People have argued for years about whether cats or dogs make better pets. Some people love dogs because they are playful, loyal, and enjoy spending time with their owners.
Others prefer cats because they are independent, calm, and often fit more easily into busy lifestyles.
Although opinions differ, one question has remained difficult to answer: Do cats and dogs affect our emotional well-being in different ways?
A new study from researchers in the Netherlands has brought scientists one step closer to answering this question.
The findings were published in Frontiers in Psychology. The researchers wanted to understand why owning a pet often makes people feel happier and whether cats and dogs influence their owners in different ways.
Many earlier studies have shown that pet owners often report lower levels of loneliness, more positive emotions, and better mental health. Pets can provide companionship, encourage daily routines, and give people a sense of purpose.
Dog owners often walk their pets regularly, which increases physical activity and social interactions. Cat owners often describe their pets as comforting and calming companions. However, scientists still do not fully understand exactly how pets improve emotional well-being.
The researchers designed a study that looked at people’s emotions in real time instead of asking them to remember how they felt in the past. Participants registered for the study and then received ten notifications on their smartphones every day for five consecutive days.
Each time they received a notification, they completed a short questionnaire about their current mood, what they were doing, and whether they were around or interacting with their pets.
By the end of the study, the team had collected nearly 8,000 reports. This large amount of information allowed them to examine pet-owner interactions moment by moment during normal daily life.
The results showed that spending time with pets generally made people feel better. During moments when owners interacted more with their pets, they tended to experience more positive emotions and fewer negative feelings. Interestingly, this pattern was very similar for both dog owners and cat owners.
The researchers suggested that this may partly be because people often choose pets that fit their personalities. Individuals who consider themselves “dog people” may naturally enjoy activities that dogs provide, while people who think of themselves as “cat people” may appreciate the quieter companionship that cats offer.
This good match between owners and their pets could explain why both groups reported similar emotional benefits.
The scientists then explored another possibility. Many people believe that pets help reduce stress during difficult situations. Researchers wanted to know whether actively interacting with a pet during stressful moments could reduce the emotional impact of stress.
The results were surprising. Although interacting with pets generally improved mood, it did not seem to protect people from the negative effects of stress at the exact moment they felt stressed. Spending more time interacting with a pet did not provide additional emotional protection beyond simply having the animal nearby.
The researchers therefore concluded that pets may improve well-being through a different process. One possibility is that pets provide companionship and help people feel less alone. Having an animal nearby may create feelings of comfort, connection, and emotional security that improve mood over time.
The study also found one unexpected result among cat owners. When stressed cat owners interacted more with their cats, they sometimes reported stronger negative emotions rather than fewer.
The researchers emphasized that this finding should be interpreted carefully because the number of cat owners in the study was relatively small, and the pattern was not always consistent.
Among dog owners, interacting with dogs did not worsen negative emotions during stressful moments, but it also did not significantly reduce them.
The study has several strengths. It collected information in real-world situations and measured people’s emotions repeatedly throughout the day. However, it also has limitations. The study was relatively short, lasted only five days, and relied on self-reported emotions. Larger and longer studies are still needed.
Overall, the findings suggest that both cats and dogs can contribute positively to emotional well-being. The study does not support the idea that one species is clearly better than the other. Instead, the emotional benefits of pet ownership may depend more on the relationship between the owner and the animal than on whether the pet barks or meows.
Review and analysis: This study offers an interesting reminder that emotional well-being is complex. Pets appear to make people feel happier in everyday life, but they may not function as instant stress relievers during difficult moments.
The findings suggest that companionship and emotional connection may be more important than stress reduction itself. The results also highlight that choosing the right pet may depend largely on personal preference and lifestyle rather than the species alone.
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