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Having a furry friend is never a bad idea. In fact, it’s a healthy one. Pets go a long way in improving the quality of your life. On a deeper and more emotional level, it’s not just about receiving unconditional love. Pets also help with anxiety, stress, and depression along with boosting immunity and lowering blood pressure. So here are the top 5 health benefits of owning a pet.

Please continue reading to find out how the experience of living with a pet benefits not just the animal but the owner as well.

Top 5 Health Benefits of Owning a Pet

#1 Helps you socialize

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If you’re a dog parent, the chances of the creature being responsible for increasing your opportunity for new interactions are quite high. As pet owners, we often undermine the importance of having pets, don’t we?

Every single time I take my dog for a long walk, I end up talking to at least five people. In fact, did you know that pet-lovers are considered to be more socially active than people who don’t have pets? Now we all know the reason behind this, don’t we?

With pet ownership, an improvement in your social skills and contact is inevitable. A pet can make you look and even become a friendlier person.

#2 Prevents allergies and boosts immunity

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You might find this hard to believe, but it’s true. One of the most important reasons why pets are good for you is that they prevent allergies and improve immunity. Let me explain further.

Children between the ages of 5 and 7 with pets as a part of their life don’t take as many sick leaves as the ones without furry companions. When you’re around animals from a very young age, you have fewer allergies to deal with.

This means that farm kids, who interact and play with animals on a daily basis, don’t develop allergies at all. But such a rule doesn’t apply to adults. It’s only when you’re a child around pets that they help in preventing the formation of certain allergies.

So if you’re an adult, then please don’t go about thinking that your pet will minimize your allergies. But remember this in your next life!

#3 Improves your mood

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Every “Top 5 health benefits of owning a pet” article on the internet discuss how they’re perfect for providing a mood boost. The mental health benefits of owning a pet outweigh the physical ones.

People with animals around them laugh more despite living a busy, stressful life. Pets give you unconditional love, don’t they? Whenever you enter the house, they shower you with lots of attention. And if this doesn’t improve your mood, what does!

It’s only after getting a pet did I understand why medical centers use dogs for dealing with PTSD in soldiers. These men and women find it easier to step into the normal world again if they have a furry friend by their side.

Veterans with pets are less likely to face emotional health threats, which often lead to suicide as well. So at such times, a dog can make them feel loved in the most affectionate manner.

#4 Decreases blood pressure

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Let’s think about this logically, shall we? When you have a dog as a pet, you’re bound to take him or her for a walk daily. And you also indulge in other activities like bathing the furry creature; in that case, don’t forget to choose the good smelling dog shampoo.

So all such activities keep you busy, don’t they? And now it becomes easier to believe that pets help in lowering blood pressure. Having a dog or cat around you keeps your blood pressure in check because you’re more likely to be active and in a good mood.

This is why I believe that high-risk or hypertensive people should make it a point to interact with animals on a daily basis. Or better yet, just get a pet!

#5 Eliminates depression

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The benefits of having a pet cat or dog extend to staving off depression as well. Isn’t that impressive? Pets contribute to improving your health and overall well-being. But to be honest, the truth is slightly more shocking than this.

What I mean to say is that not many pet owners know that dogs help people like isolated senior citizens and even HIV-positive patients deal with emotional baggage. So their chances of suffering from depression are highly unlikely that individuals without pets.

This is why the whole idea of therapy dogs works, isn’t it? So it’s safe for to me say that pets ease depression symptoms in the old, sick, young, and healthy.

The End

So these are the top 5 health benefits of owning a pet that every animal lover needs to know. In short, along with an apple, even an animal a day keeps the doctor away.

When you get a pet, you indirectly improve your mental, emotional, and physical health. This is why you should never say no to getting a furry companion in your life.

So tell me, how many pets do you have? And have they made you more socially active or less stressed out? Please do share your stories with us here. You can also leave your feedback in the comments section below.

Thank you for visiting my blog and reading the post. If you liked it, don’t forget to share it!

About The Author:

Pet So Fun is no joke when it comes to providing life-changing tips for both the pet and pet owner. And all the credit goes to Ruby Smith, the proud and passionate founder and writer. She gets all the information from research and science. So you can trust her comprehensive opinions in all the articles.


Sources:

  1. http://www.womansday.com/life/pet-care/a2352/10-health-benefits-of-owning-a-pet-116238/
  2. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-10-health-benefits-of-dogs-and-one-health-risk_us_57dad1b8e4b04a1497b2f5a0
  3. http://www.chopra.com/articles/7-health-benefits-of-owning-a-pet#sm.0000xqmm38oage5jsw01gkpgt88ra
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