Running head: EFFECTS OF PETS ON THE HEALTH OF THE ELDERLY

Effects of Pets on the Health of the Elderly

Megan McLane

e3 Civic High
EFFECTS OF PETS ON THE HEALTH OF THE ELDERLY 2

Animals have always been recognized as providing people with different benefits. Not

only do most have a job to fulfill for their owners, but pets are also our friends. Pets have been

known to cause health problems, such as allergies for some peoples, however, it has also been

determined that pet owners, especially dog owners, are healthier than those who do not own any

pets (Serpell, 1991). For people who do not have the chance to be very social, as is the case with

many elderly people, pets can be incredibly important. Pets are beneficial to both the mental and

physical health of the elderly.

Method

Much research has been done to study the effects of animals on all people, including

the elderly. Some studies focused on the effects to mental health while other looked for possible

benefits to physical health. Pets' effects on both mental and physical health were written about in

the article, "Beneficial effects of pet ownership on some aspects of human health and behaviour,"

which was written based on primary research. The study consisted of 71 adults who had recently

acquired either a dog or a cat and 26 people who did not own a pet. The research took place for

10 months after a person had gotten their dog or cat. The participants were people who had not

had an animal in the past year and were the ones who took care of the pet the most in their

homes. Answers to questions based on minor health complaints, the number of walks taken

recently, and general health were recorded at the beginning of the study, after 1 month, after 6

months, and after ten months (Serpell, 1991). While this article does not focus on the elderly, it

is useful to see that pets may have benefits on younger people as well.
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A different study that was specifically about the elderly took place in Italy. The

experiment gave some participants either a plant or a canary to care for, with the remaining

participants receiving neither. The participants were "144 persons without cognitive impairment

in nursing homes" (Cherniack & Cherniack, 2014, p. 4). After the study, the psychological

effects were measured for all three groups. While this study focused on the mental health of the

participants, a different study researched the physical benefits to older dog-owners. The

participants in this, which is titled "Dog ownership, functional ability, and walking in

community-dwelling older adults.," were 65 to 95 years old. This study, unlike others,

differentiated between dog owners who walked their dogs and dog owners who did not walk

their dogs. The "Goals of this study were to identify factors that influence older adult walking

and compare physical activity, functional ability and psychosocial characteristics by dog

ownership status" (Gretebeck, Radius, Black Gretebeck, Ziemba, Glickman, 2013). Because of

the difference between people who walked their dogs and the ones who didn't, this study can

show whether just owning a dog is beneficial, or if it is the extra exercise that is often the result

of owning a dog.

Results

All of the research in these studies show that owning a pet is beneficial for both mental

and physical health of the elderly. The research written about in the article, "Beneficial effects of

pet ownership on some aspects of human health and behaviour," which focused on adults rather

than older people specifically, found that both dog and cat owners experienced fewer minor

health problems after acquiring their pets. The participants in the study who did not have any

pets did not have any change in minor health problems. Also, the group of dog owners saw an
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increase in the walks they took, but the cat owners did not. Although the results of the study can

not be completely guaranteed because the participants chose to acquire a pet and participate in

the study, the authors state anyways that "the results of the present study appear to demonstrate

beneficial changes in health and behavior in a majority of persons acquiring new pets" (Serpell,

1991, p. 719).

For the studies based on the elderly, similar results were found. For the participants given

canaries in the study in Italy, significant improvement was found in their mental health. For the

participants who received a plant or nothing, there was no significant improvement. This shows

that it is not just dog or cat owners who are benefited by their pets. The study in the article, "Dog

ownership, functional ability, and walking in community-dwelling older adults," however, saw

that the most benefits were in people who had a dog that they walked. Compared to the dog

walkers, those who did not walk their dogs "reported lower intention and perceived behavioral

control and a less positive attitude" (Gretebeck, Radius, Black Gretebeck, Ziemba, Glickman,

2013).

With the information found, it is possible to say that most elderly people could greatly

benefit from acquiring a pet. The addition of any pet will benefit their psychological health. For

people who decide to get a dog, there will be even more benefits as the dog will require walking.

According to one article, walking has many health benefits to older people (Diehr & Hirsch,

2010). By getting a dog, older people who would normally not walk much would be encouraged

to start walking more because of their dog. For the elderly who are experiencing some minor

health problems, getting a pet might be the solution.

Discussion
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These results show that pets are beneficial to the elderly. Not only can they give people

beneficial psychological effects, certain animals are also beneficial to physical health. With this

evidence, it could still be argued that owning pets may have some downsides to older people. All

of the studies mentioned seem to have resulted in pet owners being more healthy, however, there

may be some errors in the research. While researching the effects that owning pets has on the

elderly, the study involving canaries and plants in Italy was found to have been mentioned in two

separate articles. While one article includes the study as evidence for their claim that animals are

beneficial, another article says that the study did not have enough participants therefore can not

be considered enough evidence to prove such a claim. This article states, "Unfortunately,

although the authors reported significant improvements in the bird-owning group's social and

psychological condition over a 5-month period, their results were based on very small sample

sizes and doubtful statistical manipulations" (Serpell, 1991). While there probably were

improvements in the participants of this research, it might not have been as significant as it is

said to be.

Although most research shows benefits for elderly pet owners, there may also be

disadvantages to be considered. As pointed out in the article, "Pet ownership and human health: a

brief view of evidence and issues," there are "reports abound of older people avoiding medical

care through fear of being admitted to hospital or residential care as this often means giving up a

pet" (McNicholas, Gilbey, Rennie, Ahmedzai, Dono, & Ormerod, 2005). Obviously, this is not a

good effect of having pets. Also, people are not likely to part with a pet, even if they are allergic

(McNicholas, Gilbey, Rennie, Ahmedzai, Dono, & Ormerod, 2005). While these things show

how much animals can be loved, they are still things that need a solution to be found for.
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Even with the possible negative outcomes, owning a pet should still be a solution for

elderly people who experience some minor physical and mental health problems. Even for older

people who are healthy, these benefits still apply. Older people who are looking to get a pet

should be encouraged to choose a dog as they are the most beneficial to health. Aside from

helping to improve their health, animals are also good friends. For many elderly people, their

pets help them "fight off loneliness and solitude and continue their activity" (Scheibeck, Pallauf,

Stellwag, & Seeberger, 2011). Overall, animals give the elderly people who own them more

benefits than risks.

References

Cherniack, E. P., & Cherniack, A. R. (2014). The Benefit of Pets and Animal-Assisted Therapy

to the Health of Older Individuals. Current Gerontology and Geriatrics Research, 2014,

623203. http://doi.org/10.1155/2014/623203

Diehr, P. & Hirsch, C. (May 19, 2010). Health Benefits of Increased Walking for Sedentary,

Generally Healthy Older Adults: Using Longitudinal Data to Approximate an

Intervention Trial. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2010; 65A (9): 982-989. doi:

10.1093/gerona/glq070

Gretebeck, K., Radius, K., Black, D., Gretebeck, R., Ziemba, R., Glickman, L. (2013). Dog

ownership, functional ability, and walking in community-dwelling older adults.

McNicholas, J., Gilbey, A., Rennie, A., Ahmedzai, S., Dono, J.-A., & Ormerod, E. (2005). Pet

ownership and human health: a brief review of evidence and issues. BMJ: British

Medical Journal, 331(7527), 12521254.

Scheibeck, R., Pallauf, M., Stellwag, C., & Seeberger, B. (2011). Elderly people in many

respects benefit from interaction with dogs. European Journal of Medical Research,

16(12), 557563. http://doi.org/10.1186/2047-783X-16-12-557

Serpell, J. (1991). Beneficial effects of pet ownership on some aspects of human health and

behaviour. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 84(12), 717720.

Soares, J., Epping, J. N., Owens, C. J., Brown, D. R., Lankford, T. J., Simoes, E. J., &

Caspersen,
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C. J. (2015). Odds of Getting Adequate Physical Activity by Dog Walking. Journal of

Physical Activity & Health, 12(6 0 1), S102S109.