DadTalk

Do you love your pet more than your kids?

According to a YouGov survey of 1,000 parent and 500 teengers 23% of mothers and 19% of fathers confessed to loving the family pet as much as their own offspring.

According to a YouGov survey of 1,000 parent and 500 teengers 23% of mothers and 19% of fathers confessed to loving the family pet as much as their own offspring.

The survey also found a lot of shouting in UK homes :

• The average British household spends 34 minutes a day shouting at each other
• Just over half of families argue at least once a day
• In 35% of homes the shouting persists from more than an hour, rising to 50% in households with more than one child

Parents said the phrase they used most often to their children was:

• "Why? Because I said so" (19% of parents)
• "money doesn't grow on trees" (14%), and
• "you should have thought of that before" (11%)

However, despite these everyday frictions, families retained strong ties of love and affection:

• 98% of teenagers said they loved their parents
• 69% said their families were the most important people in their lives
• 90% of families sit down to dinner together
• 8 out of 10 of parents say "I love you" to at least one member of the household daily

The poll was commissioned by Channel 4 to inform a documentary series on the family, starting next month; read a full report in The Guardian or check out the funny pets vid - they are pretty cute but 19%? Lets us know what you think on the forum!