Living with a family dog is associated with better social skills and mental well-being in adolescents, according to research conducted by researchers at Azabu University in Japan, led by Prof. Takefumi Kikusui.

The study links dog ownership to distinct changes in the microbial communities found in young people, and researchers say those microbial differences appear to correspond with higher social competence and fewer social problems. That connection, the team argues, suggests a biological route by which everyday contact with dogs might shape emotional development during adolescence. The benefits of pet ownership extend beyond microbiome changes, as interactions with pets can also reduce stress and anxiety while providing emotional support and companionship.

Takefumi Kikusui, a researcher at Azabu University, summarized the broader implication: “Raising dogs has beneficial effects, especially for adolescents, and these effects may be mediated through symbiosis with microorganisms.” Furthermore, families can bolster this positive relationship by ensuring appropriate supervision and defining boundaries to guide children’s interactions with their dogs. Practical steps families can take to ensure a positive relationship can be found in 7 Golden Toddler Dog Rules: Ensuring Safety and Harmony …

The report highlights that adolescents living with family dogs showed enhanced social competence and that “specific oral bacteria were abundant in those with family dogs,” details included in the study summary. Researchers point to those microbiome differences as a plausible mechanism linking pet exposure and shifts in social behavior.

“The most interesting finding from this study is that bacteria promoting prosociality, or empathy, were discovered in the microbiomes of adolescent children who keep dogs,” Kikusui added, emphasizing the possible role of microbial communities in shaping social traits.

The research was undertaken by Azabu University and framed the benefits of dog ownership not only as psychological or social, but as potentially rooted in long-term biological interactions between humans and animals. An accessible write-up of the findings appears in Popular Science, which summarizes the study’s approach and implications for teen mental health.

Kikusui also framed the impact of dogs in broader terms: “The implication is that the benefits of dog ownership include providing a sense of security through interaction, but I believe it also holds value in its potential to alter the symbiotic microbial community.” That dual pathway—emotional support plus microbiome change—frames the study’s central claim.

The paper notes a pattern: adolescents who keep dogs score higher on measures of mental well-being and social competence, and their oral microbiomes show greater abundance of particular bacterial groups. Those microbial signatures are presented as one link between daily contact with companion animals and measurable differences in social behavior.

Wider discussion of how pets influence human mental health, including non-microbiome mechanisms, can be found in context pieces like the analysis at The Surprising Link Between Pet Attachment and Mental Health, which places microbiome findings alongside established psychological pathways, highlighting the myriad ways pets enhance well-being. Researchers and clinicians will weigh these results as one piece of evidence about how everyday environments—household pets among them—interact with biological systems to influence development. Azabu University led the work and provided the primary analysis reported by the team.

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Original reporting: view the original article.