DISCOVER THE CALMING QUALITIES OF ANIMALS

There's great comfort to be found in a mindfulness session with furry friends, says new's Natalie Bowen

- NATALIE BOWEN

There are scores of apps aiming to help us monitor our mental health, but sometimes the best approach is to turn off technology. Getting outdoors in parks, woodland and other natural settings has long been known to improve people’s mood – the Japanese call it shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing”. But recently researchers have been investigating whether spending time with animals can have similar benefits.

In the US, emotional support animals (usually dogs) may be prescribed by doctors to help patients with anxiety and special educational needs – although in the UK they’re still considered pets, not service animals. Even the Duke of Sussex has called his Labrador and two beagles “emotional support dogs” and said that “we all need a dog that keeps us calm”.

Encouraging people to interact with animals in relaxing spaces is not a new idea (remember cat cafés and goat yoga?), so does the idea of combining animal therapy and mindfulness take this a step further? It appears so. In fact, a 2022 study published by Frontiers In Psychiatry highlighted an unexpectedly mindful species: sheep.

“By nature, sheep are non-judgmental and show full awareness in presence,” its authors wrote. “This mirrors the attitude prompted in mindfulness of being present, non-judgmental, accepting and compassionate, which can be especially beneficial for patients with a trauma history.”