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Pet Ownership and Health Benefits




 


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Pet Ownership and Health Benefits





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  • Pet Ownership and Health Benefits

    Health benefits

    Pets have the ability to stimulate their caregivers, in particular the elderly, giving people someone to take care of, someone to exercise with, and someone to help them heal from a physically or psychologically troubled past.[9] Having a pet may help people achieve health goals, such as lowered blood pressure, or mental goals, such as decreased stress.[10] There appears to be strong evidence that having a pet can help a person lead a longer, healthier life. In a study of 92 people hospitalized for coronary ailments, within a year, 11 of the 29 without pets had died, but only 3 of the 52 who had pets.[9] A recent study concluded that owning a pet can reduce the risk of a heart attack by 2% and that pets are better than medication in reducing blood pressure.[11]

    Pets in long-term care institutions

    Even pet owners residing in a long-term care facility, such as a hospice or nursing home, experience health benefits from pets. Pets for nursing homes are chosen based on the size of the pet, the amount of care that the breed needs, and the population and size of the care institution.[9] Appropriate pets go through a screening process and, if it is a dog, additional training programs to become a therapy dog.[12]

    Different pets require varying amounts of attention and care; for example, cats have lower maintenance requirements than dogs.[13]

    Health risks

    Health risks that are associated with pets include:

    • Aggravation of allergies and asthma
    • Injuries (and rarely deaths) caused by pets' bites
    • Disease or parasites due to animal hygiene problems

    Pets and allergies

    Some people with allergies can have adverse reactions to animal dander and fur or feathers. Some people with asthma can have attacks triggered by these. However, research supports that people who have been exposed to dogs and cats as pets from an early age may develop an immunoresistance to these allergens.[1]

    References

    1. ^ The Health Benefits of Pets. US Government National Institute of Health.
    2. ^ a b Gernet, Jacques (1962). Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250–1276. Translated by H.M. Wright. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-0720-0. Page 48.
    3. ^ a b Gernet, Jacques (1962). Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250–1276. Translated by H.M. Wright. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-0720-0. Page 122–123.
    4. ^ People, date unknown.
    5. ^ autopetfeeder, automatic pet feeders, petfeeders, pet water fountain, oasis pet waterer, automatic pet waterers
    6. ^ Household Pet Ownership: 2001. US Census Bureau.
    7. ^ http://www.appma.org/press_industrytrends.asp|American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, Inc. (a non-profit trade association)
    8. ^ Eckholm, Erik. "For Poor Families, an Added Burden of Too Many Pets", The New York Times, 2007-06-30. Retrieved on 2007-06-30. 
    9. ^ a b c Whiteley, Ellen H.. "The Healing Power of Pets", Saturday Evening Post, pp. 2-102. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.  Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Polk Library, UW Oshkosh
    10. ^ Asp, Karen (2005). "Volunteer Pets". Prevention 57 (4): 176-78. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.  Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Polk Library, UW Oshkosh
    11. ^ The Advantages of Pet Ownership. PetBetter.com.
    12. ^ Huculak, Chad. "Super Furry Animals", Sun 4 Oct. 2006, p. W7. . LexisNexis. Polk Library, UW Oshkosh. 5 Nov. 2006.
    13. ^ Bruck, Laura (1996). "Today's Ancillaries, Part 2: Art, music and pet therapy". Nursing Homes: Long Term Care Management 45 (7): 36. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.  Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Polk Library, UW Oshkosh.

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