Frontiers in veterinary science · 2026
Dog-mediated active-leisure engagement and organised canine sport: a cross-sectional analysis of Hungarian dog owners.
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Müller Anetta, Lengyel Attila, Mező Katalin, Bába Éva Bácsné, Bendíková Elena, Pálinkás Réka, Uvinha Ricardo, Mező Ferenc
Аннотация
BACKGROUND: Companion dogs are widely seen as a route to physical activity, yet owners differ greatly in how actively they engage their animals, and average owner-non-owner comparisons obscure this variation. We asked how strongly an owner's dog-mediated active-leisure engagement is associated with organised physical activity, and whether that engagement is patterned by place of residence and by the economic priority owners assign to their dog's health.
METHODS: Cross-sectional survey data from 954 Hungarian adult dog owners were analysed. Engagement was measured as the mean of ten five-point items spanning affective, dispositional, and behavioural facets (Cronbach's α = 0.84; McDonald's ω = 0.84). Lifetime participation in organised canine sport was modelled in binary logistic regression with engagement (per standard deviation), gender, capital-city residence, and age as predictors; the breadth of participation, residence, and relative health-related expenditure were examined as further outcomes. Non-linearity of the engagement effect was tested, and a latent profile analysis is reported as a supplementary comparison.
RESULTS: Engagement was approximately normally distributed (M = 2.99, SD = 0.83) and essentially unidimensional. Owners who had taken part in canine sport scored 0.79 standard deviations higher on engagement than those who had not. In the adjusted model, each standard deviation of engagement was associated with 2.27 times the odds of lifetime canine sport participation [95% CI (1.94, 2.64)]; the predicted probability rose from 26% one standard deviation below the mean to 65% one standard deviation above it, with a plateau above roughly 3.5 on the 1-5 scale. Capital-city residence predicted participation on its own (OR = 1.89) but not once engagement was included [OR = 1.36, 95% CI (0.87, 2.10)]. Engagement was higher in the capital than elsewhere and was positively associated with prioritising the dog's health in household spending. Among participants, the number of distinct sports undertaken was only weakly related to engagement.
DISCUSSION: Among owners, engagement rather than ownership distinguishes the physically active from the inactive, and the association is continuous across the full range of the scale rather than confined to a distinct subgroup. The potential for promoting active living through dogs therefore lies in shifting the large mid-range of the engagement distribution, where organised canine activity is still uncommon.
METHODS: Cross-sectional survey data from 954 Hungarian adult dog owners were analysed. Engagement was measured as the mean of ten five-point items spanning affective, dispositional, and behavioural facets (Cronbach's α = 0.84; McDonald's ω = 0.84). Lifetime participation in organised canine sport was modelled in binary logistic regression with engagement (per standard deviation), gender, capital-city residence, and age as predictors; the breadth of participation, residence, and relative health-related expenditure were examined as further outcomes. Non-linearity of the engagement effect was tested, and a latent profile analysis is reported as a supplementary comparison.
RESULTS: Engagement was approximately normally distributed (M = 2.99, SD = 0.83) and essentially unidimensional. Owners who had taken part in canine sport scored 0.79 standard deviations higher on engagement than those who had not. In the adjusted model, each standard deviation of engagement was associated with 2.27 times the odds of lifetime canine sport participation [95% CI (1.94, 2.64)]; the predicted probability rose from 26% one standard deviation below the mean to 65% one standard deviation above it, with a plateau above roughly 3.5 on the 1-5 scale. Capital-city residence predicted participation on its own (OR = 1.89) but not once engagement was included [OR = 1.36, 95% CI (0.87, 2.10)]. Engagement was higher in the capital than elsewhere and was positively associated with prioritising the dog's health in household spending. Among participants, the number of distinct sports undertaken was only weakly related to engagement.
DISCUSSION: Among owners, engagement rather than ownership distinguishes the physically active from the inactive, and the association is continuous across the full range of the scale rather than confined to a distinct subgroup. The potential for promoting active living through dogs therefore lies in shifting the large mid-range of the engagement distribution, where organised canine activity is still uncommon.