How your dog keeps your health on the right track

Lurcher owner Peta Bee explores the many ways in which pet ownership can improve our mental and physical well-being

Come rain or shine, there is no getting out of the daily dog walks, which are good for your heart health. Picture: iStock

If you are one of the 50% of Irish households who, according to the most recent dog census, own a dog, you’re probably well aware of their benefits.

From the waggy tails and doe-eyed adoration that lift us when we are feeling low to the hike in steps on daily walkies, your pooch is a health tonic on four legs.

Yes, there are the relentless muddy paws, inappropriate barking and non-adherence to the call-back rules to contend with, but even scientists agree that most of us are better off living with man’s (or woman’s) best friend. Researchers from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (Tilda) at Trinity College Dublin have  found that middle-aged and older dog owners are more likely to reach the recommended 150 weekly minutes of activity and even to have better grip strength.

I find there’s nothing more relaxing than stroking my lurcher, Mabel, as she curls up beside me on the sofa, so it is no surprise that people with pets really do have significantly lower heart rates and blood pressure levels. Furthermore, a team from Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto found that owning a dog can reduce the risk of premature death from any cause by 24%.

In what other ways will your pooch help your mental and physical wellbeing?

You’ll be fitter

I reckon I cover at least an extra 56,000 steps a week because of my dog — the equivalent of about a marathon.

Researchers reporting in BMC Public Health showed that a canine companion typically leads to people walking for 23 minutes longer a day — for 119 minutes versus 96 minutes without a dog — and took an extra 2,670 daily steps.

“Dog owners report higher levels of physical activity compared to non-dog owners,” says Orna Donoghue, an author of the Tilda research. Donoghue and colleagues also found that dog owners have higher grip strength (a key marker of muscle strength with age) than non-pet owners and owners of other pets.

Also, a study by cardiologists in Italy found that dog walkers were, on average, at least 2lb lighter than non-dog walkers.

You’ll be more likely to exercise year-round outdoors

Come rain or shine, there is no getting out of the daily dog walks. If you need evidence to prove that a dog will make you more hardy, the Tilda researchers found that three out of four adults (78%) walk their dog at least three times per week, while two-fifths (38%) walk their dog every day, whatever the weather.

Another study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health showed that older dog walkers were more likely to stay active in bad weather and during the shorter, darker days of winter, motivated by the needs of a four-legged friend.

“Being driven by something other than our own needs might be a really potent motivator and we need to find ways of tapping into it when designing exercise interventions in the future,” the authors wrote.

Dogs are good for your heart health

The Irish Heart Foundation promotes dog ownership to improve heart health and lower blood pressure. Benefits to heart health come from regular walking and weight loss through consistent activity.

A healthier diet and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease are all positive side effects of dog ownership, reported cardiologists in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Andrea Maugeri, lead author of the study, showed that owning any type of pet was associated with better diet and blood sugar control, but “the greatest benefits [on cardiovascular health] from having a pet were for those who owned a dog”.

Need a goal? Sign up to Walk 100k with your dog in June for the Irish Heart Foundation.

Your immunity will be supported

Stroking a dog led to a significant spike in immunoglobulin A, an immune antibody known to support our defences, in one study from Wilkes University.

Dogs also help to support our immune system, teaching it “to distinguish between friend and foe”, says Dr Jenna Macciochi, a British-based immunologist and author of Immune To Age. “Pets act as microbial ambassadors, vectors for microbes from the outdoors,” she says. “With every waggy tail or muddy pawprint, a dog will transport an array of microorganisms from soil, plants, and other environments into our homes.”

Dogs make us more sociable

Dog owners will know that an entire social life exists on a daily walk. No surprise that researchers have described dogs as ‘social lubricants’ or, as a team of Australian scientists reporting in Plos One put it, a “conduit for getting to know people, friendship formation and social support”.

Donoghue says that “dog walking may represent a useful strategy to improve physical, social and mental health outcomes in older dog owners,” all of which are known to promote longevity.

A dog might help to ward off childhood asthma

During childhood, our immune systems learn what to attack and what to ignore to protect our health. And early exposure to pet dander might help to shape a positive immune response, according to a new study by Canadian scientists in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. They showed that babies who grow up exposed to dog allergens in their home have a 45% lower risk of developing asthma — and better lung function — by the age of five. Exposure to cat allergens didn’t have the same protective effect.

The risk of childhood eczema could be lower

Having a dog as a pet before the age of 12 might also help to protect young children against eczema, according to a review of 23 studies published in Paediatric Research last year. Another 2025 paper in the European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology found that having a dog early in life even offered protection for children genetically more prone to eczema.

A canine companion could improve your gut health

Older male dog owners, in particular, seem to have greater diversity of beneficial gut bacteria, according to a study in PLOS ONE. The study analysed stool samples of 54 dog owners in their 60s and 70s and a group of people who didn’t own dogs.

The researchers found that “dog ownership can regulate the composition of gut microbiota”, promoting the abundance of probiotics, or good bacteria, such as actinobacteria, bifidobacteriaceae and ruminococcaceae and suppressing more harmful bacteria.

Dogs can boost your mental health

In changing our microbiome for the better, dogs might also help cultivate a unique array of gut bacteria that can reduce stress and encourage the release of the bonding hormone oxytocin, according to a study in iScience last year. Researchers collected saliva samples from a group of teenage participants and found that those with dogs had higher levels of several species of the Streptococcus bacteria, which were associated with better mood scores.

Dog parents also have better emotional health and higher wellbeing scores. “Pet owners who report that their reason for having a pet is because they love animals have a higher sense of purpose in life,” Donoghue says.