Dog owners enjoy a better life

Posted on Sun, 14 Feb 10

As any dog owner knows, a dog is not only a friend but can help support new friendships through increased social interaction, such as talking to people when going for a walk together. Social support whether from a dog or human is important for health and wellbeing. As an example of just how important this effect may be a remarkable report found that patients with heart disease who owned a dog had a greater than 600% reduction in risk of dying (1).

Social animals

Social interaction is important for wellbeing because it alleviates feelings of loneliness and isolation.  Dogs act as social catalysts. A study examining this effect found that dogs encourage human social interaction even when testing this theory with a dog that is highly trained not to seek attention from passers-by. The same study also changed the appearance of the dog walker (from smart to scruffy clothing) yet the major determinant of social interaction was the presence of the dog, not the walker’s appearance (2).

Stress relief

Increased social interaction can have a stress relieving effect. Just five minutes of interaction with a dog has been shown to produce measurable changes in stress hormones (3). Dog owners may also benefit by being more physically active, enjoying a better mood and reduced feelings of loneliness (4).  This is not a dog prescription. As psychologist June McNicholas and colleagues wrote; “people do not own pets specifically to enhance their health, rather they value the relationship and the contribution their pet makes to their quality of life (5).”

References

1. Friedmann E, Thomas SA. Pet ownership, social support, and one-year survival after acute myocardial infarction in the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial (CAST). Am J Cardiol. 1995 Dec 15;76(17):1213-7.

2. McNicholas J, Collis GM. Dogs as catalysts for social interactions: robustness of the effect. Br J Psychol. 2000 Feb;91 ( Pt 1):61-70.

3. Barker SB, Knisely JS, McCain NL, Best AM. Measuring stress and immune response in healthcare professionals following interaction with at therapy dog: a pilot study. Psychol Rep 96:713–729, 2005.

4. Barker SB, Wolen AR. The benefits of human-companion animal interaction: a review. J Vet Med Educ. 2008 Winter;35(4):487-95.

5. McNicholas J, Gilbey A, Rennie A, Ahmedzai S, Dono JA, Ormerod E. Pet

ownership and human health: a brief review of evidence and issues. BMJ. 2005 Nov  26;331(7527):1252-4.