The belief that owning a pet improves mental well-being has long been popular. Many assume that adopting a dog or cat leads to greater happiness and reduced loneliness. But new research challenges this assumption, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, when social isolation was widespread and pet adoption rates soared.

Exploring the Emotional Role of Pets During Lockdown

While it’s often believed that pets bring health and emotional benefits, scientific studies have struggled to consistently confirm this so-called “pet effect.” The pandemic offered a unique opportunity to examine these claims, as people faced extended periods of isolation and disruption in daily life.

Researchers from Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in Hungary studied how people experienced pet acquisition and loss during the pandemic. Their findings, published in Scientific Reports, revealed surprising insights into the emotional impact of pet ownership.

“Through a collaboration with a psychologist team led by Zsolt Demetrovics and Róbert Urbán, we had access to a unique data set,” explains Eniko Kubinyi, head of the MTA-ELTE ‘Momentum’ Companion Animals Research Group. “During the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, almost three thousand people across Hungary participated three times in data collection, several months apart. We noticed that 65 people acquired a pet and 75 lost one during the study, and decided to investigate how their well-being changed over time.”

Short-Term Cheer, Long-Term Decline

The study found that while acquiring a dog brought a brief boost in mood, it did not lead to sustained improvements in mental well-being. In fact, over time, participants who had adopted dogs reported declines in calmness, life satisfaction, cheerfulness, and activity levels.

More unexpectedly, those who lost a pet during the study showed no significant drop in emotional well-being, contradicting the common assumption that pet loss leads to deep emotional distress.

Ádám Miklósi, who initiated the data collection on companion animals, emphasises, “We rarely have access to data that documents spontaneous pet acquisition from people unbiased in their attitude toward pet ownership. Usually, pet lovers are identified and studied when the decision to adopt an animal is already settled. It appears that, at least during stressful periods, the average person, who may not be the primary caregiver but simply shares a household with the pet, is not significantly affected by the pet’s loss, nor is their well-being a strong predictor of the decision to acquire one.”

Pets and Loneliness: A Surprising Finding

Another common belief is that pets can ease loneliness, particularly for elderly or isolated individuals. However, the data showed no measurable decrease in loneliness among new pet owners. In some cases, adopting a pet even coincided with increased anxiety.

“What surprised me most,” adds Judit Mokos, data scientist and one of the paper’s first authors, “was that a new pet in the household had no effect on the respondents’ loneliness. Dog adoption is often promoted as a solution for elderly and/or lonely people. Shelters and pet food companies promote adoption as a means of alleviating loneliness. However, our research suggests that dogs do not provide a real solution to loneliness; rather, they make the new owners more anxious.”

The Limits of the Pet-Human Bond

The research team concluded that, for most people, pet ownership during the pandemic did not result in deep emotional bonding or long-term improvements in well-being.

Kubinyi concludes, “Based on the data, most people, living together with a companion animal, do not seem to experience any long-term ‘pet effect’, nor do they bond strongly with their animal. It is possible that the dynamics of the pandemic have led many to make impulsive choices against their long-term interest, or that only certain groups—like devoted animal lovers or older adults living alone—truly benefit from pets in stressful times.”

This study suggests that while pets may offer companionship and short-term joy, their influence on mental health—especially during times of crisis—may not be as powerful or consistent as often believed. As the world reexamines lessons from the pandemic, our understanding of the emotional roles animals play in human lives continues to evolve.

Original Publication
Authors: Judit Mokos, Eniko Kubinyi, Dorottya J. Ujfalussy, Ivaylo B. Iotchev, Borbála Paksi, Zsolt Demetrovics, Róbert Urbán and Ádám Miklósi.
Journal: Scientific Reports
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-06987-7
Article Title: Short-term effects of pet acquisition and loss on well-being in an unbiased sample during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article Publication Date: 1-Jul-2025

Original Source: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06987-7