Why kids should play and grow up with pets
Dangers and Benefits of growing up with pets.
Growing up with pets around the house is terrific for kids. However, children and pets both come with a lot of responsibilities. It gets worse sometimes when the two have to interact and share space. Human and animal relationships are usually positive, but the situation can escalate from good to worse in a matter of seconds.
Why You May Be Concerned about Your Kid Being around Pets
Pets are emotional creatures, and just like humans, they can get sad or scared. When your pet gets offended or upset, it might bite or scratch a child. This is one of the main reasons why parents always worry about their children playing with pets.
Apart from violence-related issues, pets can pose significant health effects. Since pets might be in contact with certain bacterial or viral infections, there is a chance that they may transmit those bacteria to human beings.
Some children might be allergic to fur or some pets which is also a factor that you should consider.
It is difficult to always control how your children play with pets and to keep them 100% safe.
There are numerous dangers when children play with pets. Luckily, most of them can be foreseen and avoided.
Consequently, parents should not only focus on their children’s safety but their pet’s well being as well.
Some children can be very pet unfriendly. Most kids lack a sense of boundary when handling pets. They can even behave like crazy with pets.
Moreover, some children are fascinated when they put things where they don’t belong; you might find your kid putting stuff into a pet’s mouth or ears which is very wrong. In fact, there are some kids that are cruel to animals.
Furthermore, the 1970s research has shown that childhood cruelty to animals is the first warning sign of later violence, and criminal behavior.
Pay attention to how your kid treats pets. If you see them covering their pet’s eyes, pulling their tails and stuff like that, please try to do something about it. Because when a pet is fed up, it will decide that enough is enough. Those are the main reasons why we as parents should be cautious all the time so that to avoid such problems.
Why kids should play and grow up with pets :
Benefits of Your Kids Playing with Pets
Psychological studies have proven that living and growing up with a pet has a significant impact on a child’s development and future behavior. When pets and children interact, they form a powerful bond that can last forever. A pet is a companion animal which helps to initiate positive child development with a physical and cognitive well being.
Children who are growing up around pets develop better communication skills, higher self-esteem, social skills, and outstanding cognitive abilities. Also, pets have a significant impact on stress reduction because they provide social support.
Apart from developing communication skills, your child will always be physically active because pets love to play. Physical activity will make your child healthier. Your child will not be at risk of developing obesity and cardiovascular diseases. With all these factors in play, your kids will grow up to be less moody and more fulfilled.
Another reason why kids should play and grow up with pets, is that pets help children to develop a sense of responsibility, care, and empathy. Living with a pet means taking care of the pet. You can teach your children how to clean the pet and what to feed it. In the long run, your kids will learn how to maintain relationships with other people and their siblings. Kids who grow up with pets are known to be better parents to their children.
Other benefits of pets include helping your kids to be open-minded, to respect others, and to achieve general happiness.
May Growing Up without Pets Influence a Kid Further in Life?
Children who do not grow up around pets don’t necessarily turn out to be bad. It all depends on how you raise your children. However, despite this, growing up without pets can negatively influence your kids and even expose them to some factors that you might have no control over as a parent.
Asthma or Allergies. Children who grow up in super clean environments without pets develop less resistance to common allergens which might cause various allergic reactions. On the other hand, exposing your child to some allergens when young can boost his/her immune system against such reactions. Therefore, stronger immune system is one of the reasons why kids should play and grow up with pets.
Obesity, Cardiovascular Complications, and Poor Blood Circulation. These might be as a result of less body activity which might cause deposition and storage of fat in the vascular system. The more active your children, the healthier they grow.
A Diminished Social Development. Your child can practice speaking with animals as they are very close to him or her at the first days. Therefore, a kid may learn communication skills at a later age than his/her peers which might affect how he/she socializes with others.
A Weaker Sense of Care and Empathy. Which is so important for building healthy relationships and strong families later in life.
How to Ensure Safe Interaction Between Your Children and Their Pets
For your kids to be safe, you must make sure they are healthy and safe from germs and bacteria. The only way to do this when living with a pet is by taking care of your pet’s health. You should schedule periodic checkups for your pet and immunization sessions at your local veterinary. There should be a quick diagnosis and treatment in case of any infections.
Teach Your Kids How to Handle Pets with respect and guide them on what they should do and what not to do when playing with pets. You should warn them against doing things that will offend or scare the pet like pulling its tail or cornering it.
Never Leave Your Children with Pets without Supervision. An adult should be around so that he/she can monitor and control any situation before it escalates into a tragedy.
Choose to Keep Pets with a Friendly and Gentle Nature. You can opt for pet cats or small dogs like chiwawas. Avoid reptiles and dogs that have been bred to be aggressive, e.g. pit bulls. There are certain pets that make better companions than others for small children.
Teach Your Kids Essential Hygiene Skills, e.g. washing their hands periodically, avoiding dirt, cleaning after they finish playing and washing the pet. Learning to stay in a clean environment is the ultimate solution for good health.
To Summarize
Owning a pet has a lot of benefits because pets love people unconditionally.
To top that, they are good at relieving stress and facilitating positive physical and mental development. The effects of pets on child development go further than cognitive and social development. Pets will change your children’s perspective towards life.
Parents should not worry about the dangers of their children playing with pets; instead, they should focus on how to provide a conducive playing environment for both their children and the pets. Even though accidents might occur in spite of careful supervision and monitoring, a pet is still the best gift for your child and a human being’s ultimate companion.
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