Pets for Older People

Be it for a long period of time care or even when the elderly are living in their own houses, studies have indicated that they hugely benefit from having a pet around the place. A pet in the form of a cat or a dog or parakeet, can provide the elderly with an unlimited amount of care and comfort. It can even be goldfish in a bowl or donkey in the yard that can help in giving the aged the companionship and purpose that is needed.
These pets can help the elderly by the simple task of just being present in their lives. Studies have indicated that having pets around one can help in decreasing the stress levels which then consequently results in one’s blood pressure reducing and also helps in increasing a person’s appetite. Pets for elderly also help in giving them the exercise they need by the simple need of having to walk one’s dog or the process of feeding the pets. Studies have also shown that having a pet around the house results in the older person requiring lesser medications and thus lesser visits to their doctors. Some of the older patients who suffer from Alzheimer disease have actually had some of their related behavioral problems get better when they had their pets around them. These patients also showed a greater tendency to want to socialize with their fellow residents. Pets tend to make their owners laugh and relax. Further studies have shown that when an aquarium was kept in some of the nursing homes, the results showed that the patients had a fall in their pulse rate and also in their muscle tension.

There are some dogs for elderly that make great companions. These dogs do not really need anything but the love and attention that they can get from their owners.  One can actually select the kind of breed that will adjust to the lifestyle of the elderly person. One can take into account the person’s home size, their lifestyle, the elderly owner’s health status and also their physical strength. The temperament of the dog and also the size of the dog all need to be taken into account when selecting the dog. Some of the main benefits of dogs for the elderly are that they chiefly help in providing companionship and joy. They also help in providing various other health benefits like lowering the person’s blood pressure, lowering their cholesterol levels, lowering the triglyceride levels and also in helping to lower the feeling of loneliness that some of the elderly do suffer from.