Dogs soothe pain

The company of a dog eases the pain. This calming effect of having an animal at one’s side was suggested, but proof was lacking. Whereas a human presence, even a friendly one, has no effect.

Mathilde Fontez, editor-in-chief of the magazine Epsiloon explains to us why the dog is definitely man’s best friend.

franceinfo: An international team of psychologists has just demonstrated that their presence, alongside us, soothes pain?

Mathilde Fontez: Yes, it is a very comprehensive study which was carried out by these researchers. With 124 volunteers – all women, to avoid bias in terms of pain perception. They agreed to plunge their hand into a bath of ice water, accompanied by their dog. Or for others, a dog they didn’t know. Or with a friend – human – near them…

The researchers followed all their reactions: they asked them to evaluate their pain, they captured the activity of the muscles in their face, they followed the evolution of their stress by measuring the conductivity of their skin. And as a result, in all cases, the presence of an animal significantly reduced the intensity of the pain. They had less pain.

Less bad than in the presence of a human friend?

Yes, that’s what’s interesting according to the researchers. The effect of dogs is stronger. Which means that it’s not just friendly support that works – in fact the pain eases even when you don’t know the dog.

Researchers evoke the idea of ​​unconditional comfort: the animal does not judge you, the relationship with it takes place outside of social and cultural norms. It is therefore more effective in supporting you, in providing this buffering effect against pain.

Moreover, studies have shown that the presence of a human loved one can be counterproductive when we are in pain: we may want to arouse empathy, we talk more about our pain, and we increase it rather than reduce it.

Does it reinforce the idea that pets are an aid to health?

Yes, pets are already considered an effective psychological aid, it is known that they have many health benefits. And this study shows that we could go further: relying on dogs for support in hospitals, for example. Imagine animal-assisted therapies.

Tests will be carried out on chronic pain – much more complex than acute pain like that studied by this study. Let us also point out that for it to work, you must also be familiar with dogs, accept their presence: this is the limit of their pain-relieving effect. If you are afraid of it, obviously the effect disappears.

The study