After a decade’s worth of research, postgraduate psychiatry researcher, Matt Cassells, has established that the importance pets play in the lives of children has been hugely underestimated.
With the participation of 100 families in the UK, Mr. Cassells established that children often feel they can seek emotional support from their pet, saying: “They may feel that their pets are not judging them.”
Referring to research into familial breakdowns which emerged from the United States, Mr. Cassells acknowledged that many children in the US are more likely to live with a family pet than their natural father.
According to statistics, two thirds of children live with their father while approximately 80% of children in the States live with a pet which can strengthen the bond a child feels with the animal.
Explaining the impact a pet can have on a child, Mr. Cassells asserted: “These children not only turn to their pets for support when faced with adversity, they do so even more than they turn to their siblings.”
According to the researcher, children seek comfort in their pets when dealing with ‘bereavement, divorce, instability and illness’ meaning that this relationship should not be dismissed, saying: “It is valid to talk about child pet relationships in the same way we talk about sibling relationships.”
