Animal Relationships and Social Health
By Makena Wood, B.Sc. Neuroscience student, with Karissa Hazelwood B.Sc. Civil Engineering
In today’s blog, I am inspired to address the topic of animal relationships after receiving questions about how pets play a role in social connection during our older adult program “Brain Knowledge Mornings” at NordBridge and LSCO. Our Brain Knowledge Mornings programs consist of both education about the aging brain and opportunity to play BBT’s older adult curriculum as facilitated by BBT staff. As part of our four-part series on the aging brain that is covered during Brain Knowledge Mornings (and can also be accessed at buildingbrains.ca/courses), there is a strong emphasis on the importance of social connection across the lifespan, and particularly with older age. This begs the question: what role do relationships with animals play? This blog will discuss the importance of social connection, how pets can play a role, and the benefits of animal relationships for the brain.
Why is social connection important?
There is significant research behind the relationship between social connection and physical health. For example, being socially connected has been related to longevity and decreased risk for heart disease and cancer (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2010; Miller et al., 2009 as cited in Eisenberger & Cole, 2012). As we tend to discuss in our “Strengthening the Adult Brain” education series, humans are “social beings”; this is to say that, as humans, we naturally crave social interaction, and our physical and mental systems require social connection to be healthy. Social connection is built into our natural instincts, and our physical and emotional balance can be thrown off by social isolation. Research by Eisenberger and Cole (2012) suggests that social connection may activate the same foundational survival circuits in the brain as physical threat and reward. Aside from keeping you physically healthy, social connection enhances your emotional well-being by improving communication, allowing you to express yourself to others, and thus alleviating stress (Barden et al., 2024). Further still, we know the importance of social connection to child development, and the benefit of “Serve and Return” interactions to developing a child’s brain. Serve and Return interactions describe the type of communication that occurs between an infant or young child and their parent; often without formal conversation, a child will “serve” by making eye contact or babbling, and this is “returned” by the parent who copies the action. Thus, if social interaction has the power to shape a child’s brain, we know it must be crucial.
Can pets provide social connection?
In short, yes, research shows that pets can provide social connection. Research has shown that humans can form intense emotional connections with pets that lead the human to experience “love, joy, and peace” (p. 1, Aragunde-Kohl et al., 2020), which most can agree is also the outcome we search for in relationships we seek out with other humans. A pet can have the qualities of a stable interpersonal relationship (such as affection and loyalty) which further contributes to the attachment between a pet and pet-owner and builds trust (Nebbe, 2001; as cited in Smolkovic et al., 2012).
To follow, I will discuss the specific social benefits of owning a pet, as well as the advantage pets can have for introverted people, but it is important to note in the meantime that pets cannot serve as a total replacement for interpersonal connection (that is, human-human connections). In an interesting study by Hawkley and Cacioppo (1998), person, group, God, and pet relationships were compared against a number of different factors. Notably, pet relationships did not correlate with depressive symptoms or life satisfaction, whereas measures of positive person and group relationships (relationships with other humans) were related to lower levels of depressive symptoms and higher ratings of life satisfaction.
Thus, as we will discover, pets serve their own purpose and add positive social connection to the lives of many but should remain in equal priority with human relationships.
What are the benefits of animal relationships?
1. Pets reduce stress and anxiety levels by promoting release of oxytocin (our social bonding hormone) and decreasing levels of cortisol (our stress hormone, which can sometimes be too high during prolonged periods of stress) (Marshall-Pescini et al., 2019)
2. For older adults, or other populations at risk of loneliness, pets can improve emotional health and give pet-owners a sense of purpose in caring for the pet (Applebaum et al., 2021).
3. Caring for pets can increase physical activity levels, which contributes to improved physical and mental health (Applebaum et al., 2021).
4. Pets can facilitate social connection between pet-owners (Skerett, 2015). Owning a pet can be a point of shared interest between new friends, or can help connect new-comers to their neighbourhood communities as they explore the environment with their pet.
A tool for introverts
Lastly, a unique advantage of pet relationships to consider is the purpose they serve for introverts. Introversion can generally be described as the tendency for needing solitude more frequently than others in order to recharge energy given to social interaction (Willis, 2019). While research doesn’t indicate that there are greater benefits of pet relationships for introverts compared to others, there is evidence that people who tend towards introversion are more likely to form stronger attachments to pets because of specific qualities in pet relationships that meet an introvert’s needs (Willis, 2019). Specifically, pets offer a reciprocal connection without a verbal expectation (Willis, 2019); relationships between humans and their pets can be described as simple, safe, and less risky than relationships with other humans (Nebbe, 2001; as cited in Smolkovic, 2012). These qualities bear less of an energy burden on introverts who find social interaction to be draining. Thus, a pet relationship could help an introvert meet their social “quota” without the stress of having to seek social interaction when they aren’t feeling up to it.
In conclusion, pets are an excellent way to add social connection to your life. Social connection is important for your physical and emotional well-being, and humans are naturally driven towards maintaining social connection. Pets offer unique benefits, can be a friend to those in need, and can be an encouraging addition among other human relationships.
For more topics related to brain health, visit buildingbrains.ca/blog
References
Applebaum, J. W., Ellison, C., Struckmeyer, L., Zsembik, B. A., & McDonald, S. E. (2021). The impact of pets on everyday life for older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Public Health, 9.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.652610
Aragunde-Kohl, U., Gómez-Galán, J., Lázaro-Pérez, C., & Martínez-López, J. Á. (2020). Interaction and Emotional Connection with Pets: A Descriptive Analysis from Puerto Rico. Animals, 10(11), 2136. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10112136
Barden, S. M., Carlson, R. G., Taylor, D. D., Gao, R., & Velez, M. (2024). Fostering healthy relationships: A preliminary investigation of relationship education. Journal of Counseling & Development, 102(2), 137–152. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12504
Eisenberger, N. I., & Cole, S. W. (2012). Social neuroscience and health: neurophysiological mechanisms linking social ties with physical health. Nature Neuroscience, 15(5), 669–674. https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.3086
Hawkley, L. C., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2010). How Can I Connect with Thee: Measuring and Comparing Satisfaction in Multiple Relationship Domains. PubMed, 66(1), 43–58. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24431985
Marshall-Pescini, S., Schaebs, F. S., Gaugg, A., Meinert, A., Deschner, T., & Range, F. (2019). The role of oxytocin in the dog–owner relationship. Animals, 9(10), 792. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9100792
Skerrett, P. (2019, May 6). Pets can help their humans create friendships, find social support. Harvard Health Publishing Mental Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/pets-can-help-their-humans-create-friendships-find-social-support-201505067981 [Accessed June 25, 2025].
Smolkovic, I., Fajfar, M., & Mlinaric, V. (2012). Attachment to pets and interpersonal relationships: Can a four-legged friend replace a two-legged one? Journal of European Psychology Students, 3, 15. https://doi.org/10.5334/jeps.ao
Willis, A. (2019). Introversion and attachment to companion animals. Dissertation/Thesis. https://www.proquest.com/openview/d4940020ff77dd1c005c7801557753ac/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y [Accessed: June 25, 2025]