Answer from Cathleen Schine

I think the most significant change that companion animals – dogs in particular – bring to our lives is, ironically, an expansion of our human interaction.

Of course there are other important changes that dogs give us–an awareness of one’s ignorance of the complicated language of pee, for example; or a realization of how little room on a bed one really requires. And there is the intensely personal change: the sudden epiphany, the overwhelming love for a dog, a love that is unquestioning and undeterred by loud barking, muddy paws, slobber and gnawed chair legs. Inexplicable and boundless love. But I have a feeling people living with dogs have always had these feelings. What is different, perhaps, about living with a dog in this day and age is that dogs bring people together. In cities and even in suburbs, they’ve sort of taken the place of the church picnic or the social club or sitting on your front porch. Now, you walk your dog and you meet other people walking their dogs and you fall into conversation and you realize that you have lived two doors down from this person for five years and never spoken before. But because you have gotten a dog, you now have a neighbor as well. In New York City, everyone with a dog stops to talk to everyone else with a dog. It turns the city into a small town.

Answer from Zennia Barahona

The most significant change that companion animals – dogs in particular – bring to society and/or our individual lives is unconditional love. There truly is no other relationship that we can even hope to have between ourselves and another human in which we will only always receive a pure un-selfish love. It’s said time and time again, but my dogs have never judged me when I’ve made mistakes, been lazy, have a bad hair day or am grouchy. They love me all the same and with the most pure enthusiasm. They always think I’m just the best thing ever and the feeling is mutual.

Living a little bit more by their example hopefully has a ripple effect and that makes it bigger than just me.

Answer from Heather King

The benefits that companion animals bring to us go far beyond the values and lessons learned from caring for the life of a living, breathing animal. Being a dog owner changes your life for the better because they provide unconditional love and protection—something that once experienced is hard to live without.

I have the privilege of sitting on the board of Intermountain Therapy Animals. Their mission is “enhancing quality of life through the human-animal bond.” It’s an international group of volunteer animal-assisted therapy teams who visit patients in hospitals, children in schools, seniors in retirement homes and others to share that unconditional love and comfort a pet can bring. Each board meeting, our volunteers share stories of patients who exhibit positive physical reactions to the animals and will often allow treatments if a therapy animal can be present, or children who improve their socialization and reading skills by reading to dogs, or seniors who respond with smiles and memories of happier times while giving a dog a pat on the head.

Additionally, research suggests that animal owners themselves are often more compassionate, more forgiving and generally calmer in demeanor. Perhaps most importantly, animal owners are generally healthier—both physically and mentally, at least partly because of their interactions with their dogs.

Personally, I’ve also learned to put others’ needs (both animal and human) ahead of my own. For me, the physical and emotional bond between myself and my dogs has gotten me through good times and bad, relationships, moves, etc. and all the while provided a constant support that could be counted on no matter what circumstance I was facing.

In truth, I believe that pet owners reap far more value from the companionship their animals provide than the animals gain from us. Their ability to love unconditionally is a skill we should be so lucky to learn from them.

Answer from Aurora Piacentino

Probably something you would expect from the Director of an animal shelter – the importance of spay/neuter in pet quality companion animals. I think that by this point, most people have probably heard that they should spay or neuter their dog, but most don’t know why. They might have some vague idea of health benefits or pet overpopulation, but those are concepts that most people don’t apply to themselves,

"My pet is healthy, why should I worry?"

"Too many animals? That’s why they have animal shelters, they find good homes for them!"

Pet owners should understand that keeping a dog intact, breeding dogs as well, comes with some very real health risks that can affect healthy adult dogs. With each heat cycle a female dog goes through her chances of developing mammary tumors and a horrific uterine infection, called Pyometra, increases. Pyometra often is diagnosed in later stages and most often requires expensive surgery, fluid therapy, antibiotics and other supportive care to treat. With pregnant dogs, there is always risk that complications could arise during birth – potentially risking both mother and puppies lives. Male dogs that are not neutered can also experience health issues directly related to remaining intact such as Prostate or Testicular Cancer. All of these conditions have the potential to not only significantly affect your pocketbook but to drastically reduce the quality and length of life of your companion.

Pet owners also need to understand that each and every litter born has an effect on their pet community. It simply does not make sense to bring more dogs needing homes into a community where there are already homeless dogs looking for families to adopt them. We do have animal shelters for those unlucky animals that find themselves without a place to call their own, but the dog owners in the community can help the cause by choosing to spay and neuter and thereby reducing pressuring the system, so to speak. It’s up to the animal shelter to provide information on low cost options, but the dog owner must take that next step and do the responsible thing. They have to cast aside fears that simple surgery will change their dog’s personality or physique (both notions that are completely false) and make the decision that they will be a part of the solution.