Janjivan Bureau
New research about pets and mental health is the latest to say so. As if we really need more confirmation. We already know companion animals are good for your heart and can literally make you breathe easier. The new study, in the BMC Psychiatry journal, found that the consistency, closeness and acceptance of animal companions quieted suicidal thoughts.
Researcher Helen Brooks, Ph.D., of the University of Manchester in the UK, interviewed 54 adults receiving treatment for severe mental illness. Subjects were asked to rank people and things in their personal network — doctors, hobbies, friends, family, pets — in levels of importance from high to middle to low. Animal companions ranked most important for 60% of subjects and in the mid-range for another 20%. Participants stated that one reason for this was that their pet helped by distracting them from symptoms and upsetting experiences such as hearing voices or thoughts of suicide.
“Despite the identified benefits of pet ownership, pets were neither considered nor incorporated into the individual care plans for any of the people in our study,” notes Brooks. The study suggests the need for more creative approaches to mental health care, and that includes companion animals as a source of support in the management of long-term mental health problems.
“What was most important for the people included in our study was that they had a companion animal, of whatever type, who was a constant and proximate presence in their lives,” Brooks told the Daily News. “As an owner of two dogs myself, I could certainly identify with a lot of the benefits people talked about but I was surprised by the depth and range of roles animals played too.”
