Scientists reveal that hugging your dog can reduce symptoms after a physically painful experience

Whether it’s a parent or our spouse, we often like to have a loved one nearby when we’re recovering from a painful procedure.

But new research suggests that dogs should be our number one recovery partner.

Scientists in Germany have discovered that having a canine nearby reduces the feeling of pain during recovery from a tough physical test.

Cuddling a dog, or even just having one nearby, is a more effective form of relief than having a human present, they report.

However, the researchers do not advise people not to take painkillers when necessary, as their experiments only tested a minor form of pain.

The new study was led by Dr. Heidi Mauersberger of the Department of Psychology at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany.

“Social support from family and friends, although associated with beneficial health effects, does not always help in coping with pain,” Dr. Mauersberger and colleagues say in their article.

‘Our aim was to test whether domestic dogs are a more beneficial source of support in a painful situation than human companions.’

The study included two slightly different experiments that focused solely on physical pain, not emotional pain.

In the first experiment, 74 women completed a low blood pressure task in the presence of their own dog, a friend, or alone.

The cold pressor task, used to induce pain in many laboratory experiments, involves immersing your hand in ice water for as long as possible before it becomes unbearable.

In the second experiment, 50 other women completed the cold press task in the presence of an unfamiliar dog or human stranger, or while alone.

The researchers only used women in their experiments for consistency, as “gender differences may influence pain perception and coping,” Dr. Mauersberger said.

In the first experiment, the dogs sat in a nearby corner and there was no physical contact, but in the second experiment, participants were allowed to pet the dogs.

In both experiments, participants reported less pain and displayed less “pain behavior” (such as jaw clenching, grimacing, and whining) in the presence of the dogs compared to the humans.

As expected, having their own dog present (rather than an unfamiliar dog) resulted in greater pain reduction.

Having a human nearby reduces pain more than being alone, but not as much as having a dog nearby.

“Participants accompanied by their dog reported less pain and showed lower physiological pain reactions, higher pain tolerance, and less intense facial displays of pain,” the team says.

‘Dogs as pets can help people cope with painful situations, especially if the grieving person is usually fond of dogs.’

Dogs offer “unconditional” and “non-evaluative” support to someone experiencing pain, compared to humans, who tend to be “socially judging.”

For example, the person experiencing pain may feel that their human partner is judging them for being dramatic.

Furthermore, the “social demand” for a friend’s presence can counteract the otherwise reassuring effect of his or her support.

The team cites a previous study in which stressed women preferred to be alone with their dog when they were in pain, because in the dog’s company “social pretensions were not necessary nor was it necessary to meet social expectations.”

Dr. Mauersberger admits that her study – published in the magazine Psychological Act – focused on the perception of pain as perceived by participants, which is of course different from the physical phenomenon of pain itself.

“Participants reported lower pain intensity, felt more able to cope and displayed less pain behaviour in the presence of dogs,” she told MailOnline.

‘While this may not be a direct reduction in pain at a physiological level, it significantly affects how people experience and tolerate pain.’

However, the team believes dogs can improve the quality of life of pain patients by “reducing pain-related disability and depression.”