evidence: This week was designated "National Pet Week" so now’s a great time to talk about a new study from Home Instead Senior Care showing that having pets improves health and happiness for older adults. Although the quote, "if you want a friend in Washington, get a dog," is facetious, there’s no denying that there are a great many benefits from adding pets to our lives. No one has to convince me of that. I’ve been a dog lover for many years and have written about the lessons I learned from my border collies. Even before I had dogs I had cats. And I’ve also had both.