SENIOR SELECTIONS 2020 February - It’s official: Pets are good for you

SUBMITTED - The Brazil Times requested the public to send in photos of their favorite pet to Facebook, and this is one.

By IVY JACOBS

Times Reporter

And Indiana residents were ranked third in the nation in a new study for pet ownership.

SUBMITTED - The Brazil Times requested the public to send in photos of their favorite pet to Facebook, and this is one.

Developing a relationship with a pet has many health benefits according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.

Besides providing companionship to help to manage loneliness and depression, pets also increase opportunities for their owners to exercise, get outside, and socialize. Regular playing with pets can decrease blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and triglyceride levels.

Most households in the United States have at least one pet, while 69.2 percent of Indiana households own a domestic pet. (Arkansas and Mississippi are ranked first and second in the SeniorLiving.org study on Pet Ownership in America that used data from the American Veterinary Medical Association.)

SUBMITTED - The Brazil Times requested the public to send in photos of their favorite pet to Facebook, and this is one.

Some key findings in Indiana include:

No. 4 in cat ownership, with 37.5 percent of households having at least one cat.

No. 6 in dog ownership, with 49.4 percent of households having at least one dog.

SUBMITTED - The Brazil Times requested the public to send in photos of their favorite pet to Facebook, and this is one.

Want to live a long, happy life? Get a dog, or a cat.

That’s the advice from at least one recent study, which found that having a dog reduces a person’s risk of heart disease by 11 percent and lowers their chances of death by 33 percent. Research also found similar benefits in people who live with cats, with one study showing a dramatic drop in the risk of heart attacks among cat owners.

Pets of all types provide entertainment, companionship, stress relief and can even protect our homes from burglary.

Our animal companions become much more than pets; they become family members.

SUBMITTED - The Brazil Times requested the public to send in photos of their favorite pet to Facebook, and this is one.

Most Popular Pets Across America:

In America, there are now more than 246 million pets, almost as many pets as there are people. According to data in the Pet Ownership in America study, the most popular pets are ranked as follows:

The study also determined 25.4 percent of US households have at least one cat, 38.4 percent have at least one dog, with fish considered the fastest growing pet choice for families, seeing a 32 percent increase since 2011.