April is National Pet Month. This made us realise it’s about time we celebrated those work from home companions that can cause joy and chaos in equal measure – usually all in the course of a single conference call.
If you regularly work from home you’ll appreciate that sometimes things can get a little lonely. This was especially true during lockdown.
Combating that feeling of isolation can be a real challenge, even if you live with other people. If you all spend time isolated in different rooms while working, there’s no chance to chat and mingle like if you were in the office. Or if you’re the only one working from home, the house can quickly become eerily and disconcertingly quiet once you’ve waved everyone on their way to school or work.
Putting the radio on can help but there’s still that sense of separation from the rest of the working world, even if you regularly keep in touch with colleagues over the phone or via video call.
So if you suffer some form of work from home blues, here’s how a home office pet could help.
Pets can help with mental health
It might not seem like it as your cat is parading across your laptop for the fifth time in as many minutes, but pets are great for mental health. But don’t just take our word for it, there have been academic studies done on the subject:
- Brickel (1981) found that pets enhance the lives of their owners through Pet-facilitated Psychotherapy (PFP). This helps to increase social interaction and can offer comfort and support.
- Friedman and Thomas (1985) found that the presence of pets had positive effects on cardiovascular responses and mild stressors. The study concluded by acknowledging the importance of the role pets have in the household.
Pets can also help in the following ways:
- Reduce stress
- Develop a routine
- Make you get outdoors and active
Let your pet guide your daily routine
Structuring the day is another problem many people have when working from home, but if you have a pet that instinctively knows when it’s time for a walk, or time to get fed, this can instantly add some structure to your day.
So, if you’ve a dog that’s hanging around the door with leash in its mouth at 8am every morning, take this opportunity to get up and ready for work, replace the half hour drive to work with a half hour dog walk and when you get back you’ll be good to get on with the day job.
Likewise, if you’ve another pet patrolling the house while you’re working, taking five or ten minutes out to play with them can break up your day and clear your mind.
Of course, there is a flip side to this – a dog that constantly craves attention or a cat that won’t keep quiet unless its eating can prove to be a massive distraction, but in the main pets can be great company and have that amazing ability to make you feel loved even if it seems the rest of the world is against you.
And that’s something you really can’t put a price on when you’re having a bad day!
Consider your clients
If you have clients or colleagues round to your home as part of your working week, then this is something that needs to be considered if you’re keeping pets around the house – no one is going to want to sit on a couch that’s covered in dog hairs and risk leaving with their suit looking the same.
Similarly, although you might love the way your dog jumps all over you when it sees you or how the cat comes and sits on your lap, it’s unlikely any colleagues or clients will feel the same, particularly if any of them have an allergy or a simple aversion to animals.
So, if you do have a four-legged co-worker at home, make sure they’re kept out of the way when bringing colleagues or clients into the house and, if possible, keep a room completely pet-free for this very purpose.
Over to you, do you have a pet to keep you company during the stay-at-home nine-to-five? If so, let us know how it works for you…
