Convívio de animais de estimação entre idosos: um estudo de base populacional no Sul do Brasil

During aging, living with pets can help the elderly to go through difficult situations, making pets a social support. The objective of this study was to know the prevalence of elderly people living with pets and its association with sociodemographic and health characteristics. Methods: Cross-sectional population-based study. Data collection took place through a household survey with elderly people aged 60 or over, living in the urban area of the municipality of Bage, RS, in 2008. The dependent variable was living with pets and the independent ones included sociodemographic and health characteristics. Descriptive and bivariate analyzes were performed and, to verify associations, Fisher's exact test for heterogeneity was used. The level of statistical significance used was 5% for two-tailed tests. All analyzes were performed using the Stata version 14.0 program. The sample consisted of 1,593 elderly people. The general prevalence of living with pets was (69.0%; 95% CI: 66.6; 71.2). The variables associated with the outcome were: male gender (72.0%), younger age group (60 to 74 years - 72.9%), living with a partner (72.9%), not living alone, not receiving retirement (72.9%) and not having reported a drop in the last year (70.7%). There was a high prevalence of elderly people living with pets, however more studies are needed to better understand how living with animals is reflected in health improvements for the elderly population.