CLINICAL QUESTION

Does pet therapy improve anxiety?

EVIDENCE-BASED ANSWER

Pet therapy is used to treat anxiety because it notably reduces self-reported anxiety across multiple age groups. (Strength of Recommendation [SOR]: A, meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials [RCTs], controlled trials, and observational studies.) Most pet therapy studies involve dogs, but cats and horses also have been studied. In patients with dementia, animal-assisted therapy reduces behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia and depression. (SOR: A, meta-analysis of RCTs.)

EVIDENCE SUMMARY

A 2018 meta-analysis of 10 RCTs, 10 non-RCTs, and eight observational studies (N = 1,310) examined the effect of exposure to pet therapy on self-reported stress and anxiety scores across all ages and health statuses.¹ Twenty-three studies included adults (n = 1,225) and five studies included children (n = 85). Patients with anxiety or anxiety-associated diagnoses were seen in various settings, including outpatient, inpatient, and residential. Measurements were obtained immediately before and after pet therapy and included observed physiologic metrics and self-scoring indicators of stress and/or anxiety. Dogs were used in most studies, but two included cats.