Two adopted dogs lay contented on their owners couch. Pet ownership can benefit humans as well.

Parkview Hospital recently made a donation to the Animal Welfare League of Kosciusko County.

“We are thrilled to be the recipient of this donation from our new community partner, Parkview Hospital.” said Executive Director of the AWL, Darla McCammon. “When Parkview saw the list of the many health benefits our organization provides to our community, they were impressed and offered to assist us with our capital campaign to obtain a new facility.”

McCammon shared some statistics and information that showed how pets can improve health. Senior citizens and others are relieved of depression through pet ownership, and they also obtain more exercise than others because of the activities of the pet. Walking a pet is great cardiovascular exercise. Stroking a pet has been shown to lower blood pressure. Children raised in a home with pets have a much reduced chance of developing allergies.

Pets also have a calming effect on their owners. “There are many more such stories and a huge correlation between having a pet and improving health,” McCammon said. “We are glad we are contributing to our community in this beneficial way, and we are grateful to Parkview for recognizing that fact.

Significant findings from studies have shown that:

• People with dogs show lower blood pressure in stressful situations than those without pets.
• People with borderline hypertension were found to have decreased their problematic blood pressure within five months of adopting a pet
• Playing with a dog or cat can elevate levels of serotonin and dopamine, which helps calm and relax us.
• Pet owners have lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels, indicators leading to heart disease, than those without pets.
• Amazing the researchers, they found that heart attack patients with dogs survive longer than those without.
• Pet owners over age 65 make 30 percent fewer visits to their doctors than those without pets.
• A recent study in Australia showed that children raised in families where pets are present from infancy have a reduced change of developing allergies.

Our local shelter has a “running buddies” program that works well. A one year study found that walking helped both the animal and their owners to lose weight. It was found that pets were better “buddies” than humans because the support was consistent and there were no negative influences. Other studies show that people with pets walk a minimum of 30 minutes more per week than was their norm before pet ownership.