Why Get A Pet?

There are both benefits and negatives to getting a pet, but overall a pet can be amazing for the whole family.

While a pet is especially appealing to a younger crowd, I know from experience that the older generation too, end up loving having a pet. In fact, the reason I am even writing this blog because my friend wants to get a dog, but their mom will not let them. However, my whole family surely loves my dog, and honestly it’s not too much of a hassle.

Elevates mood

Let’s face it, our pets make us happy. Getting a pet lowers the likelihood of the owner(s) suffering from depression, and boosts our mood!

Friendship

With the pandemic, we all miss our friends, but having a pet can always make you feel a little less lonely. It doesn’t even have to be while we are in lockdown, but during the vacations as well, when we don’t have anywhere to go. They provide friendship and companionship, with the extra benefit of looking cute.

Active

With a pet that needs to go on a walk, not only will your pet get some exercise, but so will you! We often feel quite lazy when it comes to getting active, but with a pet it no longer feels like work, but rather fun! This might be the reason pet owners have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Socialization and Wellbeing

Although it may seem strange, pets can actually present the opportunity to socialize, especially for introverts. Having a pet is a great conversation starter, meeting someone else walking their pet while you do is a way that you can socialize with people. Having a conversation with someone has actually been proven to improve moods.

Epley and Schroeder (2014) did a study on happiness levels when having a conversation with strangers on public transports. In the experiment, there were three conditions:

• Connection, where they had to make meaningful connection by having a conversation and get to know something
• Solitude, where they had to stay by themselves
• Control, where they did what they would normally do

The results of this showed that people’s moods were best in the connection condition and lowest at the solitude condition.

Sense of Responsibility

There really isn’t much to say about this except that for children, having a pet can help them develop a sense of responsibility.

Improved health

Studies have shown that having a pet decreases the chance of children developing some common allergies. They have even been proven to have had an impact of strengthening not only a child’s but also the owner’s immune system.

These are only a few of the reasons that getting a pet can be so good for a household, but of course it is important to recognize the disadvantages of having a pet before getting one.

They can be a lot of work

I know I said at the beginning that they are not too much of a hassle, but that is really only after the first year. When the pet is small, you have to train it to make sure they don’t make a mess everywhere. You also have to make sure they are eating all the right things and get their shots. That being said, you also have to keep in mind that this is usually only a problem for a short amount of time. After a while, even making sure they eat isn’t too hard!

Leaving the house

Unfortunately, it is very hard to be out with a dog in the house. Of course, this problem may not present itself as much during the lockdown periods, but this is something that all pet owners have to deal with. If the pet is an indoor one, and has been trained, then there are probably more solutions around that, however, for most pets, leaving them overnight usually requires someone to watch and feed them.

These are the main disadvantages that pet owners have to deal with, but to be honest, I think that the benefits outweigh the negatives. In order to keep them active, having a child in the house will solve that issue, and for the first few weeks, the child(s) may even be willing to help out with the responsibilities.

It really is only too much of a hassle during the start, when they have to be trained, but after that, it’s just normal. I definitely feel as though my pet elevates my mood, and gives me some responsibilities. I don’t think there is a better time to get a pet during the pandemic, when they can lift your mood, decrease the feeling of loneliness, and give you responsibilities while you have all the spare time!

If there was anything you didn’t understand let me know and please do tell me if you wish I could do something better on instagram @learningwriter. Thank you and I hope you continue to learn with me.