Having a pet dog is not only a great way to enhance your own life. It can also give your child memories to last a lifetime and an excellent opportunity to learn responsibility, and how to take care of another living creature.
If you’re planning to get a pet dog, you can teach your child to take care of the dog with you. Not only will it be great to have help from another pet caretaker around the home, it will also help teach your child important life lessons.
Here are some easy ways that you can teach your child to help you take care of your dog.
Delegate Age-Appropriate Tasks, Then Give More Responsibility as They Get Older
Make sure you give your child tasks that are age appropriate, and that he or she can handle effectively. This means that feeding, giving water, petting, and playing are great ideas for kids that are young. You should continue to handle more serious and complicated tasks, like taking your dog go the vet (both for preventative regular visits and visit to get special treatment such as Apoquel for sale).
As your child gets older, increase the number of responsibilities he or she should handle. This will help ensure that their sense of responsibility and understanding of care continues to expand as they age.
Give Them Control of Walks and Playtime
Some of the most important things you can do for a dog are taking him for a walk and helping him expel energy via play. Put your child in charge of playtime so that you can ensure that both expel energy and stay active together. Ensuring that your child walks the dog twice a day and plays with him, as well, is a good responsibility to delegate because it is age-appropriate and increases healthy outcomes in both.
Explain That They Cannot Have a Dog If They Do Not Care for It
If your child is intent on having a dog, explain that they must take care of the dog – otherwise, the dog will go live at the home of another responsible caretaker. This means that your child must complete all required caretaking tasks for the dog each day: from walking to feeding to playing and more. If your child chooses not to do his required chores for multiple occasions, you can explain that he is not prepared to care for a dog and that it needs to live with someone who can provide adequate attention.
Allow Them to Be Emotionally Supportive
One of the best parts about a relationship between a child and a dog is the companionship and camaraderie they provide each other. Let the dog be a listening ear and loving presence for you child, and allow your child to give the dog affection via cuddles, petting, or even sleeping in bed together. By allowing the two to provide emotional support, you create a loving relationship that can sustain their wellbeing for years.
If you have a child and a dog, teaching your child to care for the dog is a great way to instill in him important skills and values for the rest of his life. Take some time to teach your kid about caretaking of a pet, and you can both hand over some of the responsibility of care – and make your child a more aware, compassionate person.
