Having a pet makes you live longer!

So you want to live forever, buy a pet.

Well, not quite for ever, but it's been proven that having a pet can make someone live longer, especially if that someone is recovering from an illness.

Many research reports have shown the links between having a pet and a sense of well-being.

And one of the groups to benefit most has been heart attack victims. In one study, it was discovered that even just the act of watching fish swim around a tank could reduce blood pressure.

This was apparent when a group of patients, awaiting oral surgery, spent some time observing fish swim in a nearby tank. Another group of patients had the same wait, but without the fish. Just before their operation, they were then tested for their general mood, tension and blood pressure reduced. Each was far better - relaxed, muscle tension much reduced and blood pressure down - in the group that had seen the fish, than the other group.

Incredibly, another study showed that those heart attack victims who owned a pet had a better chance of living for more than one year, than those that didn't.

And people with long term illnesses such as cancer and AIDs, have discovered the calming effects of having a pet, which in turn does something for the human psyche that adults can't. And this is thought to be down to the fact that humans can focus a great deal of attention to a pet; attention that makes a person feel comforted and also makes them feel as though they are needed, and not just someone who happens to be ill. It's almost as though the person can live through their affection for their pet. And as animals are mostly non-judgmental, with simple demands and simple hang-ups, they don't have the stress of fellow human contact.

It has been known for some time that the actual act of patting a dog can bring on a mood of relaxation, even reduced blood pressure in some.

And this is why in many nursing homes, hospitals and hospices, dogs are regularly introduced so that people can enjoy the benefits.

It has also been shown that it doesn't really matter what type of pet it is. The important thing is that the owner likes it and has a sense of connection.

So next time you're tempted to tell Fido to go and lay in the kitchen as he snores too much in front of the open fire, just remember, one day, he might just help you get back on your feet! Thank goodness dogs don't bear grudges.

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