hether they bark, meow, oink, screech, whinny, titter, purr, or just twitch their noses when they look at you, most of us have long, emotional, and, it turns out, healthy relationships with pets. And with good reason. Pets listen to us with compassion, soothe our souls, quiet our hearts, and impart a sense of wellbeing that we continue to understand more clearly every day. But pets do more than help with wellbeing, they actually help increase overall health, and pet ownership may reduce heart rate and blood pressure, among other major disease states.

The Bond between People and Pets

The anecdotal tales of the heroic acts of our furry or feathered friends are legend. No one is untouched by the accounts of cats or dogs traveling hundreds of miles to reaffirm the bond broken with their…well, their partners. Pets risking life and limb to save a human being sometimes defy understanding. And the unconditional love that a pet offers is the baseline by which any pet owner measures their relationship. What is going on here?

What's going on and what pets mean to our health are two different but interesting revelations. The first lies in our heads and hearts; the second in virtually every part of our bodies.

	Owning a pet is a great date magnet.

The psychological need is complex, of course, and the study of the human-animal connection dates back to the 1700s. But the bottom line for psychologists is the fact that humans share a commonality as members of the animal kingdom with a mutual need for attachment. In short, we seem drawn to one another much in the same way we would be drawn to others more closely resembling our own kind.

The Health Benefits of Owning a Pet

What is most fascinating and most researched is the suggestion that connecting with our pets is soothing and beneficial to our health on a number of levels. It is true that pets contribute to our wellbeing in many ways. Below are just a few examples.

Pets Reduce Stress

At the top of the list of reasons to own a pet is they help with stress reduction. Research suggests it is extremely difficult to stay in a bad mood and experience depression when interacting with a pet. A UCLA study of more than 1,800 subjects with chronic illness reported that those without pets were three times more likely to report symptoms of depression.

Pets can Lower Heart Rate and Blood Pressure

Another study placed married couples in stressful situations (math tasks) and compared heart rate and blood pressure. People with pets experienced significantly lower baseline heart rate and blood pressure than the participants who did not have pets. Pet owners also made significantly fewer errors during the study’s math tasks than participants who didn’t have pets. Researchers fell short of recommending replacing a spouse with a pet, although the data is compelling!

Pets Improve your Mood

Similar research suggests the simple act of caring for a pet: bathing, grooming, teaching your bird to talk, throwing the Frisbee for your dog, cuddling on the bed with your cat, actually raises levels of serotonin and dopamine, which, of course, are instrumental in regulating our moods.

Pet Ownership: Quick Statistics and Benefits

• Growing up with pets actually lowers the risk of developing childhood or adult allergies by boosting our immune systems through exposure to animal antigens.
  
• Nearly 60 percent of American households own pets. They offer a great opportunity for social interaction, sharing pictures, telling tales, and comparing notes.
  
• If you’re widowed, single, or divorced, pet partnerships can be emotionally and physically important. Not only do they provide companionship, people who are alone suffer higher rates of disease than those in a “relationship.” People with pet partners enjoy some of the same benefits for healthier and longer lives as people with people partners do.

If these aren’t enough benefits, consider this: owning a pet is a great date magnet. Most relationship experts and any single person walking a dog on a Saturday morning in Central Park will readily attest to the power of pets to make the love connection and soothe the soul. So make your way to an animal shelter today and adopt a pet for good health.