Pet ownership and cardiovascular mortality – is it the ownership or the walking?

4th January 2020, Dr Chee L Khoo

Anecdotal evidence suggests that having a pet reduces cardiovascular mortality. Does it? You can imagine that trying to conduct a randomised control trial can be difficult. One has to consider the pre-existing risks profile of the pet owner, physical activity pre and post pet ownership, marital status of the owner and whether pet ownership benefits men or women more.…