Studies have shown time and time again – pet ownership leads to better health outcomes for people. This is the One Health power of pets.
What health benefits do pets provide to people?
Pet ownership provides a range of therapeutic, physiological, psychological, and psychosocial benefits to owners.30https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0122085#sec005 These include:
- Decreased blood pressure.
- Reduced risk of heart attacks.
- Increased physical activity.
- Increased sensory stimulation, emotional support.
- A stronger sense of physical and psychological well-being.
Pet ownership has also been strongly linked with a reduction in healthcare costs in the U.S., contributing to fewer visits to doctors and improved general health.31https://habri.org/pressroom/20151214
Studies have also shown that these benefits remain even when adjusted for demographic, socioeconomic factors, education, medication use, etc.,32https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.119.005887 showing that the link between pet ownership and better health is persistent and strong. Healthy pets contribute to our health. That is the ‘One Health’ power of these pets.
“Pets are healthier and well cared for because their status has changed…as we’re more attuned to our own wellness, it translates to those we love around us.”
Dr Siraya Chunekamrai, President, World Small Animal Veterinary Association
Why do pets improve our health?
Researchers attribute the clear link between pet ownership and improved health to:33https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.119.005887
Increased levels of outdoor physical activity that often accompany pet ownership (e.g. regular dog walking).
The sustained mental health benefits brought on by pet companionship.
Greater exposure to germs that can ‘favourably alter the gut microbiome of an owner’.
This is why the American Heart Association has stated that dog ownership “may have some causal role in reducing cardiovascular disease risk” and “may be reasonable for reduction in cardiovascular disease risk”.34https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0b013e31829201e1
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on pet ownership, as shown in recent research by Animal Medicines Australia. There has been a steady rise in pet ownership in the country, with the number of Australian households owning pets having increased from 61 percent in 2019, to 69 percent in 2021. This means the total number of pets in Australia has increased from 28.5 million in 2019 to 30.4 million in 2021.
Millions of Australians decided to adopt a pet during the pandemic, adding more than a million dogs to the total pet population, rising from 5.1 million owned dogs in 2019 to 6.34 million in 2021. The pandemic has been a key motivator for pet ownership, with 19 percent of dogs and 24 percent of all cats owned by Australians acquired since the beginning of the pandemic.
New owners stated that owning a new pet during the pandemic was not a spontaneous decision, however, but that pandemic restrictions had helped to “on-board” a pet that they had previously wanted, such as through greater time spent at home, for instance.
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Acknowledgements
This report is produced by HealthforAnimals, the global animal health association, and was informed by interviews with experts in the pet world. We thank the following people for their participation: Alex Douzet, Dana Brooks, Edival Santos, Lawson Cairns, Leonardo Brandao, Marie-Jose Enders, Siraya Chunkekamrai, Shane Ryan and Wolfgang Dohne. The information in this report focuses on dogs and cats as these are the overwhelming majority of pets, although other animals such as horses, birds and fish can be pets as well.
