Dogs and cats as sources of companionship and emotional support in vulnerable animal caregivers

Social support may be crucial for the health and wellbeing of populations facing adversity, such as homelessness, intimate partner violence, or economic vulnerability. However, vulnerable individuals are usually at a high risk of social exclusion, having restricted social networks and limited social support. Companion animals constitute a potential source of support, but their relative contribution compared to other sources remains underexplored. In this study, we adopted a multifaceted approach to social support to investigate the relative importance and supportive functions of human and animal sources within the social support networks of 100 vulnerable individuals who were users of an intervention program. Participants rated the degree to which they considered their closest companion animal (dog/cat) a family member and answered a questionnaire regarding their social support network, in which they nominated and ranked sources of support based on their relevance. Our findings demonstrate that dogs and cats were considered genuine family members and constituted an important source of support. They were frequently the sole providers of companionship and emotional comfort, as well as of opportunities for physical closeness and nurturance. However, our results also indicate that human relationships remain necessary to meet other aspects of social support, such as obtaining guidance (informational support), receiving material or behavioural assistance (instrumental support) and gaining social recognition or approval. In sum, companion animals are a significant part of the already fragile social networks of vulnerable individuals; hence, protecting this bond is fundamental.