If you’ve read my write up on how pets can benefit mental health, then you’ll know that when I started working with animals, I was being bullied in school. While I had a few friends from sports, they lived very far away and I could only see them when I had practice. This left me feeling very lonely in my everyday life. This is around the same time that our 4-H training started to ramp up in preparation for our county fair and I began to spend much more time with some of the people who would eventually become my best friends.
Something about being friends with people who do similar activities to you is that you all have similar interests, and in the case of 4-H similar work ethics. When people all work together like this, you understand the hard work that it takes for you to reach a given goal, creating respect within the friendships. Not only did my friends and I respect each other but we all had a lot of fun too! As we got closer, we began to spend time together outside of dog training and 4-H meetings as well. While the dog training and leadership experiences were incredibly valuable to me, I believe that the friendships I made are the most irreplaceable parts of my 4-H career.
While it’s fun, you don’t need to be involved in dog training or another 4-H project to make an animal based connection. Think about how many times you’re walking around and you see someone with a cute dog that you ask to pet. An instant connection is formed right there! Not only are our pets some of our best friends, but they help us make more human friends as well!
These are a few examples from my personal experience. Click some of the links below to learn more about how pets can help you form more human connections and friendships.
https://www.shape.com/lifestyle/mind-and-body/pets-improve-social-life
