The risks are very real and above all very serious.
When we are about to adopt a pet, we embark on a formidable adventure that will necessarily lead to a beautiful relationship. We expect moments of tenderness, games, a certain complicity on a daily basis. We think of long walks with his dog, the purrs of a huddled cat on our knees, the small habits that settle down over time or the unconditional love that will be born. But sometimes, this fusional relationship can include risks, especially for those who are too attached to their four -legged companion. It may seem insane, and yet a recent scientific study suggests that the relationship between a human and their pet is not always healthy.
Indeed, in an article published in The Conversation In February 2025, Brian N. Chin, professor of psychology at the Trinity College of Hartford (Connecticut), found that a person’s well-being does not only depend on having an animal, but on the quality of the link that unites them. With his team, he sought to measure the impact of this attachment to the mental health of humans. For this, they interviewed more than 1,000 animal owners in the United States on their relationship with their companion. They asked them many questions about the proximity they had with their animal, the frequency they spent time together, played together and were cary. They also asked them what their level of security or anxiety was that they felt in this relationship. Subsequently, they evaluated the symptoms of depression perceived in the owners.
By analyzing all this data, the experts observed that “The people who felt excessively dependent on their animal, were constantly worried about being separated from him or wondered if he” loved “them in return, were more likely to present depressive symptoms”, Can we read in the article. Clearly, the study results show that “The quality of the attachment has more than its intensity. People maintaining a reassuring relationship with their animal reported better well-being, while those suffering from anxiety of attachment felt more distress.”
Researchers also realized that people who have both a dog and a cat are more subject to depressive symptoms, compared to those who have only one animal. Of course, this does not mean that all owners must stop looking for comfort at all costs with their hair ball. But they must know how to differentiate between “soothing attachment” and “anxious attachment”. For this, the professor of psychology advises to find a balance in the relationship, to promote the well-being of humans as of animals.
