By HAYDEN FINCH, PhD
Aren’t pets the best? Most of you know I have 2 dogs and they are the absolute best.
I have a Maltese, Bailey, whom I got as a puppy when I flew from the nest and moved halfway across the country all by myself for graduate school. He was my companion and helped me adjust to being a real adult.
Then, a few years later, I found a pregnant stray dog. I worked hard to find her family, but sadly no one would claim her, so she became part of our family, too. Ava had one puppy shortly after I found her, and I was able to get the puppy adopted by an amazing family. So now, Bailey and Ava are a wonderful, critical, miraculous part of my life.
“Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.”
Roger Caras
There has been a lot of focus recently about how animals provide emotional support for humans, resulting in the development of the “emotional support animal” concept. Pets, especially dogs, are in tune with their owners. They can understand some of the words we use and read our body language in a way that helps us communicate and work toward common goals. I am a HUGE fan of pets for many, many, many reasons. Here are 10 legitimate ways pets contribute to our mental health.
When we’re in emotional or physical pain, we can refocus our attention and distract ourselves from our pain by
– petting our pets
– caring for our pets
– focusing on our animals- Pets give us a sense of personal responsibility and purpose, and that can be a powerful antidepressant when we see ourselves performing the responsibilities necessary to care for another living being.
- The routine associated with caring for a pet (morning snoozles, morning potty break, breakfast time, pre-work petting, post-work reunion, afternoon walk, supper time, evening potty break, bedtime cuddle time) helps get us on a schedule, and scheduling is another powerful antidepressant.
- Physical contact with pets not only benefits our pets (just look at those tails wag!), but it also soothes us as we feel the nurturance and affection from them. Petting actually releases oxytocin, a chemical in our brains that is linked to stress and anxiety relief (and then all the health benefits that come from reducing stress, like lowering blood pressure).
Our pets, especially dogs, are always happy to see us. Isn’t that one of the best parts of coming home after work – seeing how excited your dog is? I know I look forward to it – every.single.day. The perky ears, running in a circle, clear effort to follow the rules and not bark or jump even though it’s SO HARD. It’s magical. The acceptance our pets give us is some of the most genuine most of us experience from any of our relationships. They don’t care when we look legit awful and they never notice our mistakes. They always give us the benefit of the doubt, and they’re genuinely proud of us.
“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.”
Josh Billings
- Dogs have been bred to be attentive to humans in a social context, so they are especially skilled at detecting our emotions. Have you noticed your dog cuddles up to you when you’re sad? They function well in a family because of the way dogs naturally exist in the wild and because of their breeding, both focusing on cooperation and socialization. The sense of family is really important to them, and they pass that on to us.
- Our pets offer friendship and companionship and reduce loneliness. This is true not only because our dogs are our companions but also because they encourage us to get out of the house and meet others, either at the dog park or around our neighborhoods while we walk. Dogs are a very common conversation starter and help us make connections and then reduce isolation.
- Our pets help us engage in fun and play. Have you ever been jealous of how joyful your children are at times? Some experts argue that joyfulness comes from our encouraging children to play and decreases in adulthood because we are pressured to be “responsible,” which somehow means we don’t have fun or play anymore. But we play with our pets because it makes them happy, and it also makes us happy. Our pets, especially our dogs, get us outside in the sunshine, which helps us soak up the Vitamin D while we also get some exercise, which helps us pump out the endorphins. Win, win.
Is there anything cuter than a dog with a sandy nose? Or a cat in a cereal box? Or a giant dog in a tiny dog bed? I challenge you to identify something cuter. When our pets do cute things, we smile, and smiling releases brain chemicals that make us feel better (specifically serotonin and dopamine). Instant mood lift.
Caring for pets has proven physical health benefits, including lowering blood pressure and cholesterol and speeding recovery from surgeries. Pet owners also tend to have a lower risk of heart disease. Plus walking our dogs, taking them to the dog park, etc., helps us get exercise, which has obvious health benefits. The activity gives us an energy boost to help fight fatigue and stress and makes us feel accomplished.
Obviously pets offer us immediate joy, but they also offer long-term mental and physical health benefits. But remember that pet ownership is a major long-term commitment, with huge financial, time, effort, and emotional commitment, so a pet should only be adopted when that commitment can be consistently honored. For people who cannot adopt a pet, volunteering at a shelter, visiting the dog park, or participating in animal therapy (e.g., equine therapy) may be other options to consider to reap the benefits without the major commitment and responsibility of pet ownership.
Hayden C. Finch, PhD,
is a practicing psychologist
in Des Moines, Iowa.
