40% of Americans would rather give up their dog than their smartphones for a month, finds survey

A new survey has found that for some dog parents, the idea of being separated from their smartphones for a month is scarier than going the same period of time without their furry friends. SimpleTexting, an online SMS marketing platform, was able to pinpoint exactly which pleasures Americans would be willing to sacrifice to stay tied to their smartphones. The survey, which posed a series of questions to 1000 smartphone owners across demographics and all fifty states, found that close to half are willing to part ways with their pet for a month if it means getting to keep the electronic slabs in their pockets.

"The insights from the survey were quite telling. In terms of relationships, almost 40% of respondents would rather give up their dog for a month than their smartphones for a month, and 42% of respondents would rather be away from their significant other for a month than be away from their smartphones for a month," the survey results state. Apparently, pets still have romantic partners beat. While the idea that quite a few of us prioritize our smartphones over our pets is worrying on many levels, the fact that many more are willing to sacrifice significant others in favor of their dogs is slightly reassuring.

However, as SimpleTexting points out, the "pandemic stress and the spring 2020 lockdowns with significant others" may have something to do with this willingness to spend time away from partners. "In terms of libations, 72% of respondents would rather sacrifice all alcohol for a month than sacrifice their smartphones for a month, and 64% of respondents would rather sacrifice all coffee for a month than sacrifice their smartphones for a month. Surprisingly, more are prioritizing caffeine intake over alcoholic beverages during COVID-19 based on these results," the website stated.

Meanwhile, when it comes to giving up sex for a month vs. not using their phones, 53% of overall respondents and 60% of males chose an active sex life. However, Gen Z seemingly doesn't feel the same as "56% of Gen Z digital natives would far rather give up lovemaking for a month than be parted with their cell phone for a month." As for Netflix and Instagram, the streaming service and photo-sharing platform stand no chance against the unbreakable bond of a person and their smartphone. "70% of respondents would sacrifice Netflix over their smartphones for a month, and 60% of respondents would give up all social media over their smartphones for a month," SimpleTexting stated.

The survey also asked participants how much they'd be willing to pay to keep their smartphone for a month to which 35% of respondents said that they'd be okay with shelling out anywhere between $500 to $2000. The millennials among the 1000 survey subjects turned out to be big spenders of the lot, as they were three times as likely as both Baby Boomers and Gen Z to pay $2 to $3k in order to keep their smartphones for a month.

"In summary, many are willing to risk it all in order to keep the digital devices we hold so dear to us. Luckily, most adult-aged Americans shouldn’t have to worry about threats of having their smartphones taken away. In 2020, we’ll continue to send more text messages, take more phone calls, download more mobile apps, and peruse more social media channels without the fear of intervention," author Meghan Tocci concluded.