The most recent research regarding the benefits of owning a dog is making headlines all around the world.

Researchers at the University of Liverpool in the UK have recently published a new study in Scientific Reports that suggests that dog owners are more likely to meet physical activity guidelines than people who don’t own a dog.

Although the study was limited to 385 households in West Cheshire UK, the initial evidence is actually rather convincing, even if more research still needs to be done. In fact, it even backs up previous research which indicates that people who own dogs are generally more physically active than people without dogs.

What makes this study particularly unique, is that it doesn’t just examine the physical activity of the person who is primarily responsible for pet care duties in the home – it looked at the physical activity levels of every single person who even lived in a home with a dog, including children.

Great news for dog lovers, it looks like everyone who lives with a dog, benefits.

Results show that dog owners are far more likely to walk for recreation and walk for longer periods of time than non-dog-owners.

People with furry companions were also four times more likely to meet the UK’s suggested goal of 150 minutes a week of physical activity.

Children with dogs were equally as likely to be more active – supposedly they reported more minutes of walking each week, as well as also spending more time doing unstructured physically active activities. This has also been shown in previous studies to be good for physical and emotional wellbeing.

Fortunately, it doesn’t matter what type a person a dog owns (big or small,) all dogs seem to help people experience favorable health and fitness benefits.

Previous studies have also shown that owning a dog is associated with a lower risk of early death, and a lower risk of cardiovascular issues.

Obviously, not all dog owners walk their dogs – some just let them out into the yard, so this evidence applies to those who actually play with and walk their dogs regularly.

There are of course a few other exceptions, for example, if walking the dog is more of a priority than other forms of exercise, then it isn’t necessarily the same health boost. This is because if a dog owner would otherwise go to the gym or take a fitness class, and they substitute their workout by walking their dog, they’re actually being less active.

Another thing to consider is that the study is also relatively special to the UK because people in the UK tend to be more socially expected to walk their dogs daily.

Dr. Carri Westgarth, the lead author of the study concluded:

“Our findings provide support for the role of pet dogs in promoting and maintaining positive health behaviors such as walking. Without dogs, it is likely that population physical activity levels would be much lower.”

She also suggested that city planners begin to consider this when creating pet-friendly housing, parks, and other dog-walking-friendly infrastructure.

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Source: Nature