[.ca] The Healing Power of Pets: Harnessing the Amazing ... (ISBN 0786886919)

Well rounded information on pets' extra-sensory abilities:
Dr. Becker and Danelle Morton describe the positive effects that animals bring into our lives. They focus mostly on dogs and cats in this book and only briefly touch on other pets such as birds or rodents. They combine individual testimonials concerning animals assisting sick humans with data from researchers who study animal behaviour, and interviews with therapists who use animals for therapy. He sites several examples of nursing homes that have resident pets trained to assist in therapy sessions and discusses how these animals bring joy to lonely and/or ill elderly. More importantly, Dr. Becker details the type of pet best suited for a particular personality or illness. He candidly points out that pets are not for everyone; that sharing your home with an animal requires great commitment and sometimes expense. He outlines the required care, loving and guidance needed. For me, this was the most important point in his book. This book is well written, easy to read and absent of technical jargon. This book is not a treatise of recent scientific research on the subject of animal behavior or the use of animals in therapy. Most of the heart-warming stories are testimonials rather than solid scientific data, but anyone who truly shares a bond with an animal will appreciate these stories. I recommend this book for anyone thinking of getting a pet, who already has a pet, or who simply loves animals. I particularly recommend this book to folks who see animals only as a commodity or worker/helper/hunter. It's an enlightening book.

The science behind intuition:
We all have a sense that our pets make us feel better but Dr. Becker actually did the research and explains how, for example, our animal companions lower our cholesterol, settle our blood pressure, and generally improve our lives. What is refreshing is that he also looks at our pets' lives and shows how we affect them (and how we can make them feel better). This is a respectful, intelligent book about a bond that many of us feel, but few of us understand. -Clea Simon, author, "The Feline Mystique: On the Mysterious Connection Between Women and Cats"

Great book - not just lip service.:
The author has certainly done his homework and researched his issues in detail. A great book for anyone who is interested in pets. Well worth the money.

A reader from WI:
Marty Becker has written a very readable, informative book. He confirms what many people have believed to be true for a long time; that animals are good for us. He provides many examples of how animals are emotionally good for us as well as physiologically (they help to lower our blood pressure, cholesterol, lessen feelings of physical pain, decrease feelings of social anxiety, etc.). The information he shares is based on his personal experiences, the experiences of others, as well as information from various studies which have been done. After reading the book, I felt even better about the relationships I myself have with the animals that share my household. I am looking forward to utilizing his suggestions found at the end of the book to further strengthen "The Bond" I have with my pets, as well as sharing this book with others in order that they too can further appreciate the gifts our pets give us on a daily basis to make our lives even better.

A fine balance of personal anecdotes and scientific info:
The fact that this book was written by a co-author of "Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul" (a book that I loved) is one of the things that made me pick it up. However, "Healing Power of Pets" is more than a collection of animal anecdotes. There's a lot of good, solid scientific information woven in, too. Dr. Marty Becker, a veterinarian who has worked with Animal-Assisted Therapy programs, cites numerous studies which show that people who are bonded with their pet(s) lead longer, heathier lives. On page 74, for example, he refers to a 1995 study conducted by Erka Friedmann, a professor at the Department of Health and Nutritional Studies at Brooklyn College. She recruited 392 patients who had suffered heart attacks and were part of the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial. Of these, 87 owned dogs and 282 did not. A year later, only one of the dog owners had died, while 19 of the non-dog-owners had passed away. In other words, people who own a dog are far more likely to be alive a year after having a heart attack. Why is this? Many reasons are given in the book: dog owners get more exercise, they take better care of themselves because they feel responsible for the dog, they relax while petting the dog, they are less lonely because of the dog, etc. Other studies have shown that the act of stroking an animal's fur lowers the human's blood pressure like a form of meditation. As a Jewish educator reading this book, I could not help but reflect on the fact that, compared to the general population, far fewer Jews have pets. In the Orthodox and Hasidic communities, especially, it is rare to see a dog in the house. One reason is because dogs were used to track and kill people during the Holocaust and other persecutions, so they have bad associations for many Jews. I understand this. Still, I found myself wondering how many of those 282 non-dog-owners in the Brooklyn College study were Jewish. (Brooklyn has a high percentage of Jews.) Are we allowing Old World fears about dogs to deprive us of a valuable form of therapy? The pet doesn't have to be a dog, however. Cats (of which I have ten!) are equally therapeutic. So are other species, such as birds, rabbits, guinea pigs, etc. Even watching a tank full of fish can help a person to relax. The important thing is the Bond between the animal(s) and the human(s). Reading this book confirmed in a scientific way what I have always believed in my heart: this special Bond is a healing gift that God designed into the very fabric of creation.