For me the answer is yes.
Over these past few years of growing Phoenix Bark, there have been moments where I really struggled, moments where I even cried. But these moments were always cut short by an unexpected burst of excited energy, a goofy glance, a loving nuzzle or a sloppy kiss, literally licking my tears away. No matter how tough it has been creating this business of producing fresh dog food, poetically it is my dog Barbara who has lifted me up and given me that push to go on… AND with a smile on my face.
It is hard to stay sad when she is there full of happiness, experiencing life one moment at a time, fully present, joyful and looking at me with those big brown adoring eyes. Her positivity, so pure and so contagious. She gives me so much, I don’t want her to feel my sorrow either, I want to reflect back to her the love and delight she gives to me. So I quickly snap out of it and my mood always changes for the better.
It’s not just me, so many of our customers chat to me about how their dog changed their lives. Mine is just one out of the millions worldwide. They are not just a pet – they really are our family and dare I say it sometimes the ones that change us and support us the most (apologies to my other family members, I love you too 👀)
Duncan and I have, in the past, met dog guardians who were baffled by our food – why would we feed such high-quality meat to a dog?
The answer lies with all of us whose lives have been changed by our dogs – whose emotional resilience has deepened, whose capacity for attachment and letting go has grown, whose sadness was lifted or for whom a small shift reshaped their future. Or perhaps it’s simply in the quiet friendship and love exchanged between us.
We want the best for them. We want them to live as long as they can (though it’s never long enough for us) and to be healthy and happy. And fresh high quality food for our girl is a no-brainer.
But let’s take a deeper dive, we know our dogs are special but what are the facts? What does science have to say?
- When you lock eyes with your dog, your brain releases oxytocin, the same chemical bond that is formed between mothers and infants. (1)
- 10 minutes spent petting your dog lowers cortisol levels and anxiety, without any negative side effects. (2)
- Canine therapy is real, studies using electroencephalogram (EEG) technology have found that time spent petting, walking or playing with dogs can help foster feelings of trust, heighten concentration levels and bring feelings of relaxed wakefulness. (3)
- Strong bonds with our dogs enhances our empathy towards other humans (4). Our connection with them can rewire our neural pathways to help us to become more empathetic. Children who grow up with strong attachments to dogs can have higher levels of compassion and social competence (5) (6)
- Our dogs help us to process grief, not only by increasing dopamine and serotonin, the hormones associated with well-being, during interaction with them but also they offer non judgemental support. In fact a study found that 98% of the grieving participants reported higher satisfaction from their dogs compared to humans. (7) Humans move on and get on with their life, whereas dogs offer unwavering constant support. They are empathetic too, they feel our pain and want to help.
- Our dogs make us get up and go, make us have to leave the house and go for a walk. In turn this not only helps us become healthier but also to form social connections with other humans.
- There is less risk of premature death in those who live alone with their dog. (8)
- Dogs can assist in decreasing anxiety and loneliness by 80% (9)
- Having a dog helps lower blood pressure levels and interestingly in this same study, when asked how has your pet changed your life, the consensus response with the highest rating was: “Having this pet makes me better able to see what is really important and to put things into perspective.” (10)
- Since having a dog means more exercise, stress reduction and enhanced social support, it is not shocking to find that dog guardians are less likely to die from heart disease (11)
Thank you Barbara, my soul mate and best friend – thank you for changing me, for helping me see the world a different way and for your unwavering constant love and support and to all the dogs out there – thank you.
I would love to hear your story too, if you would like to share 🙂
- https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1261022 – Oxytocin-gaze positive loop and the coevolution of human-dog bonds
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2332858419852592 – Study demonstrates stress reduction benefits from petting dogs, cats
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240313185025.htm – Interactions with dogs can increase brainwaves associated with stress relief and heightened concentration
- https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/13/2220 – Exploring the Role of Empathy as a Dual Mediator in the Relationship between Human–Pet Attachment and Quality of Life: A Survey Study among Adult Dog Owners
- https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/5/490?utm_- Childhood Attachment to Pets: Associations between Pet Attachment, Attitudes to Animals, Compassion, and Humane Behaviour
- https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/3/234 – Companion Animals and Child/Adolescent Development: A Systematic Review of the Evidence
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8158955/ – What is good grief support? Exploring the actors and actions in social support after traumatic grief
- https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/dog-owners-less-heart-disease-and-longer-life?utm_ – Dog owners: Less heart disease and longer life?
- https://habri.org/research/mental-health/social-isolation/?utm_ Pet ownership and human-animal interaction (HAI) for improving social connections, providing social support, decreasing loneliness and depression.
- https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/hyp.38.4.815 – Pet Ownership, but Not ACE Inhibitor Therapy, Blunts Home Blood Pressure Responses to Mental Stress
- https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.119.005554 – Dog Ownership and Survival: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
You can get in touch if you would like to chat about anything related to your dog’s nutrition, contact kathy@phoenixbark.com 🙂