Pet Ownership and Attachment in Relation to the Health of U.S. Adults, 21 to 64 Years of Age

Abstract

AbstractPet ownership and attachment to a pet have been reported to have a salutary influence on health in selected populations. General population surveys of the beneficial effects of pet ownership have not been conducted. The purpose of this national survey was to examine the relationship of pet ownership and attachment to self-reported illness behavior and emotional distress in three stages of life: early adulthood (21 to 34 years of age), early middle age (35 to 44 years of age), and late middle age (45 to 64 years of age). Data were obtained from a probability sample of U.S. households with at least one resident aged 21 to 64 years of age selected by random-digit dialing using a two-stage cluster design stratified by U.S. census regions. The response rate was 65.7%, yielding a sample of 1,300 household respondents. Emotional distress was measured using the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale. Illness behavior was assessed by the number of physician visits, prescription m...