00:00:07,120 --> 00:00:10,520
Speaker 1: it's Christian Seger here. Millennials tend to get a bad

3
00:00:10,600 --> 00:00:14,040
Speaker 1: rap for being different from the generations that precede them,

4
00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:17,760
Speaker 1: and honestly, what generation didn't. And while there's little evidence

5
00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:21,599
Speaker 1: to back up the stereotypes about Americans roughly aged from

6
00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:25,520
Speaker 1: eighteen to thirty nine, one thing is certain. Millennials make

7
00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:29,840
Speaker 1: up the largest generation in US history, and despite their

8
00:00:29,920 --> 00:00:34,400
Speaker 1: historic low rate of home ownership, thirty one percent of

9
00:00:34,479 --> 00:00:39,280
Speaker 1: millennials owned homes in and this is according to Harvard's

10
00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:45,520
Speaker 1: Joint Center for Housing Studies Improving America's housing as of seen.

11
00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:49,440
Speaker 1: But why they're buying these homes might surprise you, and

12
00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:52,400
Speaker 1: it's it's not after they've gotten married or when they're

13
00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:55,320
Speaker 1: planning for the birth of a child. No, they bought

14
00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:58,400
Speaker 1: a home to have more space and a better yard

15
00:00:58,920 --> 00:01:02,200
Speaker 1: for their dogs. That's right. A survey released in late

16
00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:06,600
Speaker 1: July by Harris Pole and Son Trust Mortgage found that

17
00:01:06,680 --> 00:01:10,080
Speaker 1: as many as a third of millennials who purchased their

18
00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:13,920
Speaker 1: first home say they did it for their furry friends.

19
00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:17,200
Speaker 1: And get ready for this fun fact. Several studies have

20
00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:21,160
Speaker 1: shown that children who grow up in homes with dogs

21
00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:26,000
Speaker 1: are less likely to have allergies and be obese. Researchers

22
00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:29,880
Speaker 1: say the exposure the kids have with dogs gave them

23
00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:34,080
Speaker 1: higher levels of something called gut microbes that help prevent

24
00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:38,880
Speaker 1: allergies and obesity. So maybe we love our dogs because

25
00:01:38,880 --> 00:01:43,679
Speaker 1: they make us healthier. A late sixteen Mentel study found

26
00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:47,320
Speaker 1: that seven and ten millennial men and three and five

27
00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:52,840
Speaker 1: women now own dogs. In fact, seventy five of older

28
00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:56,920
Speaker 1: millennials those are ages thirty to thirty nine have dogs,

29
00:01:57,000 --> 00:01:59,680
Speaker 1: and they're willing to shell out cash for them, which

30
00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:04,760
Speaker 1: is good news for the pet industry. In alone, Americans

31
00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:10,000
Speaker 1: spent sixty six point seven five billion dollars on things

32
00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:14,160
Speaker 1: like pet food, leashes, collars, and vet care. And I

33
00:02:14,200 --> 00:02:17,560
Speaker 1: was right there with everybody else spending money on my dogs.

34
00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:22,520
Speaker 1: Millennials in particular, aren't afraid to spend cash on their pets.

35
00:02:23,120 --> 00:02:28,000
Speaker 1: Seventy six percent said they'd happily splurge on items like

36
00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:33,160
Speaker 1: expensive treats and custom beds and perhaps a new house.

37
00:02:36,480 --> 00:02:39,440
Speaker 1: Today's episode of brain Stuff was researched and written by

38
00:02:39,440 --> 00:02:43,079
Speaker 1: Sarah Glime and produced by Dylan Fagan. For more on

39
00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:46,320
Speaker 1: this and other topics, visit us at how stuff works

40
00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:56,720
Speaker 1: dot com.