It may not be from a Mental Wellness website….but this video spoke to me (a former dog owner….she passed away this past December), about the benefits of a companion animal. How your dog, or cat, or even a hamster, can get you to “get out of yourself”, get you to meet new people, encourage you to exercise, and to give you a reason to put one foot in front of the next…all the things those with depression need.
So, take 5 minutes, and watch how the meeting of this “fat” man, and this “fat” dog helped them both to become more.
In 2010, Eric weighed 340 pounds, had type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. His doctor told him he’d be dead in five years if he didn’t change his sedentary lifestyle. At the suggestion of his nutritionist, Eric adopted Peety, a middle-aged, obese dog, from the Humane Society in Silicon Valley, Calif., and together they lost 165-plus pounds (Eric lost 140-plus pounds and is no longer a diabetic, and Peety lost 25 pounds from their daily walks). Eric also completed his first marathon in 2015.