Your pet may be doing more for your mental health than you realize.

Have you ever had a pet that felt like your soul animal? Maybe it was a dog, cat, bird, hamster, rabbit, etc that you had a strong bond with. Pets have the potential to play a special role in our lives and can have a substantial impact on our mental health. Pets bring benefits into our lives such as love, routine, caregiving, companionship, responsibility, structure and stability. Animals can be incorporated in mental health interventions in ways such as building coping skills, emotional support animals, and therapy animals. 

Companionship 

Pets rely on their owners for basic needs- food, water, shelter, and companionship. Pets do not ask how your day at work was and whether or not you met that deadline. They do not judge or leave during tough times. Pets can provide a type of companionship not provided by other humans. This companionship does not replace human connection, medical providers, or mental health professionals but it can provide a sense of comfort in your personal life. 

Pets are there to listen about a stressful day, traumatic event, or to celebrate today’s small win. Pets do not offer advice or even a reflective response, but somehow they convey a sense of understanding and love. 

Pets are an excellent way to combat feelings of loneliness. Oftentimes pets and owners form a deep bond. Pets can convey a sense of understanding of their owner’s emotional state. They often learn how to respond to their owners’ emotional needs. Considering communication is essential in personal relationships, there is something refreshing about not having to fully describe how and why you are feeling a certain way. Instead, pets bring a calming energy that naturally helps to regulate mood. 

Emotional Benefits 

Pets and animals are shown to have emotional and biological benefits for people when they interact. Petting animals has proven to increase levels of the “love hormone” oxytocin. Levels of cortisol, the “stress hormone” have shown to decrease when petting animals. Various types of animals provide different benefits, but they seem to all share a chance for a moment of mindfulness and connection. 

Routine 

On a more practical side of things, pets can encourage routine, structure, and stability. Many pets enjoy waking up and eating their meals around the same time each day. Most pets require exercise, which encourages pet owners to engage in physical activity. Many dogs benefit from walks outside. This is a practical way to meet exercise goals and improve vitamin D levels by 

being out in the sun. Sometimes, pets encourage an earlier wake up time in the mornings, encouraging a bright start to the day. 

Caregiving 

While caregiver burnout is a real thing, with balance, having a pet to care for can be beneficial. During depressive states it can be difficult to complete activities of daily living. Some people find that having a pet who is dependent on them for basic needs serves as an encouragement to complete daily tasks. Although in order to mitigate the risk of caregiver burnout it remains important for pet owners to engage in self- care for themselves as well. 

Mental Health Disorders that pets can help with: 

● Generalized anxiety disorder 

● Social anxiety disorder 

● Major depressive disorder 

● Post traumatic stress disorder 

● And more! 

Animal Assisted Intervention: 

● Therapy animals 

● Assistance animals 

● Emotional Support Animals 

● Equine therapy 

By: Karmin Styron, MSW Clinical Intern 

References: 

Brooks, H. L., Rushton, K., Lovell, K., Bee, P., Walker, L., Grant, L., & Rogers, A. (2018). The power of support from companion animals for people living with mental health problems: A systematic review and narrative synthesis of the evidence. BMC Psychiatry, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1613-2 

Hawkins, R. D., Kuo, C.-H., & Robinson, C. (2024). Young adults’ views on the mechanisms underpinning the impact of pets on symptoms of anxiety and depression. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1355317 

Ketter, K. (2019). A beginner’s guide to animal-assisted intervention terminology. In Pet Partners. https://petpartners.org/a-beginners-guide-to-animal-assisted-intervention-terminology/ 

Pets and Mental Health Resource Center | Mental Health America. (2025). In Mental Health America. https://mhanational.org/pets/