@article {12643, title = {The Impact of Sustained Ownership of a Pet on Cognitive Health: A Population-Based Study.}, journal = {Journal of Aging and Health}, year = {Forthcoming}, abstract = {

To examine associations between sustained ownership of a pet and cognitive outcomes among a national sample of U.S. adults. Weighted linear mixed models were estimated using the Health and Retirement Study (2010-2016, = 1369) to compare repeated measures of cognitive function between respondents who endorsed owning a pet in a sustained manner (>5~years), versus those who owned a pet <=5~years, and non-pet owners. Respondents aged 65+ who owned a pet >5~years demonstrated higher composite cognitive scores, compared to non-pet owners (β = .76, = .03). Sustained pet ownership was associated with higher immediate (β = .3, = .02) and delayed (β = .4, = .007) word recall scores. There were no significant differences in cognitive scores between pet owners and non-owners aged < 65. Sustained ownership of a pet could mitigate cognitive disparities in older adults. Further studies are needed to examine potential causal pathways, including physical activity and stress buffering, versus selection effects.

}, keywords = {cognitive function, Cognitive health, companion animals, pet ownership, Pets}, issn = {1552-6887}, doi = {10.1177/08982643221122641}, author = {Applebaum, Jennifer W and Shieu, Monica M and McDonald, Shelby E and Dunietz, Galit Levi and Braley, Tiffany J} }