Pets Offer Health Benefits
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the website, MayoClinic.com, pets offer numerous health benefits.
1. “Scientists have found that people who owned dogs were more likely to be alive, one year after suffering a heart attack than were people who didn’t own dogs.
2. In comparisons of the heart rate and blood pressure of people without pets versus those of pet owners, people with pets had lower heart rates and blood pressure levels. An added benefit was that people with pets also had less increase in their heart rate and blood pressure when put under stress. Their blood pressure also dropped faster after a stressful event.
3. Studies of older adults have found that those who shared their lives with pets were less likely to experience depression, were better able to tolerate living alone, and were more active than their counterparts who didn’t have pets.”
Pets can increase your opportunities for exercise and outdoor activities, and your opportunities for socialization.
I’d like to share the following observations someone once made about life lessons from a dog …
· Never pass up the opportunity to go for a ride with someone you love.
· On hot days, drink lots of water.
· When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
· Run, romp, and play daily.
· Allow the experience of fresh air and wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
· When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.
· If someone scolds you, forgive quickly.
· If something you want is buried, dig until you find it.
· Never pretend to be something you’re not.
· Be loyal.
Will there be pets in heaven? I think so, and to them I believe God will also say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Well done!”
If you have recently lost a beloved pet, and are having some difficulty adjusting, here are a few books that may be helpful:
Pet Loss: A Thoughtful Guide for Adults and Children by A. Fischer & A.H. Nieburg.
Joy in a Wooly Coat: Living with, Loving and Letting Go of Tresured Animal Friends by J.A. Church. Good books for children, The Tenth Good thing About Barney by Judith Viorst, and Mr. Roger’s First Experience: When a Pet Dies by Fred Rogers.
Jackie Hoover, Parish Nurse