There's no single "best" animal for anxiety, as it depends on your lifestyle, but dogs and cats are top choices for their unconditional love, while fish and small pets (rabbits, hamsters) offer calming presence and easier care, with dogs providing routine and motivation for activity, and cats offering independent, purring comfort, all boosting happy hormones and reducing stress.
Best Pets for Reducing Anxiety and Depression
There are several things you can try to help combat anxiety, including:
Dogs are more than pets—they are companions who can sense emotions and offer unwavering support. Daily walks encourage physical activity, which releases endorphins, naturally reducing stress and anxiety. Moreover, dogs provide unconditional love, helping to fight loneliness and boost mood.
Therapy dogs are especially good at this. They're sometimes brought into hospitals or nursing homes to help reduce patients' stress and anxiety. “Dogs are very present. If someone is struggling with something, they know how to sit there and be loving,” says Dr.
To reduce anxiety naturally, focus on lifestyle changes like regular exercise, a balanced diet, and good sleep, alongside mental techniques such as mindfulness, deep breathing, and challenging negative thoughts. Connecting with loved ones, spending time in nature, and engaging in enjoyable activities also help, while avoiding substances like caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol can significantly lower anxiety.
Not only do pets provide comfort and companionship, but studies have shown that keeping a pet can help reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and other negative moods. In fact, a recent survey has shown that 87% of pet owners say they have experienced mental health improvements as a result of owning a pet.
An hour for a dog feels much longer than an hour for a human because dogs perceive time more slowly due to their faster metabolism and heightened awareness of routines, so a 10-minute wait can feel like 70 minutes to them, and your hour-long absence feels like an eternity, though they don't grasp clock time but rather the intervals between events like meals, walks, and your return.
It's no secret that pets can contribute to your happiness. Studies show that dogs reduce stress, anxiety and depression. They ease loneliness, encourage exercise and improve your overall health. For example, people with dogs tend to have lower blood pressure and are less likely to develop heart disease.
Teas for stress and anxiety relief
To cope with an anxiety disorder, here's what you can do:
Yes. A student with an anxiety disorder has a disability if their anxiety disorder substantially limits one or more of their major life activities. An anxiety disorder can, for example, substantially limit concentrating, which is a major life activity under Section 504.
Because not only can dogs make you feel better, but the responsibilities entailed in the human-canine relationship can provide important structural and social benefits that lessen the burden of depression. Dogs bring happiness into your life, and depression is often no match for the unconditional love they provide.
Studies have found that interacting with a therapy dog (familiar or unfamiliar to you) can lead to reduced anxiety, blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol (the stress hormone). Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) can improve mood and connection among people living with depressive disorders.
An emotional support animal (ESA) is just what it sounds like—a pet that provides emotional support. ESAs don't need any special training, beyond the normal training a pet needs. Dogs and cats are the most common, but any domesticated animal can be an ESA.
The 3-3-3 rule for dogs is a guideline for new owners, especially for rescues, showing a dog's typical adjustment phases: 3 Days (overwhelmed, decompression), 3 Weeks (settling in, learning routine, showing personality), and 3 Months (feeling at home, building trust, fully integrated). It's a framework to set expectations, reminding owners to be patient and provide structure, as every dog's timeline varies.
How do they do this? It's biological. All animals have circadian rhythms - physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle, responding to light and darkness in the environment. They may also be affected by factors like temperature and social cues.
One minute for a human is 7 minutes for a dog, 1 hour is 7 hours, 1 day is 7 days, 1 week is 7 weeks, and so on.
Top 10 dog breeds for anxiety or PTSD care
They can detect chemical changes in our bodies, such as shifts in hormones like cortisol (linked to stress) or serotonin (linked to happiness). This allows them to "smell" our emotions, even when we try to hide them. Dogs don't just sense emotions—they react to them, too.
Here's what we know — and don't know — about some herbal supplements:
5-4-3-2-1 exercise for anxiety FAQs
It involves identifying 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste. By doing so, it helps shift your focus from anxiety-provoking thoughts to the present moment.
Supplement options
Although further studies are needed, vitamin D deficiency has been linked to anxiety and depression. Supplements may help manage symptoms of stress and anxiety in those who are deficient. Vitamin B complex supplements may also help lower stress and anxiety levels.