arstechnica ,
@arstechnica@mastodon.social avatar

Is having a pet good for you? The fuzzy science of pet ownership

It turns out the pet care industry has funded a lot of studies.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/06/is-having-a-pet-good-for-you-the-fuzzy-science-of-pet-ownership/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

nazokiyoubinbou ,
@nazokiyoubinbou@mastodon.social avatar

@arstechnica Even so, call it anecdotal, but I think pretty much any pet owner (like really close to 100%) will tell you having a pet really is good mental health if nothing else.

I feel like there is an implied fallacy (I call reverse appeal to authority -- the belief that ONLY an authority can make a statement about a thing.) We don't need studies to tell us the sky appears blue to the human eye. Studies would just be helpful in finding out why if we didn't already know.

beeoproblem ,
@beeoproblem@mastodon.gamedev.place avatar

@arstechnica one thing in the article that popped out was a line about how new dog owners saw health improvements that cat owners didn't

I suspect the cause is that dogs need to be walked. The health benefits probably come from exercise made necessary by getting a dog.

adacosta ,
@adacosta@twit.social avatar

@arstechnica Having a pet is a full time responsibility. Just as having a child and ensuring its taken care of provided with the essentials to thrive. Its expensive! If you can't taken on that responsibility, don't have one.

beisbolcards ,
@beisbolcards@mastodon.world avatar

@arstechnica

I'm not sure if it's good for me, but it's good for the pets, so they stay.

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