Emotional Support Animals: How They Improve Mental Health

As I write, my dog is stretched out beside me, softly snoring.

He is a companion, a colleague of sorts, a friend, and a member of the family.

He may ignore many commands and eat things he shouldn’t, but he is dearly loved and an excellent listener.

Often exuberant, he becomes gentle and calm when approached by a child, an older person, or someone with reduced mobility: they stroke him or hug him, and he returns acceptance and unconditional affection.

It is hardly surprising. The bond people form with animals can be as strong as the bonds they form with other humans, yielding similar psychological benefits (McNicholas et al., 2005).

This article outlines how pets support mental health and the emotional comfort they provide. Before you continue, you might like to download five free positive psychology tools to help build healthy, life-enhancing relationships.

15 Benefits of Pets for Mental Health

Research has repeatedly confirmed that keeping pets can have positive effects on both mental and physical health. Health professionals increasingly acknowledge that animals can play a useful role in supporting people with a range of conditions (McNicholas et al., 2005).

Pets provide companionship, but their benefits extend well beyond company. Many people with mental health challenges describe the combination of caregiving and the unconditional affection they receive from animals as life-changing, improving wellbeing and quality of life (Robinson, 2020).

Given human history with animals, this connection makes sense. Humans have kept and worked with animals for at least 10,000 years (Barras, 2018; Page, 2020). Dogs, for example, can respond to words, tone, gestures, and body language, which helps them attune to human emotion.

Having a nonjudgmental being that depends on us and senses how we feel can be deeply valuable.

Mental health organizations recognize these benefits and often encourage pet ownership for its psychological and physical advantages (Mental Health Foundation, 2018; Lundgren, Robinson, & Segal, 2020). Compared with non-owners, pet owners are:

• Less likely to experience depression;
• More likely to have lower blood pressure during stress;
• Likely to display lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels (markers linked to heart disease);
• More likely to survive longer after a heart attack;
• Making fewer doctor visits after age 65;
• Often living longer overall.

Other notable effects include:

• Playing with pets raises serotonin and dopamine, supporting calm and relaxation.
• Pets meet the human need for touch, particularly important for lonely people or those who lack mutual affection.
• Prison programs that include animals show sustained behavioral improvements.
• Pets increase social contact, providing natural conversation starters while out walking.
• Routine pet care—feeding, exercise, grooming—adds structure to daily life.
• Hugging or stroking an animal delivers quick relief from stress and anxiety.
• Dogs especially encourage outdoor exercise, improving both physical and mental health.
• Older adults, including those with Alzheimer’s or dementia, often report greater meaning, connection, and vitality from pet ownership.
• Children who grow up with pets frequently develop greater compassion, empathy, and responsibility—skills that strengthen emotional intelligence and can help children with ADHD or autism.

Although dogs and cats receive the most attention, other animals—fish, rabbits, birds, reptiles—can also enhance wellbeing. Whether effects are psychological, physiological, or both, these influences contribute to overall mental health.

The Psychology Behind Emotional Support Animals

Emotional support animals are frequently reported to help people manage panic attacks, anxiety, and depression. Some campaigners argue that such animals should be recognized as assistive aids—similar in role to wheelchairs—for people who rely on them (Von Bergen, 2015).

A broader view of health includes physical and mental wellbeing along with social integration; animals can contribute to all these areas (McNicholas et al., 2005).

Researchers describe three possible explanations for the association between pet ownership and improved health (McNicholas et al., 2005):

1. No direct link: other lifestyle or demographic factors that correlate with pet ownership account for better health.
2. Pets improve human social interaction, reducing loneliness and isolation, which indirectly boosts wellbeing.
3. The human–pet relationship delivers direct emotional support that benefits health and wellbeing.

Most likely, the benefits arise from a blend of these mechanisms. Good health is more than the absence of disease; it includes meeting basic psychological needs and experiencing a satisfying quality of life (Ryan & Deci, 2018).

Owning an animal is not a necessity to gain benefits; emotional support animals and animal-assisted interventions in clinical settings can provide company, comfort, social interaction, structure, life skills, a sense of achievement, and simple enjoyment (Jau, 2014).

Jasmin Jau’s research with people living with prolonged mental health problems found that animal-assisted interventions consistently promoted:

• Nonjudgmental social support through perceived unconditional love;
• Greater social connection and belonging;
• Daily structure and routine, which can aid recovery;
• Altruistic feelings from caring for another being, boosting self-acceptance and purpose;
• Opportunities to learn and develop practical skills that transfer to other life areas;
• Renewed activity and interest, countering the disengagement typical in depression.

Working with animals can reduce stress, improve quality of life, and encourage community participation—a multidimensional route to mental wellbeing (Brooks et al., 2018).

Why Are Animals Good for Our Wellbeing? Five Research Findings

In recent years, systematic reviews and studies have clarified how animals support mental health. Brooks et al. (2018) reviewed 17 studies to identify the main themes behind these effects.

Easing worry and reducing isolation

Pets provide intuitive emotional support, often offering comfort during crises and when people feel isolated. Many owners report confiding in their pets when they cannot open up to others and feeling safe to express themselves without fear of judgment.

Promoting physical activity and symptom distraction

Dog ownership, in particular, encourages regular exercise. Pets can also distract owners from distressing symptoms—grounding them, creating humorous moments, or directing attention toward caregiving activities like grooming and feeding—often leading to reduced symptom intensity.

Facilitating social interaction and emotional nourishment

Animals often increase both the quantity and quality of human social interactions. Pets can make it easier to approach neighbors or family members and can give people the confidence to engage in social situations they might otherwise avoid.

Strengthening identity, purpose, and self-worth

Caring for a pet supports a sense of responsibility and agency. Several studies found that pet owners felt greater meaning in daily tasks and a strengthened personal identity as caregivers.

Recognizing potential disadvantages

Pet ownership is not without challenges: financial costs, housing restrictions, managing behavioral issues, and the eventual grief of losing a pet are important considerations. These practical realities should be weighed when recommending pet ownership as a wellbeing strategy.

Overall, the evidence suggests that pets can positively influence people with mental health conditions through close emotional bonds, crisis support, and symptom management (Brooks et al., 2018).

A Look at Ten Animal Therapy Modalities

Animal-assisted therapy can be delivered in many settings and formats (Fine, 2010). Common modalities include:

• Integration into psychotherapy sessions;
• Support during counseling;
• Adjuncts to psychiatric treatment;
• Programs for at-risk children and youth;
• Classroom support for general and special educational needs, including autism;
• Family-based interventions;
• Care-home programs for older adults and those with dementia;
• Palliative care to ease suffering and improve quality of life;
• Prison-based rehabilitation programs;
• Support for veterans and trauma survivors.

Examples from practice

Equine-facilitated therapy has improved self-image, self-control, and trust among at-risk adolescents in residential care (Bachi, Terkel, & Teichman, 2012). Dogs have been effective in psychosocial programs for patients with chronic schizophrenia, improving motivation and quality of life (Nathans-Barel et al., 2005).

Training service dogs has helped veterans with PTSD achieve better sleep, reduced depression, improved parenting skills, and a lower startle response, in part because the dog helps anchor them in the present (Yount et al., 2013).

Prison programs involving horses show benefits such as increased self-esteem, improved trust, lower loneliness, and reduced recidivism among participants (Bachi, 2013).

Incorporating dogs into cognitive-behavioral therapy has been associated with reduced stress and higher therapy engagement (González-Ramírez et al., 2013).

Airports and campuses have experimented with animal visits to relieve anxiety and improve wellbeing, with mixed public-policy responses but clear anecdotal benefits for many people.

Relevant Resources and Tools

Practical worksheets and brief tools can help you understand and manage emotions while nurturing relationships. Useful resources include emotional wellness quizzes, imagery-based exposure worksheets, pleasant activity scheduling templates, compassion-building exercises, and emotion-regulation sheets. These tools support self-awareness, coping strategies, and daily routines that complement the benefits of animal interaction.

A Take-Home Message

Anyone who has met the warm gaze of an animal or felt their unguarded joy knows the unique comfort they offer. Emotional support animals and pet relationships are increasingly recognized as valuable in managing chronic mental health conditions (Brooks et al., 2018).

Research indicates that pets reduce stress, enhance quality of life, encourage social engagement, and support recovery by providing nonjudgmental emotional connection, routine, and purposeful activity.

At their best, these relationships are simple, straightforward, and rooted in reciprocal care. If you work with clients or are exploring options for your own wellbeing, consider whether greater interaction with animals—through pet ownership or structured animal-assisted interventions—might be beneficial.

References

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• Bachi, K. (2013). Equine-facilitated prison-based programs within the context of prison-based animal programs: State of the science review. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 52, 46–74.
• Barras, C. (2018). Oldest dog burial suggests prehistoric humans loved dogs as pets. New Scientist.
• Brooks, H. L., Rushton, K., Lovell, K., Bee, P., Walker, L., Grant, L., & Rogers, A. (2018). The power of support from companion animals for people living with mental health problems: A systematic review and narrative synthesis of the evidence. BMC Psychiatry, 18(1).
• Fine, A. H. (2010). Handbook on animal assisted therapy. Elsevier.
• Fleming, N. (2018). Why emotional support animals may be a waste of time. New Scientist.
• Goldstein, M. (2019). Will 2020 mark the end of emotional support animals on airlines? Forbes.
• González-Ramírez, T., Ortiz, X., & Landero-Hernández, R. (2013). Cognitive-behavioral therapy and animal-assisted therapy: Stress management for adults. Alternative and Complementary Therapies, 19, 270–275.
• Jau, J. (2014). Human–animal interaction and the benefits to mental health: A phenomenological study (Bachelor thesis).
• Lundgren, K., Robinson, L., & Segal, R. (2020). The health and mood-boosting benefits of pets. HelpGuide.
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• Nathans-Barel, I., Feldman, P., Berger, B., Modai, I., & Silver, H. (2005). Animal-assisted therapy ameliorates anhedonia in schizophrenia patients. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 74, 31–35.
• Page, M. (2020). Sled dogs are an ancient breed going back at least 10,000 years. New Scientist.
• Mental Health Foundation (2018). Pets and mental health.
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• Shochet, I. M., Dadds, M. R., Ham, D., & Montague, R. (2006). School connectedness is an underemphasized parameter in adolescent mental health. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 35(2), 170–179.
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• Yount, R., Ritchie, E., St. Laurent, M., Chumley, P., & Olmert, M. (2013). The role of service dog training in the treatment of combat-related PTSD. Psychiatric Annals, 43, 292–295.