Students that pet, cuddle dogs have improved well-being and are less stressed, study finds

Petting and cuddling a dog can have a big impact on students' well-being, according to new research from Canada. Academics at the University of British Columbia divided 284 students into three groups: One could interact with a therapy dog, but wasn't allowed to touch it, while a second group could both interact and touch their therapy dog. The third group, a control, met with a dog handler but no dog. Before the experiment, the volunteers were asked about their overall wellbeing--including social connectedness, happiness, integration into the campus community, stress, homesickness, loneliness, positive and negative affect, and'self-perceptions of flourishing.' All groups saw some improvement, but only the group allowed to pet their therapy dog illustrated major improvement in all the categories.