pets reduce stress

Dogs help people relieve stress

/ susanbulanda / Leave a comment

Researchers at the University of South Korea have studied the benefits people have from interacting with dogs. Although is this not new information, they researched further to see if different activities produced a different reaction in people. They had people play, walk, groom and massage dogs while studying their brainwaves. They found that the people who walked or played with dogs had an increase in relaxed wakefulness. The participants who groomed, played and massaged a dog had a heightened level of concentration. They also observed that the subjects felt a significant drop in the feeling of fatigue, depression and stress after interacting with dogs.

Sue’s Note: I would think that the same results would be found when people interact with other animals that they enjoy. This study supports the use of therapy animals in all situations.

Journal Reference:

  1. Onyoo Yoo, YuTong Wu, Jin Soo Han, Sin-Ae Park. Psychophysiological and emotional effects of human–Dog interactions by activity type: An electroencephalogram study. PLOS ONE, 2024; 19 (3): e0298384 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298384

Cite This Page:

PLOS. “Interactions with dogs can increase brainwaves associated with stress relief and heightened concentration.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 13 March 2024. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240313185025.htm>.

Pets and autism

/ susanbulanda / 2 Comments

It has been fully documented that children who suffer from autism can benefit from living with a pet. However, a new study by Gretchen Carlisle, a research scientist with the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine has found that the parents of autistic children also benefit from having a pet in the family. Having a pet reduces the stress in parents despite the extra responsibility of owning and caring for a pet.

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The study goes on to stress that the right type of pet should be selected that will help the autistic child. They suggest that in some cases a quieter cat may be better than an active dog. Certain types of birds or small animals might also qualify as a pet. They also suggest that the child be included in the selection of the type of pet.

As a certified animal behavior consultant, I want to add that if the family decides to adopt a pet, extra care must be taken to ensure that there are no behavioral issues with the pet that could cause an extra level of responsibility for the parents. For any child, being forced to rehome a pet due to behavioral issues after the child becomes attached to the pet is not a desirable situation.

This is why it is important to thoroughly research the types of pets as well as the individual animal to make sure it is suitable for the spectrum of autism the child has. One way to do this is to consult with a qualified dog, parrot or cat behavior consultant (iaabc.org) or an experienced dog trainer if a dog is a consideration.