• DVM360_Conference_Charlotte,NC_banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

MD promotes power of human-animal bond

March 1, 2002
Jennifer Fiala

Las Vegas-Pets have the power to heal our bodies, soothe our souls and calm our minds. That's the message Edward Creagan, MD, gave to more than 300 veterinarians last month at the 74th annual Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas. The event, "The Pet Prescription," sponsored by Veterinary Pet Insurance, featured expert findings on the physiological and psychological effects of pets on people.

Las Vegas-Pets have the power to heal our bodies, soothe our soulsand calm our minds.

That's the message Edward Creagan, MD, gave to more than 300 veterinarianslast month at the 74th annual Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas.The event, "The Pet Prescription," sponsored by Veterinary PetInsurance, featured expert findings on the physiological and psychologicaleffects of pets on people.

Creagan, who's spent 28 years working in the world-renowned Mayo Clinic'soncology unit, says after treating 55,000 terminally ill patients, he knowsone thing's for certain:

"Pets are the catalyst of the mind-body connection. The way we thinkis the way we become."

Four-legged life savers

It's been proven, Creagan says, that fear, stress and loneliness canshorten a person's life, causing cardiac arrests and strokes that oftenare driven by emotion.

"In the United States, 40 percent of us will undergo psychoanalysisat some point in our lifetime, one in three will have some type of a mentalbreakdown and 27 percent of all teenagers will contemplate suicide,"he says. "My advice is to get a cat or dog. It will simplify a lotof miseries."

Citing data from veterinarians, physicians and psychiatrists, Creagansurmises that relationships with pets can be as important a catalyst tohealth as diet and exercise.

Advertisement

"Pets love us unconditionally," he says, "and our attitudeabout ourselves has a direct effect on our health."

Hard evidence

For example, a 30-year study conducted at the Mayo Clinic reveals pessimistsdie, on average, eight years younger than optimists, Creagan notes.

"We simply don't need a mathematical model to prove this,"he says, "You need that four-legged personal trainer at the end ofthe bed. Without positive connections, it's very difficult to go the distancein today's society."

People, he says, succeed when they feel good about themselves-a truthpet-owning cancer patients show while hanging on in a terminal condition.

"Social isolation equals mortality," he says. "Whetherit be a dog, cat, fish or bird, pets provide nonjudgmental affection thatwe all need. We're all in the same canoe. We all need someone to love."


Advertisement

Latest News

3 Must-sees for Women's History Month

News wrap-up: This week’s headlines, plus Embrace announces its top Irish pet names

Oldest tortoise at Houston Zoo becomes father to 3 hatchlings

Veterinary tech students awarded national scholarship

View More Latest News
Advertisement