Pet ownership has nearly tripled since 1970. With more than 62% of American households being homes to at least one pet. What’s changed over the past few decades that’s made pets so popular? Is it their companionship, and entertainment? For some people yes. But, recently scientists have been able to run tests showing growing evidence that owning pets can in fact help protect against stress.

Who would’ve ever thought your pet could save you the head ache instead of causing it! “The State University of New York at Buffalo conducted a simple but ingenious study showing that pets can be more supportive in times of stress than friends or spouses. The study involved 240 married couples, half of which owned a cat or dog. Couples without pets had higher blood pressure and heart rates, a strong sign that they were feeling more stress than the pet owners. The subjects had to perform two tasks: Doing difficult math problems in their heads and putting their hands in ice water for two minutes. Some were alone, and some had company: either a spouse, a friend, or a pet. As reported in the Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine, subjects had higher blood pressure and heart rates when a spouse or friend was in the room. However, in the presence of a pet, blood pressure and heart rates went down. People who didn’t own pets had, on average, higher heart and blood pressure rates than people with pets.”

How can your dog be more helpful and supportive than your best friend and spouse when they can’t even talk?! Maybe that’s just the reason. “Spouses and friends try to be supportive, but few can match the nonjudgmental loyalty of a pet,” according to the researchers.

Anyone with a pet can verify this claim that pets relieve stress. Just think about it, how angry can you really get when you’re looking at those puppy dog eyes?  I think this experiment does a great job at supporting the hypothesis. It compares pet owners and non-pet owners, makes them complete tasks that cause stress and compare the outcomes.

Did you guys know that colleges all across America have been welcoming Pet Therapy during the finals weeks to help with stress. So, if you guys are feeling overwhelmed and stressed out during testing go stop by the Student Health Center right here at Penn State and play with some puppies!!