Man’s best friend brings many benefits

OWNING a pet can make one happier and more likely to live longer, study shows.

Pet owners tend to be healthier, better self esteem, are less lonely, more conscientious and extroverted, less fearful and better able to handle rejection, researchers at the American Psychological Association said.

People with pets were just as close to them as they were to key people in their lives. “The present work presents considerable evidence that pets benefit the lives of their owners, both psychologically and physically, by service as an important source of social support,” the researchers wrote.