By ANTHONY KINKEAD
Sheridan High School Student
Editor’s Note: The Sheridan Student Column is brought to readers by Sheridan High School’s 10th grade English class, taught by Abby Williams.
As many people know, dogs are known as the most loyal and loving creatures out there. Usually humans create unbreakable bonds with their furry friends. They are so elegant and praised that they received the sayings, “A man’s best friend” and “All dogs go to heaven.” There are so many benefits of raising a dog.
Dogs can help you grow as a person so much and help you live a healthier lifestyle. A study from an article called “Money Crashers” says, “Dog owners had a 24 percent lower risk of death from all causes compared to people without dogs.”
The article then goes on to talk about dogs helping people live better lives through exercise and potentially reducing allergies greatly. In the article it gives a brief explanation from the American Heart Association about how having either a dog or cat can improve your heart health. People tend to have lower heart rates and blood pressure due to the pet suppressing anxiety and stress.
Another main benefit is that being around dogs can significantly reduce the chance of many allergies. According to a 2017 study funded by the National Institutes of Health, “young children exposed to high indoor levels of pet dander are less likely to develop asthma by the age of 7.”
Since dogs have such sensitive noses, they can even detect illnesses and some cancers early.
The final reason you should consider letting a dog into your home is the fact that they can help you grow as a person extremely. They improve your responsibility skills because a dog is a mini person that relies on its human to help it survive. You have to feed them, give them water, let them out, and make sure they are well-exercised.
The other way they can help you majorly is they give you a loyal, loving and cute best friend. Multiple sources and studies show that having a pet undoubtedly reduces people’s stress and anxiety levels. In a 2003 study in Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, researchers put subjects in a stressful situation – exposing them to a tarantula – and then gave them either a live animal or a toy animal to pet. The live animal produced a bigger drop in their measured levels of fear and anxiety. This study proves that there are many benefits of owning a dog.
After all of this, you should consider giving a dog a chance at a good, loving life. All this information shows that there are many benefits to owning a pet. They will make you feel more responsible and give you a purpose if you are a bit lonely and want some extra company around. With the dog you can even get out and enjoy more social interactions. You can do this by taking your dog to places like dog parks and you can even meet more people.