Individuals with conditions like bipolar disorder do not experience substantial advantages from owning pets like cats, goldfish or budgies, a recent survey suggests.
A University of York research team found that even having a dog around was "not associated with the wellbeing, depression, anxiety or loneliness scores for owners with a range of severe mental illnesses."
But at the same time, over 95% of the 170 people questioned agreed that their pet or pets "provided them with companionship, a source of consistency in their life and made them feel loved," according to the survey report, which was released by the Center for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI).
The University of York team was following up on a 2021 survey in which animal ownership was "associated with a self-reported decline in mental health," which they postulated "may have been due to pandemic restrictions and the challenges of looking after their animal in lockdown."
"In the absence of COVID-19 restrictions, a possible explanation for our current findings could be that the added responsibility of animal ownership may still exacerbate other potential stressors experienced by people living with severe mental illness. This includes the cost of food, veterinary bills and uncertainty over housing," said Emily Shoesmith, a staff member at the university.
Shoesmith and colleagues believe the survey results suggest that the "commonly held belief that animals are beneficial for wellbeing" is not "entirely true for all members of all sub-populations in all contexts."
But more work on the matter is needed, they believe. "Future research would also benefit from recruiting a larger sample size and comparing a wider variation of species identified as the animal the participant felt closest to," said Elena Ratschen, also from the University of York.
