Does the Household Pet Provide Any Real Value? - Page 2
Dogs also aid in Intra-human Socialization
In an article from the National Institute of Health from a couple of years ago, Dr. Sandra Barker (not making it up) Director of the Center for Human-Animal Interaction at Virginia Commonwealth University is quoted as saying, “It’s hard to walk a dog and not have someone talk to you or interact with you, compared to walking alone.” The article further states that studies have shown “walking with a dog leads to more conversations" and helps dog owners to stay socially connected.
Not only socialization but, just as with the McConnell/Brown joint study above, the NIH research also found that there are health advantages for dog owners. In the VCU study, 240 married couples were found to have lower heart rates and blood pressures than couples without pets. Also, 421 adults recovering from heart attacks were shown to have lower mortality rates, regardless of the severity of their attacks than those who did not own dogs.
Further evidence of physical benefits
The results of still another NIH-funded study showed that dog owners who regularly walked their dogs proved to be more physically active and less likely to be obese than those who didn’t own or walk a dog.
“I think we’re just at the tip of the iceberg in terms of what we know about the human-animal bond and its potential health benefits,” Dr. Barker says. “This area is primed for a lot of research that still needs to be done.”
What is the value of your dog?
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