Time spent with your pet is the best time of your life, say numerous dog lovers. Yes, a dog can indeed be your best friend. Their loyalty and unflinching commitment to you help boost your emotional or mental well-being. Pet lovers believe pets have attributes that help uplift your spirits and offer silent friendship. Your dog can make you feel happy and help you combat depression. According to Forbes, resilience is a vital weapon for keeping mental illness at bay. An effective way of building resilience is supporting things that are best for rejuvenating us. For numerous animal lovers, pets are best for providing boundless joy and tremendous emotional support.
You may have strong bonding, genuine relationships, and positive experiences with your pets, and you can enjoy health benefits. From a boost in mental and physical health to nurturing social interaction and engagement, there is a deep bond and understanding between people and their beloved pets. There are several health benefits of including a pet in your family. Pets can help you stay fit and active and manage depression and loneliness, thanks to their unmatched companionship. Let us explore how your furry friend boosts your physical, emotional, or mental health.
Boosts Emotional Well-Being
According to research findings, there is a definite indication that prolonged loneliness may result in adverse health conditions, which may include increased risks of hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease, cancer, anxiety, depression, and even suicide. During the COVID-19 global pandemic, particularly, when there was mandatory home quarantine or strict lockdown, people faced increased risks of negative impact on their overall mental well-being and happiness.
Anxiety symptoms increased almost three-fold. Depression cases quadrupled, and 40 percent of American adults admitted that they had issues managing mental well-being or staying away from substance abuse. All human beings are social animals and require emotional boost or overall fostering to build and maintain ideal mental, emotional or physical health. However, studies reveal that pets boost mental health and minimize emotional agony related to loneliness. Loneliness and isolation can make your life unbearable. Whenever you feel depressed and stressed out, your dog is the savior. When you interact with pets, it will help reduce your cortisol levels. Cortisol is supposed to be your stress hormone. A recent study relating to dog owners and their pets reveals a boost in oxytocin levels. Oxytocin is associated with positive emotional conditions and bonding.
Enhances Physical Fitness
If you wish to have a happy furry friend, make sure your dog is going out with you for regular walks. You may take him for outside trips, long walks, or runs. Remember that walking or playing with your dog will boost physical activity in your lifestyle. Research has revealed that walking dogs can assist in promoting adherence to and engagement in regular exercise or consistent physical activity. Moreover, you can enjoy free exercise sessions when you walk your dog or play with him. Gym memberships are exorbitant, but walking a dog is productive and comes free.
When your puppy has pent-up energy, he will probably become high-spirited and demonstrate behavioral issues. Some common dog behaviors such as excessive scratching, chewing, and barking happen when your pet has excessive energy. It is critical to understand the significance of dog walks as it is fruitful for your dog because such physical activity help gives vent to your puppy’s pent-up energy. Perfect training is essential for calming a dog, but walking also ensures that they are calm and less aggressive at home.
A dog owner needs to take his dog out for regular walks. It helps him to gain physical fitness. As per a study conducted in 2019 in Scientific Reports, people with a pet dog are 4 x more inclined than others who do not have a dog to fulfill 150 minutes of physical activity every week as per the guidelines. A study conducted by Pursue University demonstrated that dog owners, on average are used to walking for 160 minutes.
Regular workouts may seem overwhelming for many people as they may find the gym ambiance daunting or may feel pressurized because of the intensity and timeframe they need to accomplish. People are more motivated to go out walking for their dog’s health rather than their own health. They take their dogs for a walk for their furry friend’s health benefit, but they too get benefitted immensely from such physical activity. We have heard people complaining that a lack of social motivation and low confidence are hurdles to being fit and active, however, your dog can provide you ample confidence and motivation to be fit, and active. Research has revealed that regular walks with your four-legged companion are good for maintaining a perfect weight and reducing chances of heart disease issues, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, cancer, and more. All this exercise helps to boost endurance, bone and muscle health, cognition memory, mood, immune function, and sleep.
Promotes Heart Health
Pets contribute in a big way towards promoting a healthy heart. Your dog is a powerful motivator for pursuing regular physical activity. Playtime and walks with your furry friend reduce your risks of heart disease. There is a connection between improved heart outcomes and dog ownership in the case of patients recuperating from stroke or heart attack. Patients using pet therapy while recuperating after a surgical procedure needed fewer pain medications than patients with no pets. Your dog helps reduce hypertension risks and blood pressure. When you indulge in regular activity with your dog, there is a boost in the overall quality of life.
Ticket to Socialize
Pets are a fantastic ‘social lubricant’ for their parents. Your pet can help you begin and nurture new friendships. Dog owners often acknowledge each other and exchange words on hikes, walks, or in dog parks. Moreover, it is natural for pet owners to meet like-minded people in pet clubs, stores, or training classes.
You have increased physical interactions with people because of your dog. You get to know veterinarians, dog trainers, animal activists, and more. It becomes easy to start or engage in a conversation with strangers. Having a pet is a fabulous opportunity to connect with people around you. You start socializing with like-minded people. You have access to social networking platforms and animal lovers’ forums where you can actively interact with other pet lovers.
There is a common ground for mingling or socializing, and your pets are instrumental in encouraging healthy or stimulating social activities such as meeting at cafes or pet parks and sharing pet videos & pictures on social media platforms. You may join various online groups where members share similar love for pets and have many common interests. During COVID-19 global pandemic, remote employees living alone missed the workplace atmosphere where they could interact actively with their coworkers. Pets were a great savior for them. Pets not only shower you with their love, but they also help you connect with other pet lovers worldwide.
Provides Enhanced Discipline
Studies revealed that diabetic teenagers managed their condition better when asked to take care of a fish. Some other teenagers with diabetes, who did not have a pet failed to manage their condition well. Teenagers comprise a patient population that fails to follow medical dictates or regimens. However, when given the responsibility of taking care of an animal and maintaining its feeding schedule, they became more disciplined and organized. They started taking their clinical condition more seriously and checked consistently their blood sugar levels.
Reduces Depression & Boosts Happiness
For living a life of contentment, it is crucial to have a purpose in life. You may connect with people to tackle your loneliness and fetch immense joy. Pets can help fight depression by providing unwavering commitment, loyalty, and companionship. Pets can be excellent friends and they are great companions for the sick and elderly people around us. They are best for fighting depression. According to the findings of a study, veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress have demonstrated marked improvement in health outcomes and overall mood when they were given a pet. (southside815.com) Doctors advise elderly people to get dogs because they boost companionship. They help sick people gradually return to the normal way of life.
Provides Great Friendship & Committed Companionship
Dogs make everyone around them happy. They can be your best buddy and you can depend on them for love. They can be comforting too. Dogs make you smile with their playful attitude, mood-uplifting capabilities, and endearing quirks. Companionship means a lot to everyone. Your pet provides you with meaningful companionship. It can extend your life and keep illnesses at bay. On the contrary, loneliness and isolation can culminate in depression. When you take care of your dog, you feel wanted and needed. You have a purpose and a reason to live.
Conclusion
As most of you are returning to the workplace, you must be realizing the love, comfort, and emotional or physical health benefits provided by your pets. You cannot undermine their contribution to a fun-filled and loving existence despite the depressing COVID situation.
