How Animals Support Mental and Emotional Health
If you’ve ever come home after a bad day to the comfort of a beloved pet, you already have an intuitive sense of how animals can boost our mental health. From therapy dogs in children’s hospitals to service dogs with veterans to the bookshop cat who makes customers smile, animals have the power to improve our days and lives.
Animals and Mental Health
The NIH reports that interacting with animals has been shown to:
Decrease levels of cortisol (a stress-related hormone)
Lower blood pressure
Reduce loneliness
Increase feelings of social support
Boost mood
Because of these effects of the human and animal bond, pets benefit their owners’ mental health and animals are frequently used to support mental health in clinical and everyday settings. Animal-assisted therapy involves the interaction of humans and animals to promote positive mental health outcomes in conjunction with conventional therapy. Therapy animals are gentle in nature and often include dogs, horses, and dolphins. Although cats typically have a more mercurial nature, therapy cats can also be effective—and delightful—mental health aids.
Finally, trained service animals can also help with mental illnesses. Service dogs that help veterans with PTSD are a great example of this. Trained service dogs also help people with mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Emotional Support Animals
In addition to boosting mental health, animals can have positive effects on our emotional health, too. This is why emotional support animals have shown promising outcomes and continue to be used effectively. While not specifically trained for tasks like service animals, emotional support animals provide support and comfort on a daily basis. Pets provide support by:
Being a calm presence
Diverting negative thoughts
Helping owners establish routines
Facilitating social interaction and integration
Reducing feelings of isolation and loneliness
Providing companionship
Support IVO
Here at International Veterinary Outreach (IVO), we value animals and the difference they make in our lives, communities, and world. We’re working to improve the lives of people and animals worldwide, and you can help us do it! Support our international conservation efforts and animal health programs by donating today!
