Working like a dog?

PET OWNERS: Your choice of pet could say something about your career. At least that’s the conclusion of a recent survey by a US careers website.

CareerBuilders surveyed more than 2,300 American workers with pets to find out if there were correlations between pet ownership and career paths. According to the survey, people with dogs were more likely to hold senior management positions, such as CEO, CFO or senior vice president. Cat owners were more likely to be doctors, real-estate agents or laboratory technicians, as well as professional caregivers.

Owners of snakes or other reptiles were the most likely to report salaries of $100,000 or more, while workers with birds reported the highest levels of job satisfaction. Fish owners frequently work in HR, finance or the hotel industry.

Fish owners frequently work in HR or finance.

What, if anything, does the survey mean? Well, probably not much that’s concrete. But it does provide some welcome relief from the negative economic news, and could be a source of lively conversation in the workplace if comments on The Work Buzz blog are any indication.

Meanwhile, a love of dogs, cats or other animals could mean it’s time to consider a career change. Who knows, you might be wasting your talent in advertising (bird owner) or nursing (dog owner) when what you really want to be is a veterinary surgeon.