Why Your Children Should Grow Up Around Pets

All children should live in a caring and loving environment – one that respects all forms of life – and having pets is a great way to introduce the concept of caring for others. It might be a dog, cat or even a goldfish, but by allowing your child to help with taking care of the animal will also instil responsibility. Ideally, the family pet is part of the family and should therefore be given the same respect as the human family members and by demonstrating love and affection towards the family pet, you are encouraging this in your child.

Fostering Care and Responsibility
The pet would be a central focus of the family and if you have a dog, taking him out for a walk is a great family activity, which is something your child can take part in. Feeding the dog or cat is also one area where you can involve your child and for most kids, bonding with the family pet is a natural response. Pet maintenance is something that your child can help with, which might be the weekly bath for the dog, or changing the cat litter, or even cleaning out the bird’s cage. This will help the child to understand that in order for our pets to remain healthy, there are certain things we must do and above all, rearing a pet fosters compassion in a child – something we all want our children to develop. There are many benefits to owning a pet, and there are articles available online that highlight this.

Develop Discipline
Having a pet isn’t just about the fun times and by allowing your child to play a part in your pet’s care, you are introducing discipline. There will be times when your son or daughter doesn’t want to exercise the dog or help with the bath, yet by gently reminding them that this is part and parcel of keeping a pet, you are helping the child to be disciplined. If you are looking for child care Perth families trust, an online search will help. Try to find one that teaches children to love and respect all living things. Some even have pets and the kids take turns in feeding and cleaning, which is a great way of maintaining a level of responsibility and discipline.

Part of having a pet is teaching it discipline. As your child trains your pet, they also learn to see the value of having discipline and develop patience and tolerance. It’s vital for parents to be actively involved in helping their child train the family pet, especially a dog, to provide not only lessons but also encouragement and praise. Children also need guidance with using training techniques and positive reinforcement for training to avoid hurting themselves and their animal companions.

Tender Loving Care
There’s no doubt that TLC is a wonderful thing and should be part of every family, which is something the family pet provides and as parents, you should demonstrate this as a model for the children to follow. There might be times when a family activity cannot happen due to having a pet, yet this involves making sacrifices, which we all need to accept and if your child is living in an atmosphere of love, kindness and compassion, they will grow up to be well-balanced adults who respect all forms of life.

Your choice of family pet should be suitable for the lifestyle you lead and providing all the family are happy with having a new family member, the pet will become an integral part of family life and this will bring with it many benefits for your children.

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