Dogs, Cats, Birds… Oh my! The vast amount of benefits in spending quality time with different critters is endless. If you are an animal lover or would like to have more contact with animals you have come to the right place. We have the privilege of inhabiting planet earth with our fur and winged “friends.” In this blog you will learn: physical health benefits, life skills, mental health benefits, and various ways you can spend time with animals.
Here are some of the advantages of spending time with animals:
Health Benefits
A lot of recent studies have been conducted by different health organizations to identify the benefits of spending time with animals for one’s physical health and health management. These are some of the findings:
If you own a dog, you are getting exposed on a daily basis to physical exercise by taking your dog out for a walk, run, or to play fetch.
Individuals living with Alzheimer’s may experience less anger outbursts, and feel comforted if they are living with a tame cat or dog in their home. People who take care of a pet are shown to live longer, and feel a sense of purpose.
Spending time with animals has been shown to lower blood pressure. Interacting with a cat or dog reduces stress which then reduces the spikes in blood pressure.
Children who are exposed to cats and dogs from infancy are less likely to have allergies or develop asthma as they grow up.
Spending time with animals in their natural habitat, such as a park, farm, sanctuary, etc., can improve your immune system by supporting one’s gut health. Being in an animal’s natural space activates the gut microbiome (healthy bacteria and fungi in the gastrointestinal tract).
Life skills
Life is so precious; especially that of an animal that is vulnerable living in a world dominated by humans. Taking care of an animal or interacting with one is a responsibility and an honor. The beautiful exchange of taking care of an animal is the lesson that one gets to learn.
Some schools and libraries have “reading buddies,” where children who live with ADHD are able to concentrate more when reading a book to a trained dog or cat. When children read to the “reading buddies” the teachers and librarians noticed that children showed improvement in their social emotional skills (ex. following directions, and sharing).
Additionally, some schools have a program with guinea pigs where children living with Autism were allowed to have supervised play time with the guinea pigs. The children who got to play with the guinea pigs showed an increase in social interactions with others, because the guinea pigs created a space for the children to receive unconditional acceptance.
Teens who live with type 1 diabetes learned to be more responsible with checking their sugar levels when they were given a fish as a pet to take care of according to one recent study. In the study teens were asked to feed their fish twice a day, checking the tank’s water level daily, and changing the water in the tank once a week. In the process of creating a routine in caring for the fish, the teens were asked to review a log of their blood sugar levels with parents throughout the week. The ability of the teen to create a habit to take care of their pet fish was a transferable skill for them to learn to take care of themselves.
Anyone who owns or fosters an animal gets the wonderful opportunity to grow in their skills of empathy, and responsibility.
Mental Health Benefits
“Animals are such agreeable friends — they ask no questions, they pass no criticism” (George Eliot). Animals can make the best friends, and they literally make our head, and heart happy.
“Happy Hormones:” if you are a fan of animals when you come in contact with them the brain releases serotonin and oxytocin. The happy hormones helps us to combat feelings of sadness and stress. When you hug or cuddle with a pet it may have a soothing effect.
Animals can be a great “wingman”, because they help you to meet others, and create meaningful relationships. People enjoy any opportunity to say hi to another dog they see on the street or store.
Pet owners feel much accompanied by their pets (avoid isolation), because they have someone to talk to, and care for.
Individuals are able to practice mindfulness, learning to live in the present moment, when spending time with their pets. For example, dogs give all of their attention when they are playing with their owner. “A dog doesn’t care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his” (John Grogan, “Marley and Me”). Dr. Ann Berger, one of the United States top specialists in pain management shared, “The foundations of mindfulness include attention, intention, compassion, and awareness…All of those things are things that animals bring to the table. People kind of have to learn it. Animals do this innately” (NIH, 2018).
Different ways to spend time with Animals
Buy a pet
Adopt a pet
Foster an animal
Volunteer in a pet shelter
Visit a wildlife sanctuary
In conclusion, we hope after reading this blog you will hug your pet a little tighter, be open to welcoming a pet to your home, or find different ways to spend time with animals in nature. For more resources like this, please check out our other tips here https://www.plantationcounseling.com/blog. You can always find us at 954-903-1676 for counseling services.
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