The Best Pets for Small Children
Over the years parents have continuously turned to pets to help teach their children valuable life lessons. By including a pet in your family you will teach them responsibility, how to love, how to care for animals, to have compassion, and when the inevitable happens, how to grieve. Many argue that introducing children to such things at an early age can be too much for them, but I have to disagree here as I have had nothing but positive results from having pets as a child myself, as well as giving my child pets of her own.
Once you make the decision to get your child a pet you will of course be faced with many choices. Depending on the age of your child, you will probably want to make sure the pet you choose is not something that will hurt them. If choosing a cat or a dog, try finding one that is relatively young and friendly or adopting one that has grown up around children. This way whenever your child is rough with it, which they will be, you can rest assured the worst to happen will be small scratch if that. Cats and Dogs are great for teaching your children about compassion and care, but since more often than not you will end up doing the feeding, changing of the litter box, and walking, these pets tend to not teach much responsibility.
If you are looking to teach your child responsibility than an aquarium of fish, a hamster or other rodent, or a reptile is likely a better choice. All these animals can easily be fed by a child on a daily basis and also require weekly changes to their environments which kids of most ages should have little trouble doing themselves.
Whatever animal you chose you can be sure that you are teaching your child some of life’s most valuable lessons that they will carry forward with them long into adulthood.
Written by Mike Barton for Pet Petting Copyright 2008
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