For six weeks, Christian Tiesmeyer assisted us as an intern. Among other things, he has contributed to our bibliography, and prepared English and German summaries of articles. The following contribution is by him.
A very special relationship has existed between dogs and humans for a long time. The first signs of domestication are many thousands of years old. Today, dogs are the most popular companion animal in the world. People of all ages appreciate the company of dogs. They are loyal companions, enthusiastic animals and can enrich the lives of their owners in many ways: during sports or walks, as a patient listener or cuddle partner, as an entertaining playmate, as a pick-me-up when lonely or simply as a distraction from stressful everyday life.
Dog owners need to go to the doctor less often.
With these special qualities, dogs can do much more. As a German-Australian long-term study found, dogs promote human health, which was measured in the number of annual visits to the doctor. Thus, continuous dog owners were said to be the healthiest people and significantly healthier than people who once owned a companion animal or never had one. In Germany and Australia, the number of doctor visits was reduced by about 15% among long-term dog owners.
A particularly long time period was chosen for the study. Annual surveys have taken place since 1984. This made it possible to determine how the loss and acquisition of a companion animal affected health status. By measuring the health of participants at multiple time points, it was possible to disprove the assumption that people with dogs were healthier even before owning a companion animal. After accounting for age, gender, income, marital status and other variables affecting health, the remarkable impact of dogs on human well-being was confirmed.
Dogs as Medicine.
Dogs can promote health in a variety of ways. They need exercise, prompting their owners to walk them daily and thus encouraging daily exercise in the fresh air. This results in positive effects on heart rate or blood pressure, among other things. But dogs not only improve the physical condition of their owners. They can also have a significant impact on mental health. Contact with dogs can relieve tension or stress. They help with grief, loneliness and social isolation, and are always there for their owners as a care partner. In addition, they encourage social interaction between dog owners.
Assistance dogs as health assistance.
As companion animals promote the health of the general population, it is expected that people with disabilities or chronic illnesses can also benefit tremendously from dogs. In terms of the many medical procedures and doctor visits people with disabilities or chronic illnesses have, owning an assistance dog could have an even more dramatic impact. The daily lives of people with disabilities are made much easier with an assistance dog. An animal companion can improve the quality of life and give joy of life. Many illnesses are accompanied by limited mobility. Often, those affected spend a lot of time alone and are lonely because they have difficulty participating in social life and finding a productive and fulfilling job. Caregivers cannot care for a patient throughout and family members often cannot manage to help sufficiently due to their own commitments.
This is where assistance dogs can help. They are loyal partners and can prevent loneliness. They also can make it easier to cope with everyday life by performing tasks for their owner and providing assistance. Assistance dogs are specially trained for an area of use and can therefore respond directly to the needs of their owners.
Pfotenpiloten is committed to providing efficient care with high quality standards that is free of charge for those affected.
[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]">For six weeks, Christian Tiesmeyer assisted us as an intern. Among other things, he has contributed to our bibliography, and prepared English and German summaries of articles. The following contribution is by him.
A very special relationship has existed between dogs and humans for a long time. The first signs of domestication are many thousands of years old. Today, dogs are the most popular companion animal in the world. People of all ages appreciate the company of dogs. They are loyal companions, enthusiastic animals and can enrich the lives of their owners in many ways: during sports or walks, as a patient listener or cuddle partner, as an entertaining playmate, as a pick-me-up when lonely or simply as a distraction from stressful everyday life.
Dog owners need to go to the doctor less often.
With these special qualities, dogs can do much more. As a German-Australian long-term study found, dogs promote human health, which was measured in the number of annual visits to the doctor. Thus, continuous dog owners were said to be the healthiest people and significantly healthier than people who once owned a companion animal or never had one. In Germany and Australia, the number of doctor visits was reduced by about 15% among long-term dog owners.
A particularly long time period was chosen for the study. Annual surveys have taken place since 1984. This made it possible to determine how the loss and acquisition of a companion animal affected health status. By measuring the health of participants at multiple time points, it was possible to disprove the assumption that people with dogs were healthier even before owning a companion animal. After accounting for age, gender, income, marital status and other variables affecting health, the remarkable impact of dogs on human well-being was confirmed.
Dogs as Medicine.
Dogs can promote health in a variety of ways. They need exercise, prompting their owners to walk them daily and thus encouraging daily exercise in the fresh air. This results in positive effects on heart rate or blood pressure, among other things. But dogs not only improve the physical condition of their owners. They can also have a significant impact on mental health. Contact with dogs can relieve tension or stress. They help with grief, loneliness and social isolation, and are always there for their owners as a care partner. In addition, they encourage social interaction between dog owners.
Assistance dogs as health assistance.
As companion animals promote the health of the general population, it is expected that people with disabilities or chronic illnesses can also benefit tremendously from dogs. In terms of the many medical procedures and doctor visits people with disabilities or chronic illnesses have, owning an assistance dog could have an even more dramatic impact. The daily lives of people with disabilities are made much easier with an assistance dog. An animal companion can improve the quality of life and give joy of life. Many illnesses are accompanied by limited mobility. Often, those affected spend a lot of time alone and are lonely because they have difficulty participating in social life and finding a productive and fulfilling job. Caregivers cannot care for a patient throughout and family members often cannot manage to help sufficiently due to their own commitments.
This is where assistance dogs can help. They are loyal partners and can prevent loneliness. They also can make it easier to cope with everyday life by performing tasks for their owner and providing assistance. Assistance dogs are specially trained for an area of use and can therefore respond directly to the needs of their owners.
Pfotenpiloten is committed to providing efficient care with high quality standards that is free of charge for those affected.