Benefits of Pet Ownership for Kids
It seems natural with kids to like – even love – pets. But some parents are not quite comfortable having their kids come close to animals; they are afraid that the animals might harm the kids. Other parents think animals are just dirty.
But caring for a pet is a kind of childhood rite of passage. It teaches the kids a sense of responsibility to be nurturing another creature. And it brings them immense joy when the animal they’re caring becomes, quickly, a best friend.
Having a pet is an experience incomparable to anything else. The time spent together between a child and his pet creates lifelong memories. Almost everyone remembers his first pet.
But the parents’ hesitation is understandable, especially if they themselves have never had experienced having a pet or had a negative experience with an animal. That’s sad as it is, but parents shall realize that having a pet is entertaining for kids and that a pet can give a child a different kind of warm company. The parents’ own bad experience with an animal may be a totally isolated case and, thus, is not reason enough to deprive their kids of a wonderful experience.
Sarah Long, in an article at www.sheknows.com, cites that pet ownership can positively affect the child in a very profound way. She quotes experts saying that “a child's physical, social, emotional and cognitive development can all be encouraged by interaction with the family pet.” Long then elaborates further on the positive effects:
Physical. Having a pet helps a child improve his motor skills and also increases his overall activity. A 2010 study showed that kids in England who had a dog exercised 11 minutes more a day on average than other children who didn't have a dog. It may not sound like a whole lot, but a little bit of exercise every day can be seriously beneficial to children.
In addition, a 2012 study by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that children with early contact with cats and dogs are healthier and have fewer respiratory infections and ear infections and needed a shorter course of antibiotics than children without contact with pets.
Social. There’s a saying: "Dog is man's best friend." True. But pets can actually help people make new human friends too. For children especially, pets can be a wonderful catalyst for socializing. Children are more prone to approach and interact with other children who are playing with an animal, so a pet can be the bridge between a less socially outgoing child and other potential playmates.
An expert has observed that “pet ownership appears to be a significant factor for facilitating social interaction and friendship formation within neighborhoods,” explaining further that “for pet owners, this also translates into new sources of social support, both of a practical and emotionally supportive nature.”
Emotional. Kids who have pets have been found to have higher selfesteem. Children with low-self esteem may talk to, or confide in, an animal in ways they would not with people. With an animal, they are often more confident in performing tasks they find difficult simply because the animal does not care if mistakes are made, nor will the child be afraid of looking silly in front of the animal. A pet is basically a source of unconditional love and provides support but never judges.
Cognitive. According to a 2011 study, having a dog can actually make a child excel in school. The study done on second-graders showed that the ones who read aloud to a dog actually made bigger strides in their reading ability than their peers who read out loud to an adult – possibly due to the dog's ability to help reduce a child's stress and the fact that a dog provides nonjudgmental support.
Against the background of those positive effects, the risk of ‘accidents’ with animals appear trivial. There’s just more to gain than to lose in having a pet.