Figure 3.

Hypothesized links for the impact of pet ownership and attachment on emotional health outcomes that postulates (a) physiological responses from pet interaction result in stress reduction (green pathway), and (b) anxiety, separation anxiety and depression are indirectly reduced by a wider social network and increased social support and companionship from pets (blue pathways) and (c) pet attachment may be indirectly affected by primary caregiver attachment (mother figure) through the internal working model (red pathway).