You open the door and there it is. Standing right in front of you. You look down on it, it looks up on you.

It doesn’t matter how bad your day was because no matter how hard you try, you can’t help but smile because that little fluff ball in front of you is happy about your arrival. And you are just equally as happy to see it. If you haven’t figured it out already that little fluff ball in front of you is the one thing that can give you a smile and, that’s it, you forget about everything else in the world. That fluff is your pet. It’s the wind beneath your wings because no matter how long it has been since they saw you last, they are always happy to see you. But they are just pets, right? How come such a simple little gesture like the wagging of a tail or the purring in your lap cause us to forget all that matters and just be happy?

Well, the answer is quite long and complicated but to put it into simpler terms, the brain likes pets. Too simple? Here’s the more complicated one. When we see something we like, for example an attractive person, the brain gives off the hormone oxytocin, aka the Love Hormone. Yeah, and if you clicked on the link you can see that oxytocin is used in things a little bit more PG than dogs, but I did say love didn’t I?

Surprisingly the brain does release this hormone when confronted with something that is loved and in this case the thing that is receiving the love is the fluff standing in front of you. But why is it that their happiness brings us so much joy?

The answer is they know you have a treat for them behind your back so they act all nice so they can receive their prize. Well maybe that’s not why they make us so happy, but it works. The real reason is it makes us feel good inside, that we are giving joy to the animal. There is a sense of pride and happiness to know that in the small world of a pet, which consists of chew toys, feathers on strings and tennis balls, you have successfully brought joy. So by having the animal happy because of you, it makes you happy in return.

There is a cycle to happiness and it all starts with somethings as simple as a smile, a treat or even a small dose of catnip.