Music for pets can calm the wild human

Several music producers rode the wave of innovative new pet products that emerged in the late 1990s when they created musical arrangements especially for our furry friends. Take the Laurel Canyon Animal Company, for example, a music company that produces “Music to Make Dogs Happy.” Humorous pet-related verses make dog owners laugh, while squeaky toys and other sound effects stimulate their dogs.

Then enter Pet Music, a company that recently reintroduced music for pets designed specifically to calm pets and help with separation anxiety. There are no cheesy verses or stimulating sound effects here. Only soft and relaxing instruments that promote relaxation.

When the results of a study at Queens University in Belfast, Northern Ireland, were published in 2002, they confirmed what these music producers have been claiming all along: animal behavior is influenced by music. Heavy metal can make canines nervous, and classical compositions can calm them down. But what Dan Rappoport, president of Pet Music, probably didn’t count on was the affinity humans would have for the same soothing music.

A modern alternative to classical music, Pet Music’s laid-back CDs seem to appeal just as much to the human senses, according to some of the consumer reviews on Amazon.com. One CD buyer boldly admits, “Forget about pets, I love relaxing music.”

Amy Brodsky, owner of a pet-sitting business called The Waldog Astoria in Warwick, New York, confesses, “I’ve heard it for years. It’s very relaxing and we all need to relax.”

It should come as no surprise that pet owners usurp the use of music to reduce stress for their pets, since humans are perhaps even more stressed than their animal companions. A 2004 American Psychological Association survey indicated that 54 percent of Americans were concerned about the level of stress in their daily lives.

The number of pets experiencing stress is likely to come in second, as animals are known to be extremely perceptive of human emotions. Body language and tone of voice say a lot to a pet, so if Master is stressed, Fido and Fluffy probably are too.

“I think pets cheer their owners up and know when they’re stressed,” says Brodsky. But in the process of turning to pets for stress relief, pet owners may not realize that they are transferring the stress onto their animal companions.

Lorraine Zdeb, a professional pet sitter in Manville, NJ who specializes in stress reduction for both people and their pets, speaks of a love energy connection between humans and their animals. “People don’t realize how powerful that is,” she says. “If the owner is not calm, the animal will not be.”

The vicious cycle of stress is easy to imagine: the owner comes home from a stressful day at work and passes the stress onto his dog. The dog is stressed from being home alone all day, so he chews on the couch in frustration and passes the stress onto his master. Stress could be considered the most highly contagious psychological zoonosis known to humans (and animals). So it makes sense that humans and animals would seek the same deal.

Competitive report. “Music for pets is also good for human stress; just don’t listen to it and drive at the same time,” she quips.

The cross-species benefits of stress-relieving music obviously apply to dogs, cats, and birds, but the benefits to humans weren’t a consideration when Rappoport first embarked on a quest to help distressed pets. “When our original series was released in 1999, my partner and I did it almost as a joke, since we were record business refugees.”

If dogs could classify stress-reducing pet music, they might call it good “chew a bone” or “nap” music. Human beings may discover that the same CD offers the perfect “crochet” or “yoga” music. Would it be so bad to leave the television for listening to music “to read a good book”?

Better yet, pet owners can share the experience with their pets by including calming pet music in their interactions. It is, after all, good “pet grooming” music. There’s nothing like a soft tune during dog training sessions to encourage pets and their people to take it easy and be patient.

The calming effect of a music CD for pets obviously has more applications than are immediately apparent. While Rappoport’s original intent was to create “a natural way to address pet stress and separation anxiety,” he also managed to calm the wild human.