A pet’s return on investment

In his memoir, “A Moveable Feast,” Ernest Hemingway wrote; “I had met Miss (Gertrude) Stein in the Luxembourg (Hotel). I cannot remember whether she was walking her dog or not. I know that I was walking myself, since we could not afford a dog, nor even a cat then …”

Hemingway eventually ended up with a colony of now famous cats — all descended from Snow White, the polydactyl cat given to him by a ship’s captain on one of his many adventures at sea.

What does it mean to “afford” a pet? I’ve been thinking about that lately and I’m not sure I know the answer. One thing I do know, however, is that we “afford” the things that have value to us: our cars, shoes, food, the latest tech gadgets, etc. While we might complain about the prices, when we get to the checkout counter, we hand over the money without a second thought. Yet, every day in America’s animal shelters, people surrender their pets, often saying they can’t afford to keep them. While in some cases this may be true, in others it’s clear that the reasons for surrender point to a much different reality.

When we spend money on something, we expect something back; a return on our investment. What, then, is the value, the “ROI” of having pets in our lives? Well, during my morning yoga routine, my cat, Humphrey, lies down next to me for the last floor exercises. Sometimes he strokes my hair, and we always end up just lying there breathing together, relaxed. His peace helps me maintain mine and that’s not just my imagination.

Studies show that petting and interacting with an animal releases oxytocin — the hormone that reduces blood pressure. Interacting with animals can also reduce cholesterol levels, improving our cardiovascular health.

Walking a dog is good exercise, and a cat’s purr vibrates at between 20-150HZ — a frequency known to increase bone density, reduce inflammation, enhance circulation, and relax tense muscles.

Pets rescue us from loneliness, offering love and connection with no strings attached — important factors in maintaining our mental and emotional health, which not only reduces the risk of conditions like depression, but also boosts immunity, lowering the risk of all sorts of health issues. In older populations, pet ownership can actually lead to longer, happier lives, and children who are taught to care for pets learn responsibility, compassion, empathy and respect for life.

So unless they had absolutely no choice, why would anyone deliberately give up something so valuable? Usually it’s because they’ve never really acknowledged the value of that animal or their relationship with it. Others use thinking errors to disregard that relationship and release themselves from further responsibility.

Thinking errors (beliefs we craft to get ourselves off the hook for a decision or act we would otherwise find undesirable or even despicable) require us to blame someone or something else for our actions, and since animals can’t speak up for themselves or call a lawyer or protective services, they become convenient scapegoats.

Here’s an example: food prices are going up like crazy; the cart is full of human food and the dog food went up by $4 a bag. So you say “the dog’s food is too expensive, we can’t afford it, we have to get rid of the dog.”

In one decision you’ve blamed the dog and the dog food company, created an excuse to surrender the dog, and used “magical thinking” convincing yourself this will solve your money problems. The fallout from these decisions robs everyone in the wake: the animal, the family, the community where overcrowded shelters mean euthanizing healthy animals, creating heartbreak for staff and costing the community money.

Children who are disregarded in decisions about relinquishing the family pet often suffer feelings of grief and resentment, and are deprived of the experiences a bond with an animal can offer.

It’s said that “until one has loved and animal, a part of one’s soul remains untouched.” Animals seem to hold the key to that part of our soul like no other beings can, and I feel like now more than ever, we need to slow down and invite that part of our souls to be touched and awakened.

For further inspiration, visit Good Dogs, a collection of media from New Mexico celebrating “the deep emotional bonds between humans and their canine counterparts” at the Albuquerque Museum till Oct 5. Read “There’s Magic in a Cat’s Purr” on-line article by Dr. Jim Anderson of Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation.

“We’re trying to tap into the subjective quality of the relationship with the animal — that part of the bond that people feel with animals — and how that translates into some of the health benefits,” explains Dr. James Griffin, a child development expert at NIH.

Harvard health: Increasingly, loneliness and social isolation are being recognized as contributing to a higher risk of heart attack, stroke or death from either of these causes.

The American Heart Association (AHA) recognizes the connection between pet ownership and good heart health. In fact, they’ve devoted an entire section of their website to exploring all the ways pets enrich our health.

Children who are taught to care for pets learn responsibility, compassion, empathy and respect for life. Of course, if they learn to disregard, neglect or abuse animals, the opposite becomes true, and it plays out in how they relate to others for the rest of their lives, in their relationships and in society.

Somewhere along the line, in all the chaos and consumerism, we, as a society, seem to be forgetting the value of having pets in our lives.