My Dog ​​is My Best Friend

“My dog ​​is my best friend” is an idea that more people share every day. In this sense, more and more people adopt a dog that needs it, that has no one to take care of it and that over time becomes another member of the family.

It should be noted that a large number of people do not conceive of their dog with the term “companion animal”, but rather they conceive it as an important part of their lives; your dog is your friend, your family, your travel companion.

Also, in many cases, the dog is considered a source of support and unconditional love, since we feel accepted just as we are. Our dog does not care if we are tall or short, if we have short or long hair or if we are thin or thick; He loves us unconditionally and offers us everything for nothing.

My dog ​​is my best friend, my family

The fact of considering a dog as one of the family is a difficult idea for many people to conceive: it is difficult for them to understand that a bond of this dimension can be created with an animal. That is, how can you create such a strong bond with your furry friend?

A team of scientists from the Department of Science, Animal and Biotechnology at Azabu University in Japan, have shown that being with our canines stimulates oxytocin, known as the “love hormone.”

They start from the theory that oxytocin generates that strong connection that is created with our pets, resembling, as the team of scientists affirm, the connection that is created between parents and children at a biological level.

According to his experiment, simple eye contact between the dog and its owner strengthens their emotional bonds. Therefore, the love that we feel for our canines and that we receive from them has a certain biological origin.

Benefits of having a dog

Produces a feeling of well-being

In line with the previous paragraph, contact with our dog generates an increase in the production of oxytocin, the love hormone. That feeling of love and affection increases the feeling of well-being and happiness, which is why interacting with our furry companion is a good antidote to depression.

Reduces the feeling of loneliness

Having a dog reduces the feeling of loneliness, since we feel accompanied, that we are not alone; our friend is waiting for us when we get home. Indeed, finding ourselves on our way home knowing that our furry is waiting for us, that he is looking forward to seeing us and welcomes us with great joy, is one of the most pleasant moments of the day for many people.

Emotional Support

Our dog gives us emotional support when we are sad, when we leave work and feel stressed or simply when something worries us.

For many people, the fact of coming home knowing that our dog is waiting for us with joy and happiness to see us, alleviates any sadness and negative situation that we have lived. Once we feel that tenderness and that unconditional love that they process us, surely that discomfort that we felt diminishes.

Keeps you active

Living with a dog implies having to go for a walk, walk daily. As a consequence, going for a walk increases the rate of physical exercise, at least 20-30 minutes a day. Likewise, increased physical activity constitutes an outlet for stress, relaxing our nervous system, as stated in a study by Virginia Commonwealth University (USA)

It should be noted that daily walks with our furry can improve our social life, since on the walks we probably coincide with other people who are walking with their pets, being more accessible to start conversations and socialize with others.

It prevents illnesses

An article in the British Medical Journal showed that more than a third of dogs living with diabetics show changes in their behavior when their owners’ blood sugar levels are low, even detecting this change in sugar levels earlier that the people. Therefore, according to this article, by detecting changes in blood sugar levels, they can give us signals that allow us to anticipate them.

Also, living with a dog makes children less likely to develop allergies over the course of their lives according to a study by the Cincinnati Childhood Allergy & Air Pollution Study (CCAAPS). This study affirms that living with a furry dog ​​generates a certain immunity to developing allergies, becoming a positive consequence of living with canines.

The pain after saying goodbye to our best friend

Losing a loved one is a serious blow, just as losing our dog can be. In this sense, surely the person who is reading this and has gone through the loss of a loved animal will perfectly understand the idea that we want to convey in these lines, although here we focus on a specific animal, the dog, it is clear that it is not the the only animal for which people can feel affection and create a bond as strong as that created with friends and / or family.

“My dog ​​is my best friend, I feel such a great pain comparable to what I felt when losing a close family member”, “I feel guilty that there was something else I could have done to save him, in case I did not do enough”, they are some testimonies from people who have experienced the death of their beloved animal. Indeed, coping with the loss of our dog can be very painful, as stated in the journal Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, which states that the reaction of grief after his death is comparable to that experienced with the loss of a dog. family member.

To conclude, adopting a pet can bring numerous benefits to our health. It is true that the pain derived from his loss is enormous; However, the well-being that emanates from the memories , knowing that we gave him the best life that we could give him, compensates for all that pain after the loss. In short, everything that he has given us, all the good times that we have lived is what will always remain with us, since my dog ​​is my best friend and will continue to be.