Food Security Challenges and Health Opportunities of Companion Animal Ownership for Low-Income Adults

Rauktis, Mary Elizabeth; Lee, Hyunji; Bickel, L.; Giovengo, Holly; Nagel, Madeline; Cahalane, Helen

doi:10.1080/26408066.2020.1781726

Cited by 12 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Aside from such works, a smaller number of studies focus on issues such as grief and loss of pets (Laing & Maylea, 2018;Morley & Fook, 2005), elder abuse (Boat & Knight, 2001;Peak, Ascione, & Doney, 2012), end of life care (Dorfman, Denduluri, Walseman, & Bregman, 2012;Engelman, 2013;Geisler, 2004), and animal hoarding (Koenig, Leiste, Spano, & Chapin,2013;Nathanson, 2009). Still others encourage social workers to include companion animals in geriatric practice as hard-to-reach older clients may accept visits by social service agencies if they help them to care for companion animals (Ebenstein & Wortham, 2001) or to promote food security and health among older companion animal owners by including pet food in local foodbanks (Rauktis et al, 2020). However, studies that conceptualise other animals not as tools to benefit human animals and examine animal companionship among community-dwelling older adults in relation to housing seem to be limited; this important topic requires closer investigation and our scoping review set out to locate existing work.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

No pets allowed: A trans-species social justice perspective to address housing issues for older adults and companion animals

Matsuoka

Sorenson

Graham

et al. 2020

ANZSWJ

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INTRODUCTION: Significant benefits of companion animals (i.e., pets) for older adults are recognized and publications on Animal-Assisted Intervention, Animal-Assisted Activities and Animal-Assisted Therapies with older adults are growing. Studies on housing and community- residing older adults with companion animals from a non-utilitarian perspective on other animals, however, are rather limited.METHODS: For this scoping review, we used a Critical Animal Studies perspective, in particular, a trans-species social justice framework to address two questions: “What are the scope and size of the literature on housing for community living older adults with companion animals?” and “What is known from the existing literature?” We searched peer-reviewed publications from 1980 to 2019 by using MEDLINE, PsychINFO, ProQuest and Scopus.FINDINGS: Six works from Canada, Aotearoa New Zealand and US met our criteria. A disturbing reality was discovered: Restrictive leasing (‘no pets’ for rental housing) among low-income older adults with companion animals in public housing has persisted for the last 40 years and prevents them from accessing affordable housing. Also, the discourse of pets as problems or risk seems to justify prohibiting older adults from living with companion animals.CONCLUSION: Utilising the concept of speciesism and a trans-species social justice framework for analysis, we argue that intersectional institutional oppression of speciesism and classism is a root cause of the situation. Justice for older adults cannot be achieved without justice for their companion animals. Future studies in human–animal relations and education and practice in social work need to incorporate ideas of speciesism and justice beyond humans.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

No pets allowed: A trans-species social justice perspective to address housing issues for older adults and companion animals

Matsuoka

Sorenson

Graham

et al. 2020

ANZSWJ

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“…Second, pets indirectly promote the social interaction between owners and other people who are in the area. Pets can not only be used as a kind of conversational tool to facilitate owners talking with their neighbours outdoors but can also increase the possibility of individuals participating in social activities (such as problem consultation); this virtually strengthens the contact between individuals and community members and expands their social network (Rauktis & Lee, 2019). The higher the level of pet attachment is, the greater the potential communication network and perceived social support of individuals are (Hajek & König, 2019) and the stronger the role of pet attachment is in alleviating loneliness and its negative effects on HPL.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of pet attachment in alleviating the negative effects of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle: An empirical study based on threshold effects for pet owners

Lu,

Ren,

Guo

et al. 2023

Int J Older People Nursing

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BackgroundA health‐promoting lifestyle is acknowledged as a ‘positive ageing’ strategy for older people. The inevitable decline in their social networks may lead to loneliness and subsequently damage their health‐promoting lifestyle. Therefore, pet owning has become a popular way for them to alleviate loneliness. However, the attachment resulting from pet ownership may either facilitate or impede older people's ability to counteract the negative effect of loneliness on health‐promoting lifestyles, and this effect may only be observed when pet owners have limited human confidants.ObjectivesTo identify the role of pet attachment in alleviating the negative impact of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle and its supplementary role in the deficiency of social relationships by analysing the correlation mechanism between pet attachment, loneliness and a health‐promoting lifestyle.MethodsSelf‐report questionnaires were sent to 879 older people (aged ≥60) with pets in China by using a multistage stratified random sampling method. Cross‐sectional threshold regression models were established to analyse the nonlinear effects of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle and the different threshold effects among different social relationship levels.ResultsA single threshold value (0.444) was drawn to determine the action mode of pet attachment on the negative relationship between loneliness and a health‐promoting lifestyle. When the level of pet attachment exceeded 0.444, the inhibition of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle decreased significantly. Additionally, this threshold effect was evident among older people at different levels of social relationships.ConclusionsThe negative effect of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle is alleviated by the single threshold effect of pet attachment. Pet–owner relationships can compensate for a lack of social relationships to some extent and alleviate both an individual's loneliness and its negative effect on a health‐promoting lifestyle.Implications for practiceTo alleviate loneliness and promote healthy ageing in older people who lack social relationships, the tailored pet intervention strategies that prioritize ‘one health’ at the animal‐ecosystem interface that consider their different individual levels of social relationship should be developed.

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“…These barriers include a lack of affordable, appropriate pet-friendly housing as well as a historic lack of coordination between community-based human social service and animal welfare supports (McLennan et al, 2022;Toohey et al, 2017;Toohey & Krahn, 2018;Toohey & Rock, 2019). These challenges are not unique to our setting (see, e.g., Arrington & Markarian, 2018;Matsuoka et al, 2020;Rauktis et al, 2020Rauktis et al, , 2017. Veterinary services in Calgary are also costly, and there is a recognized gap in terms of service support for lower income pet owners (McLennan et al, 2022;Van Patten, Chalhoub, Baker, Rock, & Adams, 2021).…”

Section: Research Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Considering Cats, Dogs, and Contradictions: Pets and Their Relational Influence on Experiences of Aging in Place

Toohey

2023

Can. J. Aging

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Relationships with companion animals, or “pets”, may promote health and well-being for older adults as they age-in-place. Less is known, however, about ways that pet-related challenges may simultaneously influence aging-in-place experiences. This study explores the relational qualities of having pets later in life by considering qualitative accounts of older adults who are aging in the community. Semi-structured interviews with 14 socio-economically diverse, community-dwelling older adult pet-owners (≥ 60 years) living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, were analyzed reflexively. Four recurring themes suggested that companion animal relationships were valued in older adults’ lives and helped them cope with challenging circumstances, even when pets were central to these challenges. Findings also confirmed the relational nature of human-animal relationships as being shaped by both individual attributes and systemic factors. Methodological approaches to addressing these multifaceted complexities when studying pets and aging are considered. Enhanced cross-sectoral community and policy-level supports for aging-in-place with pets may have a population-level influence on health, well-being, and social justice across the socio-demographically diverse aging population.

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Food Security Challenges and Health Opportunities of Companion Animal Ownership for Low-Income Adults

Cited by 12 publications

References 25 publications

No pets allowed: A trans-species social justice perspective to address housing issues for older adults and companion animals

No pets allowed: A trans-species social justice perspective to address housing issues for older adults and companion animals

The role of pet attachment in alleviating the negative effects of loneliness on a health‐promoting lifestyle: An empirical study based on threshold effects for pet owners

Considering Cats, Dogs, and Contradictions: Pets and Their Relational Influence on Experiences of Aging in Place

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