Animal shelters that want to find homes for more pets should stop describing them as “cute,” “playful” or “cuddly.”

That’s according to a new study by University of Oregon Assistant Professor David Markowitz.

He looked at the language in thousands of online pet adoption ads and found storytelling and personality-oriented words actually hurt a pet’s chances of finding a home.

“The more analytical a text is, the better off a pet’s probability of being adopted,” Markowitz said.

People looking to adopt want the basics about an animal, like its breed, size and health status, he said.

“The results suggest that words matter. Rather than saying, ‘oh, we can throw anything on a website or we can throw any kind of description about a pet online,’ you may be undermining a pet’s chances of finding a home,” Markowitz said.

The results match up with other studies that found people are persuaded by analytical language — whether they’re considering loaning someone money or if they should vaccinate their kids. Emotional language can backfire.

“If you’re telling me about all the reasons why you need a loan, you’re getting away from how soon you’ll be able to pay me back. That could be a red flag,” Markowitz said.

The Southern Oregon Humane Society uses analytical language in most of the pet profiles it posts to its website. People can view photos and see the age, gender, size and adoption price for each animal.

“I would say typically the feedback from people who adopt from us is the basics are the most important,” said Ryan Johnson, operations manager for SoHumane.

The organization stopped labeling dogs based on breed several years ago. Dogs are simply listed as mixed breed unless the shelter has papers on a dog. People can decide for themselves what breed a dog might be, Johnson said.

Animals with special needs will sometimes get a longer online profile.

For example, Sweets is a deaf dog currently living in a foster home.

After listing her stats, her profile says, “I have learned basic commands in sign language. I love to play with my dog friends but I enjoy human company more. I walk very well on the leash and love to play fetch. I would make an awesome companion dog. I love to lay in laps and really enjoy belly scratches.”

When it comes to social media posts, SoHumane tends to use language that conveys more about an animal’s personality.

Johnson said people are influenced by a pet’s profile photo along with basic information. They often don’t read all the way through a pet description.

SoHumane sometimes posts photos of animals with news that they just got adopted. People will call in to ask how they can adopt the animal — proving they didn’t read the social media post and only looked at the photo, Johnson said.

Markowitz said research shows photos boost an animal’s adoption chances.

For its pet profiles, the Jackson County Animal Shelter favors an approach that mixes analytical language plus descriptions of an animal’s personality. Like SoHumane, the county shelter also includes photos.

The county shelter wants to convey information that will help an animal be successful in its new home, such as whether it gets along with children and other cats and dogs, said Jackson County Animal Services Manager Barbara Talbert.

“But we also want to share what we’ve learned about the animal since it’s been in our care,” she said. “That may be whether it wants a lot of attention, or whether it’s a friendly cat or a silly, goofy dog.”

Animals that are cared for by a foster family often get even longer descriptions. The foster parent may write that a dog behaves well while riding in a car, or takes time to warm up to strangers.

Talbert said it seems counterintuitive that describing a pet’s personality could actually hurt its chances of being adopted.

“It would seem to me that if you could put some sense in the description of what the animal’s personality is like, that would be helpful,” she said.

Markowitz said pet descriptions are on a spectrum that ranges from analytical language to social language. He didn’t study profiles that mixed the two styles.

Talent resident Ginger Johnson was recently visiting the Jackson County Animal Shelter to adopt a dog. She browsed through websites for different shelters and noticed a wide variation in the details provided in pet profiles.

Johnson said she prefers profiles that mix an analytical description with information on a dog’s personality. She said a dog will become a member of her family and she wants clues to how it will fit in.

Jacksonville couple Pam and Bill Nason were also at the county shelter to look at dogs.

Asked to describe their dream dog, they said they want a small, female, housebroken terrier-mix that walks well on a leash, gets along with other dogs and can go everywhere with them.

“And cuddly,” Bill Nason added.

“Yes, cuddly. It would be part of our family,” Pam Nason agreed.

Pam Nason said she likes to read detailed descriptions written by foster parents who can describe how a dog gets along with humans and other animals.

At SoHumane and the county animal shelter, both Johnson and Talbert said a pet profile can only pique a person’s interest. It takes an actual meeting between human and animal for a pet to win a home.

“From what I’ve seen, it will get someone curious about actually coming down to meet an animal,” Johnson said.

That’s when people will figure out whether it’s a good match — or not, Talbert said.

Analytical language may get people in the door of a shelter, but gazing into the eyes of a dog or cat is usually what seals the deal.

“The most important thing to us is the gut reaction. It’s got to be love at first sight,” Pam Nason said.