Have you ever wondered why humans love pets so much? Sure, they give us companionship when others do not. Our pets love us without conditions and are there for us during our worst times, but why is it that many humans truly love their pets?
Today we’re going to dive into this subject and bring you a few reasons why humans love pets. This may help those non-pet owning friends understand the love we have for our four-legged family members.
There’s one such researcher who says that humans’ love for pets has nothing to do with them helping us live longer, how cute they are, or how cuddly they are. This researcher is a trained biologist named John Bradshaw.
When it comes to using science-based claims such as dogs help us live longer and be more active, Bradshaw would argue that this isn’t necessarily true. An energetic human may indeed benefit from having a dog, and be more active because they’re generally a more active human being. It’s been proven that pets can bring both good and bad things into the home.
Pets can be rather stressful and have needs that their human owners must tend to. This can cause arguments among family members, such as who is going to take the dog out this time. This can cause stress, such as when you’re training a pet to use the litter box or go outside to pee. Then there are the positives, such as a companion that’s going to love you without conditions.
Each of the pros and cons of having a pet seems to balance out the emotions and benefits of owning such a furry companion. So why is it that humans love pets? That answer is merely something we can entertain but do not know for sure what the real answer is.
Bradshaw would say that having pets is simply part of our human behavior. He tends to believe this is more rooted in biology such as from our ancestors than any current list of benefits you’d read online about owning a pet.
The overall consensus is that we enjoy having pets because the simple act of petting our dog or cat makes us feel good. When we’re around people or pets that make us feel good, we start to feel better about ourselves. It could be, that humans love pets because of how the pet makes them feel versus any sort of health benefit.
Regardless of whether you believe we own pets and love them because of the benefits they provide our life or if it’s simply a part of our biology passed down from generation to generation, the simple matter is that human beings love their pets. Many humans treat their pets as good as, if not better than, their human children or partners.
Loving your pet is a good thing, and so, with this, we conclude that there’s no science-based evidence to support humans’ love of pets, and that’s just fine by us.