Beck and Katcher were also monitoring their subjects’ physiological responses, and they found that the dogs weren’t just entertaining the kids; they were creating a pharmacological reaction. Pet a dog for as few as five minutes and your heart rate and breathing will slow; your blood pressure will drop; your muscles will relax and your breathing will moderate. That’s amazingly fast. For a narcotic to relieve stress in five minutes, you’d need a face mask and a tank of nitrous oxide.
