Lucky Dog Rescue + Mental Health Awareness

Recently, I began a new job in Washington DC working for an International News Station. Our offices are in one of Oxford Properties wonderful locations and as part of May’s Mental Health Awareness, they partnered with a local Animal Shelter, Lucky Dog Animal Rescue, to bring a few young canine friends into the building. 

According to the US National Institute of Health (NIH.gov), “Interacting with animals has been shown to decrease levels of cortisol (a stress-related hormone) and lower blood pressure. Other studies have found that animals can reduce loneliness, increase feelings of social support, and boost your mood.”  Lucky Dog Animal Rescue notes that adopting a pet has been shown to:

• 1: keep us calm: simply having a dog [or cat] lowers stress levels
• 2: increase our task performance: studies showed that those with pets were more capable of performing tasks correctly, than those without
• 3: can increase our social circle: Dogs force us to get up and get about; to take a fun walk to the nearest park, sign them up at dog behavior school or head for the beach for a fun day of Frisbee. Dogs make it very hard to stay home and feel depressed, since they need to go out and socialize with other dogs. As a cat owner, the stories and cute antics are always a conversation piece in most any setting.
• 4: ownership keeps the doctor away: pet owners above the age of 65 are 30 per cent less likely to pay a visit to the doctor.
• 5: improve our self-esteem: Being a dog [pet] owner involves responsibility, consistency and caring. Many persons worry about adopting a dog [pet] because they are worried they won’t know how to care for them. When they do take the leap and welcome a dog [pet] into their lives, however, they soon discover that it is very much like having a baby for the first time: it all seems to come instinctively.

Thank you Oxford Properties and Lucky Dog for giving us a small break and reminding us that “sometimes the best way to feel better is to focus on making someone else (or in this case, something, as in a pet) feel better.”