It’s no secret that pets can contribute to your happiness and that they are a huge part of the family. We all enjoy their companionship and the love they show us. Pets always seem to know when we are feeling low and I am sure they have all helped us laugh again even on days where our mental health is challenging us.
Pets can really help our mental and physical health. For example, people with dogs tend to have lower blood pressure and are less likely to develop heart disease. Playing with your cat or other pet has been shown to raise levels of the feel-good brain chemicals oxytocin and dopamine, creating positive feelings and bonding for both the person and their pet.
May 13th to 19th 2024 is Mental Health Awareness Week. This year’s theme, set by the Mental Health Foundation is ‘movement‘ and how movement can help positively boost our mental health. It is no surprise that going for a walk or run can really boost our mentality but when adding pets into the mix, there are many other benefits for owners to gain.
Let’s take a look at how you can get moving with your pet to help boost your mood!
Go for an enriching dog walk
Studies show that even a brisk 10-minute walk daily can not only help us get outside our home, but it can also help us stay fitter, sleep deeper and boost our self-esteem.
When walking with a dog too, we then can also add in the brilliant health benefits that animals provide such as lowering our blood pressure and reducing our stress.
When walking with a dog, you are also statistically more likely to walk further and interact with other dog walkers thus also helping us feel sociable during those days when all we want to do is hide away by ourselves!
Foraging for small furries
If you would like to get moving for your rabbit, guinea pig or other rodent, try foraging in nice rural areas to find them safe to eat flowers, grass, and herbs to bring home to them. Please always wash these items thoroughly and ensure they are safe for your little fluffball. Rabbits especially love dandelions so walking around for a few minutes picking these plants can help us feel closer to nature, help our pets, and feel more active by being outside. Please follow this article by Woodgreen on what wild plants are safe for us to take home for our rabbits – https://woodgreen.org.uk/pet-advice/rabbit/what-to-feed-your-rabbits/
Cleaning and grooming
Looking after our pets by cleaning their pens, especially outdoor rabbits, on a warm day still gets us active. Sitting in the garden with our cats playing chase games with toys can also boost our mood and get us outside. Even just by grooming our pets, we are keeping them healthy whilst helping ourselves feel productive caring for them.
Fun garden agility
A fun way to get moving with your pet outside could also be to introduce them to some agility in the garden. Items such as shoeboxes can be used for your pet to hurdle, wooden tubes can be used for them to run through and even further everyday objects such as mugs and sauce jars can be used for rodents to weave through! Running around training our pets to help get their exercise can really boost our own fitness and mentality!
Hide and seek games
Most animals will also enjoy playing hide and seek with their owners as it helps them use their natural hunting genes seeking us out. I play a game with my dog each night where when she is let out to toilet before bed, I will go and hide in a area of our home ready for her to come and find me. Not only does this game get me running to find a hiding spot but when my dog finds me, she greets me with such a lovely tail wag that it boosts my mood just before going to bed where normally I would struggle to switch off. This game can also be popular with other pets and worth giving a try!
Arts and crafts
Moving around with pets does not always have to be leaving the house. Creating treats and toys for our pets still help us move our body and give our pets the chance to eat or play with something new. Crafting is known to be a widely used stress reliever whether it be by baking dog biscuits or making a hay ball out of toilet roll tubes. Doing these crafts can get us out of bed on a sad day, improving our wellbeing.
If you don’t have a pet
Even if you feel that your lifestyle or living arrangements might not be right for a pet, support in the form of a fluffy tailed companion is still out there. Please look at our wellbeing days here at Cheltenham Animal Shelter where you can gain the therapeutic benefits that animals can provide without the commitment of owning one yourself. Follow this link to find out more – www.gawa.org.uk/paws-for-wellbeing/
