Whether you’re a dog person or a cat person, British Airways has something to help you decompress on the long flights between Bermuda and London.

“Paws and Relax” is a dedicated channel to show footage of cats, kittens, dogs and puppies, to be shown on long-haul flights from September to enhance the well-being of customers, the airline has announced.

The new channel will be on the Gatwick-Bermuda-Gatwick Boeing 777 flights, which at approximately seven hours long, are long haul.

A release from airline stated that these animals are “nature’s furry friends and man’s best friend” — so it was only a matter of time before they introduced a channel featuring fluffy footage of cats and dogs on their in-flight entertainment.

BA stated: “As well as providing entertaining footage for all the family to enjoy, it can also benefit travellers’ overall well-being and relaxation, as well as improving levels of concentration.” The airline noted that in his book 59 Seconds, psychologist Richard Wiseman suggests that just watching a video of a cute animal can reduce heart rate and blood pressure in under a minute, and that a paper published by Hiroshima University entitled Power of Kawaii, meaning the power of cute, showed that people who looked at pictures of puppies or kittens in their study had higher levels of concentration afterwards.

British Airways’ in-flight entertainment manager, Richard D’Cruze, was quoted as saying: “It might sound barking, but there’s lots of research to suggest that watching pets can enhance overall well-being. We have sniffed out some fantastic content that is cute, comforting and sure to appeal to travellers of all ages.”

Paws & Relax features popular programmes, curated by the airline’s in-flight specialists Spafax including Simon’s Cat — which has become popular on the internet and is a series of animated funny stories of a man and his cat, The Secret Life of Cats — a popular BBC documentary where cats are fitted with cat-cams and GPS collars to follow their daily movements, and America’s Cutest Dog … “adorable” footage of dogs at play, said BA.

The airline has also teamed up with experts at London’s Battersea Dogs & Cats Home for insight into the benefits of pet ownership, and will feature some of its pets looking for rehousing to launch the channel, including Alfie the Pug, Sky the Siberian Husky, Angelica the Staffordshire Bull Terrier cross and kittens Karma, Knight and Karis.

Laura Lambert, responsible for rehoming and welfare at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home said: “We know that people love watching dogs and cats. They can make you laugh, smile, and cry. They are wonderful companions when you’re feeling anxious or just need a lift, and we believe that British Airways’ Paws & Relax channel will be the perfect way for passengers to sit back and relax.”

And this year, BA this year celebrates its 77th anniversary of commercial flights from Bermuda. Imperial Airways, which later became British Airways, took off from Darrell’s Island in 1937 flying to Port Washington, New York. This was a flying boat service established jointly with Pan American Airways. Flights across the Atlantic to the UK then began after WW2.

BA’s ‘Fluffy Facts’

• There are 17 million cat and dog owners in the UK (The Pet Food Manufacturers Association)

• One in 50 travellers would prefer to be greeted by their pet at the airport, rather than a family member (OnePoll survey of 2,000 people)

• Battersea Dogs & Cats Home cares for almost 10,000 dogs and cats each year

• British Airways features more than 130 movies, 650 television shows from around the world, 550 audio albums and 200 radio shows in its in-flight entertainment systems

• Last month the airline launched a new genre of ‘Slow TV’ on board flights, including an unedited seven hour train journey from Oslo to Bergen

Paws & Relax will be in the entertainment section of the airline’s in-flight library from September.

To preview the channel: http://youtu.be/kaTAA2y-DwA