Pets can Help us be Practice Mindfulness!

Researchers have proved that having a pet around can promote mindfulness in several different ways. Just observing animals can pull us out of our thoughts or worries and make us aware of the current moment. Looking at their innocent and cute faces can put a smile on your face. Having a pet around in a household of elderly people can reduce loneliness more than having people around.

A psychologist and ​​professor of inclusive education at the IU International University of Applied Science, Andrea Beetz stated that interacting with an animal and enjoying each other’s company can be an exercise for practicing mindfulness.

Professor Beets has done a detailed study on how animals can reduce stress in humans. Interaction with them can reduce blood pressure, maintain heart rate and decrease the stress hormone cortisol. Petting your furry one or having eye contact with them can release a calming “cuddle” hormone in the human body. This hormone is also known as Oxytocin.

Oxytocin got the name cuddle hormone as it is produced when a human interacts with another human. This hormone can reduce stress drastically. It can build a feeling of well-being and empathy within you. However, in Beetz’s meta-analysis of animal-human interaction, she studies that a human’s heart rate dropped lower while petting a dog as compared to a human chatting with a friend.

Your pet can help you be aware or present at the moment in so many different ways. Watching your dog walk, listening to your cat’s purrs, watching your fish swim, looking at your bird play, and noticing your hamster run on the wheel are ways for you to unlock mindful moments. Paying attention to such repetitive sounds, motions, or actions of your pet can help you enjoy your current moment. It can help you be practice mindfulness.

A professor and therapist at the National Institutes of Health researcher who teaches mindfulness to people living with pain, Dr Ann Berger stated that attention, intention, compassion, and awareness are the foundation of mindfulness. She said “All of those things are things that animals bring to the table. People kind of have to learn it. Animals do this innately.”

There are a lot of benefits associated with being around pets. However, it is beneficial only when a pet is calm and well-behaved. For people that are struggling with behavioral issues, being around a pet that is hyperactive or aggressive may hamper the efforts of bringing mindfulness to their lives. It is just like they’ll be adding one more reason to be stressed into their lives.

In a recent episode of the popular dog-training podcast named ‘Drinking from the Toilet’, a dog trainer who focuses on positive training methods, Grisha Stewart stated that it is difficult to be calm when you have a canine with reactivity. She mentioned that even an aggressive pet around you allows you to practice mindfulness.

Stewart said, “Sometimes I’ll modulate my breathing so they’ll [dogs] relax”. She explained that if we learn to observe our breath better, we can observe our dogs better. We can observe them closely and understand what they actually want.

Professor Beetz mentioned that we cannot expect animals to suddenly turn into mini Buddhas. An aggressive or reactive pet can also teach us to be patient and mindful. She said, “Naturally picking up mindfulness just from the example of an animal certainly can occur”.

Professor Beetz further stated that we humans are busy with various technical things today. We are so busy with communication, information, and other work that we do not have a moment. We have no time to go outside in the nature or spend some time with our pets at home. She also mentioned that most people can also learn mindfulness with the help and support of another human or even an animal.