Abstract
Contact with companion animals has been suggested to have important roles in enhancing child development. However, studies focused on child development and pet ownership at a very early age are limited. The purpose of the current study was to investigate child development in relation to pet ownership at an early age in a nationwide prospective birth cohort study: the Japan Environment and Children's Study. Associations between cat and dog ownership at six months and infant development at 12 months of age were examined in this study. Infant development was assessed using the Ages & Stages QuestionnairesTM (ASQ-3) at 12 months. Among participants of (Japan Environment and Children's Study) JECS, those with available data of cat and dog ownership at six months and data for the ASQ-3 at 12 months were included (n = 78,868). Having dogs showed higher percentages of pass in all five domains measured by ASQ-3 (communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social) compared to those who did not have dogs. Significantly decreased odds ratios (ORs) of developmental delays were observed in association with having dogs in all fix domains (communication: OR = 0.73, gross motor: OR = 0.86, fine motor: OR = 0.84, problem-solving: OR = 0.90, personal-social: OR = 0.83). This study suggested that early life dog ownership may reduce the risks of child developmental delays.
Highlights
Childhood is a crucial phase in its contribution to the quality of health, emotional well-being, learning, and behavior across the life span [1]
We found that having dogs at six months was associated with decreased risks of infant showing developmental delays at 12 months in five domains of the ASQ-3
The same was not observed among those who had cats. This was the first report on early childhood pet ownership and child development based on the large-scale prospective birth cohort study data
Summary
Childhood is a crucial phase in its contribution to the quality of health, emotional well-being, learning, and behavior across the life span [1]. Studies of child development have largely been limited to relationships and interactions with other humans. Studies of the human–animal interaction have proposed that there are health benefits associated with pet ownership. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 205; doi:10.3390/ijerph17010205 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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