Pets and Their Affect On Your Wellbeing
There has only been one period in my entire life where I had a gap of around 3 years with no pets in the home, maybe there was still my daughters fish, but that’s all.. I felt a bit lost.
From a child we had cats, a dog, a tortoise at one point, various fish, rabbits and guinea pigs, pets were as much a part of our family as the humans. It’s an interesting thought to consider, why do we enjoy the company that pets give us so much?
Lets take a look..
Working Animals
There are the factors of the working animals of course, where the dogs for the blind and deaf are of so much value, all of the support, friendship and company that they provide making them invaluable to their owners, becoming their eyes and ears for them as well as providing comfort and company.
Most of us cannot imagine not being able to perform what we believe are the most simple of tasks, but these tasks are like a mountain to climb for a disabled person, and what provides the much needed support in a lot of cases is a pet.
However it is not only the tasks that they are able to help us with on a daily basis that makes them so invaluable, but also the service that they can provide towards the safety of their owner. Imagine not being able to hear the fire bell ring or see an imminent hazard, very scary! When people say that animals do not have feelings, are not sentient beings.. I cannot believe it, to me they are a soul just like us but in a different body.
Animals And The Elderly
My Father is sadly in a care home now and unable to move himself around, or see, due to several strokes and dementia, caused by certain unmentionable events in the last few years.. Probably on at least a monthly basis the devoted carers allow animals to come in to the home so that the residents can once again know the joy of being able to stroke and pet an animal, it brings so much joy to these special people who have memories from their lifetimes of their own pets. Photographs are shared via fb of these special days, and even though my Dad is often missing from other events such as rolling balls or Bingo, he is always present for the animals visiting. For once I see the smile trace across his face even in his condition, it brings a tear to the eye to know that he is still aware of the precious gift that these little furry creatures can provide, and the memories that they may stir up.
Children and Animals
As a trained NNEB Nursery Nurse I have come across many many children as well as my own, and equally as a children’s face painter! The children that had pets at home were generally the most content, in my opinion. They would often draw and paint them as members of their family and talk about them, which was particularly therapeutic when they were feeling sad about something. Even if a child feels that they are not ready to speak to an adult or friend about their troubles they would feel able to share their worries with their pets, who let’s face it would listen without answering back or making the child feel embarrassed.
Then of course there is all of the love and games that the children could experience with their pets as well as caring skills involved in looking after them. It’s a beautiful thing to see a child carefully looking after an animal and sometimes taking an injured wild animal under their wings to get them well again… with luck!
When a child’s pet at home died this too would provide a valuable lesson, they could experience death and the emotions it brings and how they could deal with them, mainly before they had the trauma of a loved relative or friend dying. This experience is crucial in a child’s life as part of becoming a well rounded adult. We as adults will perform little ceremonies with them to aid this process, such as burying the pet in the garden, possibly with a home made grave stone as a marker of their love for the pet, giving a sense of peace and a place to visit when they want to. This is a way of giving a great deal of comfort to a child, as often despite the tears they can also feel like the animal is somehow still around them in their hearts.
When my dearest pet cat Whiskey died when I was a child, I remember being the shyest of children you could meet, I barely ever spoke and had maybe one friend, I recollect crying discreetly in the cloakrooms and trying to hide my distress, out of that experience I remember the other children all rallied together and tried their best to make me feel better, children I’d never even noticed before, the kindness and support was amazing, and that bonding over a pet meant that I made some new friends that day.
Pets and Stress Relief
We’ve all known those days where we don’t want to leave the house, or can’t wait to get home from work after a terrible day, or even we are just feeling hormonal, it’s at these points that our pets are always there for us, the warm and never judgemental friend that can just be.. We are able to release all the stresses of our day when we cuddle, stroke and play with our pets, and they don’t mind! Interacting with our pets can lower cortisol (a stress hormone) and lower blood pressure, giving us that well needed relaxation and sense of peace. This is especially so with a dog, as a lovely walk is also a great way to release the pressure after a hard day, and releases endorphins making us feel happier.
Equally, especially if walking, there is the chance of social interaction with others should we feel lonely and need to just see another human being! This can greatly improve our mood and help with anxiety and depression, just as petting you animal does. This similarly also helps children with their social skills.
A survey by Purina found that 8 out of 10 dog owners received significant stress relief from walking their dogs. See link below.
Physical Benefits of Pets
Owning a pet can really help with physical conditions too, the increased exercise and activity of maybe cleaning out cages, mucking out or walking can improve cardiovascular health. Just petting a cat or dog can also lower the blood pressure.
As previously mentioned a pet can also greatly reduce anxiety and stress for a person and lift feelings of depression even if temporarily, as the soul is soothed and feelings of loneliness subside.
Owning a pet gives a feeling of responsibility and purpose which can greatly enhance a persons life, giving a reason to get out of bed in the morning and walk or feed the animal, and in return receive all of the love that they can give back. Apparently a rabbit is surprisingly one of the best pets for depression, they’re extremely sociable and they easily adapt to human companionship, and in comparison to other small animals they have a reasonably long life expectancy. Rabbits also are pretty low maintenance, as are guinea pigs, some people even train their rabbits to live indoors and use the litter tray as a cat would. Even though it is wise to cover all cables and wires just in case of nibbling! They are a particularly easy pet for those that aren’t that mobile as well, as there are no walks or energetic play times either.
Gathering all of the evidence together it becomes clear that owning and looking after a pet is an extremely good thing for your mental health, fitness, emotional balance, social skills and interaction and stress relief as well as the actual physical help provided by the working animals. Personally I wouldn’t be without mine – 2 cats and 2 guinea pigs 🙂 So to anyone that is able to get one and feels that there is something lacking in their life I would definitely recommend it!
Dogs Trust – Dogs Rehoming & Dog Rescue Charity
Battersea Dogs and Cats Home – Here for every dog and cat
Blue Cross – Pets Change Lives, We Change Theirs