Benefits of Companion Animals

In the past 25 years, research has confirmed the legitimacy of common anecdotal evidence offered by medical professionals and animal assisted therapy (AAT) volunteers--that the companionship of animals can be good for your health and well being.

• In a study of heart patients released from a hospital coronary care unit, researchers found that the second most influential factor in determining long-term survival, after the extent of heart damage sustained, was pet ownership. Within the first year, deaths among patients without pets were four times greater than deaths among pet owners, even though the non-pet owners represented only 42% of the total group of subjects.
• Visits with a therapy dog helped heart and lung function by lowering blood pressure, diminishing release of harmful hormones and decreasing anxiety in hospitalized heart failure patients.
• Animal-assisted therapy can reduce the loneliness of patients in long-term care facilities.
• People who were diagnosed with borderline hypertension experienced a decrease in blood pressure on days when they took their dogs to work.
• In a study of 100 Medicare patients, seniors who owned dogs had 21% fewer doctor visits than those who did not.
• The companionship of pets helps children adjust better to the serious illness and death of a parent.
• Average medication costs per patient per day dropped 68.9% in new nursing homes that had animals and plants as an integral part of the environment.
• People with AIDS who have pets experience less depression and stress. Pets are a major source of support and increase the perceived ability to cope.
• Researchers at Sloan-Kettering Memorial Cancer Center in New York found that companion animals, especially cats and dogs, had a beneficial impact on adult caregivers while caring for a spouse who had cancer.
• A study of 6,000 patients revealed that those with pets had lower blood pressures, lower cholesterol levels and a diminished risk of heart attack.
• A clinical nursing observation on the therapeutic value of pets for patients with Alzheimer's disease suggests that pets help alleviate loneliness and emotional isolation and increase communication, social interaction, and sensory stimulation.

For more information on this topic:

Healing powers of pets