EXPOSITORY ESSAY 1

Owning a pet can improve your mental health

Yeimy P. Chamorro

Aura M. Ortiz

Universidad del Atlántico

Essays and Critics

José L. Barros

September 29th, 2021

 EXPOSITORY ESSAY 2

Owning a pet can improve your mental health

People in stress mode get into a “state of dis-ease”. It can be the consequence of a very

demanding job, family issues, or a frenetic pace of life. Handling overwhelming situations may

result in a risk for mental health. That is why people employ a variety of techniques to struggle with

psychological patterns. Hence, the emotional support of pets can provide valuable help to face these

conditions.

Pet ownership might reduce symptoms of depression. Caring for an animal can make one

feel loved by fulfilling the basic human need for touch, especially when one lives alone. The

majority of dog and cat owners talk to them. Therefore, the companionship of a pet provides a

constant relationship. Based on the data revealed by Zasloff and Kidd (1994) from 148 college

women, those who owned pets had lower loneliness scores on the UCLA Loneliness Scale.

The social support supplied by a pet can decrease stress. Pets do not worry about what

happened yesterday or what might happen tomorrow. As a consequence, walking or playing with

them can take a load off after a long day. Recent evidence showed that interacting with animals can

diminish levels of cortisol, a major stress hormone (Pendry, Vandagriff, et al., 2021).

In conclusion, it is imperative to recognize that domestic animals have evolved to be highly

sensitive to human behavior and emotions. It becomes evident that there is a connection between

pet companionship and psychological difficulties, such as depression and anxiety. Thus, having a

pet might help one’s mental state by giving a sense of meaning and purpose. 
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References
Lee, Z., & Kidd, A. (1994, October). Loneliness and Pet Ownership among Single Women. Psychological

reports. doi:10.2466/pr0.1994.75.2.747

Pendry, P., Carr, A. M., & Vandagriff, J. L. (2021, May 11). Incorporating Human–Animal Interaction Into

Academic Stress Management Programs: Effects on Typical and At-Risk College Students’

Executive Function. AERA Open. doi:10.1177/23328584211011612