The Benefits of Human Animal Contact By Tammy Chamness

For years, it has been known that humans that have contact with animals can obtain better Health, such as lower blood pressure, reduction in obesity which in turns reduces cardiac Issues. Not to mention the joy having an animal in life can bring. But what does human animal contact do for the animal? We know in a lot of situations, humans Can induce fear into animals, may it be intentional or not. There are ways that animals can benefit from human contact just like humans do. We just need To know how approach the matter correctly.

The Bond Humans and animals have bonded with each other for centuries. Humans looked at it mainly for a need to be productive, like using horses to plow fields. Even if the humans did not realize it then, a mutual bond was forming.

Protector to teacher and so much more…. The dog was once looked as only a protector for the family. Now that protector has come into the house and has become a part of the family. Their roles in our lives have increased from not only being a protector, but a teacher of compassion, a companion for those who have difficulty allowing people to get close and a way for some to be able to explore their world in ways they never thought was possible.

As with any partnership, there can always be a down side to it. When it comes to how humans interact with animals, it is not always for the welfare of the animal. Humans can be greedy, heartless beings that believe all other creatures were put on this earth for us to exploit. Human interaction with animals mainly used for food production has always had a negative pretrial on the human side. You see videos of fear in the eyes of cattle, pigs and sheep. You see chickens that are in horrible condition. This was all done by the negative contact of humans. Luckily, for the most part, greed is actually a good thing when it comes to looking at how humans impact the animals they are working with. When it can be proven that animals are more reproductive when they are less stressed, those making money, start to look at the welfare of their animals, since in affects their bottom line.

When animals are under less stress from the fear of the interaction with their care givers or stockpeople, they are more productive. Chickens lay more eggs, and have less health issues. Dairy cows produce milk. So human interaction on animals can be measure in dollars for those in the food industry. When people can make more money by changing the way they interact with their animals, especially when it be just the most simplest things like, reducing the noise around laying hens, moving slower around pigs or by scratching the necks of cattle while they are be handled, why not. And in the long run, animal welfare also benefits.

How humans interact with animals can be changed by simple observations, especially in farm animals. Most farm animals live in herds. Learning how herds interact with each other, and how social ques are set, humans can learn how best approach these animals. By watching interactions of grooming, comforting of each other and how social roles affect the herd can be introduced into the management of the herd by the stockpeople. Just by noticing that scratching a certain part of the body, the necks in cows, can reduce their stress level and it later be learned, their heart rate, can reduce the stress level that handle these animals can cause. By watching nature, we can learn how to interact with nature where it benefits both humans and animals.

All animals have feelings and they all have certain stimuli that can either causes them to feel fear and those that illicit the feeling of pleasure. When we are able to distinguish between the two, we can benefit the animals as much as they benefit us.

In conclusion, we have always had a bond with animals, may it not always been beneficial for the animals. Luckily, through an increase desire to have animals as a bigger part of our lives, the benefits of theses relationships have been explored more thoroughly. Once it has been shown how animals benefit the heath and happiness of humans, people wanted to know how animals were being affected by our interactions with them. This is has brought awareness to how just minute changes in ones actions around animals, especially livestock, can have a positive affect on their well being and can also increase their productivity.

References: Appleby, M, Mench, J, Olsson, I.A, & Hughes, B(2011). Animal Welfare 2 nd ed., Oxfordshire, UK: CAB International