Baltimore Sun

Pets don’t teach kids about responsibi­lity; parents do

- By Cathy M. Rosenthal Cathy M. Rosenthal is an animal advocate, author, columnist and pet expert. Send your questions, stories and tips to cathy@ petpundit.com. Please include your name, city and state. You can follow her @cathymrose­nthal.

Dear Cathy: Can you please address the issue of parents getting pets for a child? I’ve been running an animal shelter (specifical­ly for ferrets) for over 30 years, and this is an ongoing problem. The 9-year-old who “did a report” to persuade a parent to get a pet will be interested in something else six months later. They will never perform every care and cleaning chore without constant supervisio­n.

Pets, like ferrets and hamsters, are especially neglected, abandoned and surrendere­d to shelters. I tell parents they must be willing to care for any pet taken into their family. To an animal welfare advocate, treating pets as disposable objects is dishearten­ing. You have a national forum; maybe people will listen to you.

— L. V., Hartford, Connecticu­t

Dear L.V.: Thanks, L.V. Here you go:

Dear Parents,

Raising kids with pets is a wonderful way to introduce kids to animals. But young children are not equipped to properly care for pets. And they quickly get bored with pet care chores.

As a parent, you’re always the primary caregiver for all pets in the home. You set the example by which a child learns how to take care of a pet and why they need to care for it. If you place this responsibi­lity on your children, they learn that the pet is not a priority for you, which means they will not engage the pet nearly enough. Sadly, small pets like hamsters, ferrets and rabbits also suffer more because the pet’s cage is usually in a child’s room.

Instead, keep these pets in a communal area where you can monitor their well-being. Show daily interest in the pet’s care and social needs. Give the pet affection. Play with the pet.

Teach your children about pet behavior and how to behave around a pet.

Pets don’t teach kids responsibi­lity; you do. As the parent, you’re always the pet’s primary caretaker.

Dear Cathy: We recently adopted our dog from a local adoption center. He is a lab/hound mix, about 9 months old. He relieves himself in the same spot in our living room. We let him outside several times a day, but when he returns, he goes to the same spot. We gated the area to keep this from happening. I have used an enzymatic rug cleaner, but he still does his thing there. What else can you recommend?

— Paul, Williston Park, New York

Dear Paul: You’re doing all the right things. Continue using the enzymatic cleaner after every incident. Clean the spot and another five inches around it to ensure you’re getting everything.

Now, let’s add training. Whenever your dog approaches or sniffs the area, shake a can of coins, or use a pet corrector that emits a “shhh” sound to interrupt him. Call him to you and give him a treat for coming when called. Now, give him a puzzle toy, like a Kong stuffed with treats, so he has to concentrat­e on something else. If you can’t monitor him, the gate is the best option until the

cleaning and new training overtake this bad habit.

Dear Cathy: I have three cats and recently acquired a kitten. The kitten is shy, so I kept her isolated from the other cats until yesterday. The poor kitten though is still afraid to leave the bedroom. Every time she ventures out, my brown tabby hisses at her. The other two don’t pay much attention to her. I am sure my brown tabby feels threatened. How can I convince her that I still love her and make room for the kitten? I love all four cats too much to rehome any of them.

— Marian, Lincoln, Nebraska

Dear Marian: Give the situation more time. Cats can take weeks, sometimes months, to adjust to a new feline in the home. Hissing is an expected and acceptable behavior when you introduce a new cat into the home. As long as the tabby is not attacking your kitten, she should eventually adjust to the kitten’s presence. Until then, give your brown tabby extra affection, but not when she is hissing at the kitten. During this introducto­ry period, try plug-in pheromones or pheromone collars for the adult cats to create a calmer environmen­t for meetings.

As for the kitten, she needs to explore the house to identify places to hide when she feels vulnerable. Put the adult cats in a bedroom for an hour each day so she gets uninterrup­ted time to explore the home. You also can place empty boxes or baskets around the house to give her future escape routes. Given time, they should all adjust.

 ?? DREAMSTIME ?? When raising kids with pets, parents should remember they’re always the primary caregiver for all pets in the home, writes Cathy M. Rosenthal.
DREAMSTIME When raising kids with pets, parents should remember they’re always the primary caregiver for all pets in the home, writes Cathy M. Rosenthal.

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