10 reasons why furry friends are good for your mental health!
1. Less Stress
Studies have shown that cosying up with your kitty or petting your pooch helps to reduce your stress levels and lower your blood pressure.
2. Dogs Help With Anxiety
Pets can be a wonderful source of comfort, helping you to feel more relaxed, safe – and a lot less anxious. Therapy dogs are amazing for people who struggle with severe anxiety. They help to distract the person when they feel particularly anxious, offering companionship and support in difficult situations.
3. Tackles Loneliness
It’s almost impossible to feel alone when you have a loyal pet by your side. Having a pet makes you feel needed, wanted, and loved.
4. Boosts Your Fitness
Having a dog or a pet that needs daily exercise gets you out and about. This not only improves your physical health; it also helps to boost your mental health.
5. Great For Socialising
Pets are brilliant for helping you make new friends and meet new people! You’ll find yourself meeting lots of new people on your walks and you’ll be stopping to chat before you know it.
6. Gives You Routine
Caring for an animal involves daily routines such as feeding, walking, and bathing. This helps to give your day structure and gets you out of bed, even when you feel like hiding under the covers.
7. Boosts Your Self-Confidence
Pets make great listeners – they never talk back and they always respond to your words with love and affection. Their unwavering loyalty helps to build your confidence and make you feel valued and loved.
8. Sense Of Achievement
Managing to teach your dog a new trick or finally finding the perfect snooze spot for your fussy cat makes you feel good inside. There’s no better reward than a wagging tail or contented purr. Being a responsible, great pet owner gives you an amazing sense of achievement, every single day!
9. Zero Judgement
Pets are brilliant – they never judge or criticise you. They’ll be your biggest fan and simply love you for you.
10. Burns Off Energy
Pets make brilliant sidekicks for people with ADHD. You can run around with a dog or play for hours with an inquisitive kitten to burn off excess energy. Of course, not everyone can have a pet. Some peoples don’t have the money or space for a pet, or they may have allergies. If you’d love a pet but can’t have one, why not ask a friend or family member if you can borrow theirs? You could take a neighbour’s dog for a walk or offer to cat-sit when a family member goes on holiday. There’s also a brilliant scheme called Borrow My Doggy where you can sign up to borrow someone else’s pooch to take on a walk or to look after when they’re away. Click here for more information.
