Exploring the Human-Animal Bond

Originally published in TC Dog in 2005.

I often joke with friends and colleagues that my 9-year-old German shepard/greyhound mix, Maggie, yearned to be a therapy dog until she realized that she already had a full-time job (me). I am only half-joking when I say this. While I am aware that it was she who arrived, dehydrated and desperate, on my front lawn over eight years ago, I also know that the who-rescued-whom of our story is a bit more complicated than that. More and more, I recognize that the bond we share is a multilayered, constantly evolving gift that benefits us both in countless ways.

I can speak of this bond to people who "get it" with more elaboration than explanation, in a way that opens doors to conversations filled with stories that bring about both side-splitting laughter and eye-stinging tears. Talk like this in front of people for whom the human-animal bond is a more foreign concept, though, and a suspicious hush will fall over the room. This hush, which often seems tinged with judgment, is achingly familiar to those of us who share our most profoundly human experiences with friends, colleagues, and companions of the four-legged, finned, or feathered varieties. So what is it about the human-animal bond that befuddles and inspires us? What does it mean to be bonded to a creature of another species, and how is that bond important?

There are a couple of different approaches to understanding the human-animal bond. Some scientists say that humans bond with nonhuman animals because we are hard-wired to pay close attention to the natural world. E.O. Wilson's name for this idea, biophilia, describes this predisposition as the ability to "read" the natural world in order to find food and shelter, avoid predators, and predict dangerous situations-an ability that is tied to our evolutionary development. In short, we are drawn to animals and nature now because the ability to understand the natural world was a necessity for our ancestors. And while human evolution and cultural revolutions have made nature into something we often conquer instead of co-exist with, many humans still feel an inherent tug toward the natural world-a world that continues to engage, fascinate, and heal us in so many ways.

By extension, then, it should not be surprising that contact with other species is often good for us. In fact, research indicates that people who are bonded with animals (i.e. consider companion animals to be a good friend or family member) reap multiple benefits from those bonds, including reduced physiological responses to stress and enhanced social support systems. There is also evidence that for children in particular, the presence of animals is comforting, motivating, and empathy-promoting. When brought together under social support theory, we can see that the real value in human-animal relationships comes from the fact that animals provide us with unconditional positive regard and facilitate the social relationships so necessary to our mental and physical health. Speaking only for myself, I can easily say that Maggie and her canine brother, Tucker, have proven to be two of my greatest teachers, healers, and friends regardless of how unkempt I look, how varied my moods, or how capable I am of meeting their daily jellybean quota. Their presence does not substitute for human relationships, but it adds one-hundredfold to the richness, meaning, and security of my life. More often than not, it just feels good to be with them.

It is important to recognize that the human-animal bond is just as varied in form and function as is the human-human bond. While contemporary research suggests that many pet owners consider their companion animals to be full-fledged family members, not every person relishes having contact with animals. Furthermore, not all people consider themselves to be emotionally bonded to their companion animals, and not all human-animal relationships are functional and positive. Sometimes those relationships are mutually respectful and beneficial; sometimes those relationships are a one-way street, with the needs of the human determining the depth of the bond; and sometimes, unfortunately, those relationships are dysfunctional and hurtful to one (or both) parties-which puts the bond between the animal and their human at tremendous risk. We need only look to the links between human and animal abuse, or the huge numbers of animals surrendered to shelters, to see that humans and animals are not always "bonded" in an ideal or healthy way. By granting animals substantial responsibility for our health and well-being, we run a very real risk of shortchanging them. It is not, after all, their job to make humans well.

Drawing attention to the pitfalls, though, should not overshadow the incredible power and potential that is found within the human-animal bond. The bonds between animals and their humans often defy both our efforts to define the bond, as well as the conventional wisdom dictating that significant emotional bonds can only be formed within species. And regardless of how well we understand how, and why, these bonds form, we need only look around us to witness the human-animal bond in all of its glory. Visit a dog park, a pet supply store, or a veterinary clinic, and then listen closely to how Cassidy protects her humans from strange visitors and blowing leaves, how Maya Moon skips at the sound of her human brother waking up from a nap, and how Samantha lifts her lips in a wide grin when her people come home from a day at the office. Observe the grief work being done at a pet loss support group, and hear someone talk about the shock that comes from a sudden and shattering diagnosis of cancer, the shame and guilt that stem from excruciating decisions to euthanize, or the cavernous sorrow that results from the loss of a beloved, irreplaceable four-legged family member. Not only are examples of mutual, respectful, and meaningful human-animal bonds all around us, but they also take on a new energy as we share our own stories. It is my hope that through our stories, others may learn to "get it," too.