Celebrate National Dog Day by Saving For Retirement

What better way to celebrate National Dog Day than to start saving for retirement?

A new campaign from MassMutual is encouraging folks to save for retirement by relating to their furry friends. The campaign expects to generate $43 million in additional deposits in 2016.

And Americans desperately need to save more for retirement. According to the Retirement Research Center, Americans are $7.7 trillion short of retiring comfortably.

MassMutual is encouraging savers to visit RetireSmartPets.com and post pictures of their pets. So far, over 1,700 photos have been uploaded. The owner of the most popular pet photo wins an iPad. Along with posting pictures, individuals are encouraged to contribute more to their retirement fund. The site also provides tips for what to do with your 401(k).

And the increase in contributions haven't just been from those in Generation X. Despite what many say about millennials not saving, MassMutual found that the greatest response rate to the campaign came from the 18-34 age group, while the greatest increase in contributions came from ages 55 and up.

As Americans spent $60 billion on their pets in 2015, it's no surprise that the campaign is doing well.