Paws and Claws: Pets Promote Wellbeing

Psychologists are often interested in understanding more about the relationships between people and their pets, and how having pets may help pet owners. Research suggests that pets help us stay healthy, both physically and mentally. Having a pet has been found to offer multiple health benefits to children, adults, and older people. Across various studies, pet owners mention several benefits of having a pet, such as emotional support, mood-boosting effects, companionship, and stress management. Based on theories in psychology that help to explain why we form bonds with others and how others help us, we try to understand the connections we form with our pets. In this article, we describe the science explaining how pets promote people’s wellbeing.