Caring for animals

Connecting and looking after other beings have incredible health benefits, both for the caregiver and caretaker. More specifically, caring for animals who live with you or around you can advance not only their life quality, and emotional and physical health, but it can also relieve the human's depression and anxiety, encourage playfulness, boost mood, become a stimulus for healthy exercise and even improve cardiovascular health. Moreover, being in contact with different species (keep in mind that the ‘human animal’ is placed in the animal kingdom) that don’t trigger the human ego, allows us to experience much easier the benefits of companionship, as well as unconditional love and true joy.

Animals and Human Health

While people who live with animals often experience the greatest health benefits as they are able to spend more time with them, I would like to note that even observing and trying to connect with a fish underwater can have incredible benefits such as reduction of muscle tension and ease of pulse rate.

According to studies, humans who relate with animals on a daily basis:

· Are less likely to suffer from depression and panic attacks.

· Have lower blood pressure in challenging situations.

· Are more able to calm and relax, due to the elevated levels of serotonin and dopamine.

· Have lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels (indicators of heart disease) than those who are not spending any time with other animals.

· And are over the age of 65 make 30 percent fewer visits to their doctors.

One of the greatest reasons for all these therapeutic effects is that animals who are used to be in contact with humans are very receptive and fulfil the basic human need for touch. They can also motivate healthy lifestyle changes, such as increased exercise, enjoyment of companionship, mindfulness and appreciation of the present moment, and experience of sensory stress relief, which can ease not only stress and depression, but also bipolar disorder and PTSD.

Animals and Specific Age Groups

They can benefit older adults by:

· Reminding how to find meaning and joy in life. Caring for another life can be very rewarding, and boost morale, optimism, and sense of self-worth.

· Boosting vitality as they can encourage movement, laughter and more importantly playfulness that can advance the immune system and energy levels.

· Enabling them to deal with stress, which can be particularly helpful for Alzheimer’s patient.

It is also crucial to encourage children to spend time with animals, as they can benefit not only from playing with them, which can provide a source of calmness and relaxation, but this relationship can also be a source of stimulation for the brain and body, as well as a way for the child to learn creatively, and stimulate their imagination and curiosity. Children will may also discover and experience for the first time the importance of caring for others and the immense joy that can derive from that.

More specifically, children who grow up sharing their lives with animals:

· Will experience the importance of responsibility.

· Will be able to easily develop positive self-image, as well as self-esteem, while receiving the love and companionship of their friend.

· Will witness from early on the importance of building and caring for relationships, and will be better able to build relationships with other people as well.

· Will be helped to develop an expanding mind by being taught about empathy and understanding. Taking the example of a bird, the kid will be able to talk and relate to it without the fear of rejection, which can help them boost their confidence, and even their vocabulary.

Some food for thought:

As we learn more and more about animals and the benefits of the relationship that we can develop with them, it’s time to eliminate the use of words that preserve the idea that animals are objects. For example, ‘pet’ or ‘dog owner’ may affect the way we treat animals, and instead of those we could use ‘companion animals’ or ‘dog guardian.’

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