Chicago is not exactly a friend to animal owners, according to a study of the 100 most populated cities in the U.S.
According to a WalletHub study, Chicago ranks as one of the worst cities in the U.S. for pet lovers. The study took in factors such as the number of veterinarians, pet businesses, dog parks and animal shelters per 100,000 residents in different cities to come up with the rankings. Cincinnati was ranked the best city in the U.S., with Newark, N.J., right at the bottom.
Chicago was only slightly better than Newark, coming in at 94. Local pet lovers and pet experts are divided on the results.
Realtor Larissa Brodsky is inclined to agree with the findings. Earlier this month at Lake Shore Park, where dogs frequently play unleashed, the Streeterville resident lamented that there are not more places for her to take her black English cocker spaniel, Nell.
“There is no place to take a dog out,” she said. “Everywhere there are signs [that say] ‘No dogs,’ ‘No dogs,’ and I think it’s not fair to people who pay property tax or who pay high rent and live in downtown Chicago.” Brodsky likes shopping at stores that allow dogs, such as Neiman Marcus, and said dogs need big spaces in which to run around.
“They have to run,” she said. “They cannot only walk or sleep.”
However, Collin Creach, who works in software and recently moved to Chicago from Florida with his fiancée and their rescue dog, a lab and shepherd mix named Penny, had nothing but nice things to say about the Windy City.
“We’ve found it to be a very pet-friendly city even before we lived here, just seeing dogs around kind of was part of the compelling reason of wanting to live in the city in a place like Streeterville,” he said.
Creach, 25, and his fiancée enjoy taking Penny to Lake Shore Park and respect how there are “nicely groomed grass areas” along Lake Shore Drive that prohibit dogs.
“We follow rules so it’s not a big deal,” he said. “But places like [Lake Shore Park], we just pick up after our dog, we always bring bags, so I feel like as long as you’re not making an exception to the rule, then you’re not really standing out having a pet here.”
Blair Neal-Fabian, who works in advertising and lives in Wicker Park with her husband and their female dog, Bailey, doesn’t think Chicago is a horrible place to have a pet, but she does wish there were more green areas in her neighborhood and in the city in general.
“She’s a rescue dog, so she’s kind of temperamental with who she’s around and stuff, so she probably doesn’t make it out to as many public places as some other dogs, but there’s not really any grass here,” Neal-Fabian, 32, said from the front of her home, where she sat chatting with her husband while Bailey sat close by. “Even if you’re going to walk your dog around the block, I mean, it’s cement. I know it’s kind of hard to do in a super condensed area, but it’s very hard to find just a grassy spot for your dog, and dogs love grass.”
The Chicago Park District does not agree with the survey results. According to CPD spokeswoman Zvezdana Kubat, there are 23 so-called Dog Friendly Areas in Chicago.
“We disagree with the results of this survey, as the Chicago Park District recognizes the importance of dog friendly areas (DFAs) in our parks, as they provide safe places for dogs to exercise, play and socialize,” Kubat said in an email. “Currently, there are nearly two dozen DFAs in Chicago and the number of DFAs has increased each year for the past ten years. Furthermore, the Park District has supported the development of these areas based on community input and request.”
Marcia Coburn, president of the Red Door Animal Shelter, finds it “a little shocking and very disappointing that Chicago, which is such an urbane and sophisticated city in so many ways, would be so low in something like this.”
When pet owners come to Red Door and say they cannot take care of their animal, the issue they have can depend on the type of animal.
“I think with cats and dogs sometimes it’s the fact that people need to move and often they can’t find a new place, a rental, that will allow their pet to come with them and they don’t also maybe particularly prioritize that,” she said, adding that “we hear that more and more, that it’s more and more difficult to find rental properties that will allow animals, particularly dogs, bigger dogs, over 20 pounds.”
Coburn is particularly concerned about the welfare of pet rabbits, and said that the problem with rabbits is that the owners just don’t understand their needs.
“They’re just kind of considered, unfortunately, disposable pets, and they don’t make noise like cats or dogs and so they’re kind of the silent victim here,” Coburn said.
Anna Morrison-Ricordati, a lawyer who works on cases involving animals, said via email that the biggest challenge for Chicago pet owners is knowing the laws that apply. She noted that Chicago is not the worst city on the list and that it may have the “greatest hope for improvement.”
She wrote that Illinois and Cook County animal protection laws, such as anti-dog fighting laws and anti-cruelty laws, are some of the best in the country. She also praised the quality and availability of pet-related services and animal shelters.
“With a better understanding of the City Codes (and perhaps some revision), Chicago might someday be one of the most animal friendly cities in the US!” she wrote in an email.
Michael San Filippo, a spokesman for the American Veterinary Medical Association, whose headquarters are in Schaumburg, thinks Chicago is a good city for pets and their owners.
“From what I’ve seen, Chicago is a great place to have a pet,” San Filippo said in an email. “I think business owners and government officials in Chicago, like most large cities, recognize the bond people have with their pets and want to create an environment where pets are welcome. That means more pet-friendly restaurants and workplaces, dog parks and green space, and other attractions and resources developed with pets and their people in mind.”
Matt Nordloh, 55, lives in Dearborn Park with his dogs Scooter and Lucy, a bichon frise and a Boston rat terrier, respectively. He has had a “very positive” experience as a dog owner in Chicago and thinks his area is pet-friendly. He noted that he lives near Lake Michigan and within walking distance of parks.
“I don’t see where it’s unfriendly for dogs whatsoever,” he said.
Traci Thibodeaux, an education consultant who lives in Printer’s Row with her male black Labrador, Trey, is also happy. She did admit that apartment-hunting was not easy when she first moved to Chicago from Dallas three years ago. She found many buildings that accepted dogs, but the dogs had to be on the smaller side, and Trey weighs more than 70 pounds.
“That really reduced the options I had,” she said.
She feels that Chicago is a pet-friendly city.
“I feel accepted everywhere,” Thibodeaux, 35, said. “I can take him into some restaurants and there are a lot of pet services available here, so I think it’s a good city.”
The cost of having a pet in Chicago is not a concern for Thibodeaux, but she has had issues with dog-walking services.
“I would say it’s kind of hard to find a good, reliable dog walker in the city,” she said. “There’s a lot of people that offer services, but in my three years I’ve had trouble with a lot of them. But the prices are on average, I think, comparable to other cities. I moved up from Dallas and the cost of walking a dog is about the same.”
Like so many pet owners, Thibodeaux cannot imagine life without her furry friend, and moving to Chicago without Trey would have been undoable.
“A majority of his life—I’ve had him for 11 years—we were in Texas, and if there was any idea that moving to Chicago I couldn’t have him, I wouldn’t have moved to Chicago,” she said.
Cristina Merrill is a RedEye special contributor.
