Make sure that your child knows how to approach all animals, whether they are their own pets or not right from the very start. Teach your child to respect their animal friends, and you will minimize trouble for everybody. Introduce the pet and the child as early as possible, but separate the two at the very first sign of anxiety for either party. Let your dog or cat sniff baby’s foot, but do not allow them to make move toward the face or neck area. (It might actually be easier to allow the pets to sniff belongings that the baby has used before he even comes home.) Once baby is on the move, make sure that the pet has a room to escape to whenever he feels the need to do so. Some dogs will realize that your noisy, tail-pulling toddler is a nearly constant source of easy food, so he may put up with far more than you ever gave him credit for. Remember though, doggy might have allowed an hour of tail tugging fun yesterday afternoon, but tonight it is ten minutes tops, so watch closely.

Dogs will for the most part whine or growl a bit as a warning that you should get your "puppy" and get it now, cats are not so kind. Sticky fingered toddlers mushing cookies into his fur will get a nice healthy swat from puss, and not always with the sheathed claws. Some cats are nearly saint-like, but others have very low toddler/small child thresholds, so make sure that your cat can get away before he feels the need to draw kiddy blood.

Some pets are poor choices if you have children, even if the child would not be handling the pet. These include snakes, spiders and any other type of creepy crawly that could escape from their cage and bite, or worse, be bitten. Yes, children put everything, including spiders into their mouths, so keep that in mind. Large snakes have been known to view small children as prey sources, so use the utmost of caution if you absolutely must own them.

Image by Brennan Mercado via Flickr

The child is the one that asked for the pet. The child is the one that picked out the exact pet that was brought home. And the child is the reason that the dog shakes his head in shame when he has to respond to Plankton as his name. But, that dog or the cat or any other pet that manages to make it into your home is not just the sole responsibility of the child, is it?

Like it or not, they become part of the family and as such, are the responsibility of everybody, at least partially. Despite protesting against it, you find yourself feeding the cat or walking the dog from time to time, but does that necessarily mean that your child is shirking his duties? Not really, if one child needed a drink of water, would you really make him wait for it?

Before you even allow a pet to come into your door, sit down with your child lay down the rules and obligations that will be expected of him. Make sure he knows how much food the pet will need, and how often. Make a clear chart with pictures for younger children, or clearly worded directions for older kids. Include rewards and punishments for failing to meet any obligations, for example, if the child does walk the dog on their day, then that child loses TV time. Teaching your child to meet obligations and duties is important to turning out responsible adults.

Remember though, that children will actually forget certain things in pet care, no matter how much they love their furry friend. There might be times when your child is sick, or too busy with schoolwork or extracurricular activities to fulfill all of his obligations. On those occasions, it will be up to you to step in and help the child out. Ultimately, as head of the family, all of the members are your responsibility and that means the feline, canine or miscellaneous additions as well. If you are completely unwilling to step in and take over any aspect of pet care for any length of time, you may want to reconsider allowing a pet at that time.

No matter how well the child does take care of his pet, you must also understand that the financial burden will most likely be on you. You will have to maintain his diet, his vet bills and the other costs of pet ownership, unless you are planning on sending your child out to find a job!

First of all, do not let your child hold all of the cards in the decision process. Ask Timmy what kind of pet he would like to have and the answer might range from a ducky to a dinosaur, so start off by setting some limits. If you are an apartment dweller, you are already limited with your pet choices. No Great Danes in the penthouse!

Next, consider the level of commitment that your child has shown to projects in the past. Has he started off gung-ho, only to start slacking off with sports, hobbies and other interests? Think about your child’s closet floor, does it look like the island of lost dreams? Are there the skates he wore once, fell in, and then cast off? Or does he have the staying power to see things through to the end? The more dedication that your child has, the more pet choices you can look at. The interest of the child should be at least long enough to get the new pet into middle age.

Of course, you should also consider the "ick" factor. Is your child squeamish and germophobic? Would this child snap if there were little gerbil goodies left on the palm of his hand? Or worse, would the child be nearly hysterical at the thought of feeding the pet he mistakenly chose? The fussier the child, the cleaner the pet has to be, and the less hands on. For the really finicky child, you might want to consider some nice tropical fish.

And finally, consider the temperament and the activity level of the child. Childhood obesity is at an all-time high, and some people are finding that a dog is a good way of getting their little couch tater-tots up and about- but don’t count on a pooch working miracles on a truly unmotivated kid. Laid back kids do well with laid back animals, while the more energetic kids can run the energy out of the more active labs and Jack Russell terriers. And, the opposites attract concept might be beneficial here as well. A gentle pug might help calm a child that just cannot sit still, while a bouncy Boxer might actually break a shy child out of his shell. Give your child his options and then let him have a say in the decision. It is the family pet, but hopefully, this will be his friend.

Jerry J. Jansen
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