Everyone always misses their beloved pet when they go away to college and get to have adorable reunions, but I'm glad I get to come home to my pet every night. As crazy as it sounds, being a pet owner in college was one of the best decisions I made and came with many benefits. Even though she's a cat, who are very independent on their own, it taught me a lot about responsibilities. Having a living, breathing thing to take care of and make sure they don't die forced me to be an adult in a whole other way just going to college didn't.

I picked out Binx, my cat (pictured below), the summer after my freshman year of college and she remained home for my sophomore year while I still lived in the dorms. I loved going home on weekends to see her and how much bigger she was after months of not. Once I moved into my apartment for my junior year, she finally got to come live with me 24/7. I think I was more excited than she was since she was since now she was becoming a full-time indoor cat after getting to spend a year running around outside. But, it was time for her to become my full-time responsibility.

It turned out to be a huge change from having her at home with help, to now it was just me, all day, every day. I wasn't responsible for paying for food, litter, vet appointments, or babysitting when I went away for the night when I lived at home. Everything was different now. I was responsible for making sure I had enough food and litter, her bowls were filled, she was healthy, entertained, and happy. My roommates helped out with the entertainment and it definitely served as a stress reliever to watch her run up a wall after a laser beam.

Not only did I have to grow up and be a "parent" for her, I got the benefit of having a permanent stress reliever. She's there when I had a rough day, right at the door when I come home meowing and rubbing against my leg. And, for anyone who knows my cat can test to that she is the cutest thing when she rolls over onto her back for a tummy rub. Humans need that kind of stress relieving interaction, such as how we feel from getting a hug from a loved one, she was my own form of a hug.

For anyone that doesn't know, decreased stress levels, especially for college students, has lots of benefits. It has been linked to better sleeping and eating habits, keeping weight gain down, memory retention, and mood regulators. Those are pretty common signs of stress among college students - munching on snacks, irritability/crabbiness, and poor or too much sleep. Cats require much less management than dogs do, which also helps my stress out when I'm not so worried about her.

I also have a dog, Zeus (pictured below), which gives me a lot more insight into how having a dog versus a cat in college influences a person. 100% taking care of my dog when I did have him was harder than my cat. Don't get me wrong, I love him and he's much more of a playmate than she is, but he needs consistent attention and she comes when she wants it. It might be because of his breed, which is extremely hyper and needy, and a combination of young age, he was a lot to handle and I don't think I would encourage someone in my position to take on such a strong role. But, for myself and friends who do own cats while being full-time students, we love it.

She fulfills an open place in my heart when I'm not able to be with my significant other. It has gotten to the point that I can't even sleep well when she isn't up on the bed with me because she chose to sleep somewhere else. Humans need companionship and we all gets that in different forms, and sometimes human interaction just isn't enough. There's a reason we have 'pet therapy' because animals bring us so much more joy than our own species. It's like they almost have the same effect on us when we see a little baby.

I've learned from my responsibilities of taking care of her and benefited from the joys of having her around. I would highly recommend college students to take the leap in getting a pet, only if they are 100% committed to everything that comes with it. For anyone who has stress/anxiety that hasn't thought of another outlet, a cat might be a good fit for you. We all need a little extra love at the end of the day, and a pet is loyal to giving you that love.