The Benefits of Pets, for Children

Studies have shown that children who have pets generally have a higher self-esteem. These children also have better social skills and are more likely to be more active. These are only a few of the many benefits of pets for children. Having a companion animal can have even further reaching benefits, including improved health and learning!

Positive Child Development

Having a relationship with an animal can help children to develop the following important skills:

· Nurturing and caring

The ‘skill’ of nurturing isn’t something that you suddenly develop when you need it. It is not something that you are born with. An ability to nurture develops over time. Humans need practice being caregivers when they are young. Pets are an ideal way for both boys and girls to hone their nurturing abilities!

· Empathy

Learning to care for a companion animal that depends heavily on them can teach a child the importance of understanding the emotions of others.

· Responsibility

Owning a pet boosts responsibility levels. It teaches kids to think about the effects of their decisions. Taking charge of activities such as feeding, cleaning up after or taking the hound for walks boosts responsibility levels. Having to fulfill these tasks is a healthy kind of pressure. Achieving them will boost confidence and independence.

· Communication

Occasionally, a stranger will stop someone with a dog and make conversation about the dog. This can be a great opportunity to for a young person to brush up on social skills. For children suffering from social anxiety, a situation such as this will be a good illustration of how most people are quite friendly.

· Routine

While a parental role might seem like a long, looong way off for your kiddos, taking care of a pet can teach your children a very basic form of parenting. Having to stick to a routine (e.g. pets get breakfast at 7:00 am), feeding and cleaning, and ensuring medical health are all important routines to learn.

Improved Family Time

It is believed that families with pets are more likely to have more harmonious relationships. Pets facilitate increased time spent together. Pets can also be a basis for fun activities as a family. For example, taking the dog/s for a walk in the park. Good exercise, fresh air, and time spent together!

Physical Health Benefits

Active Lifestyle

The most obvious health benefit that will spring to mind is that of fitness and exercise. Young children with dogs to walk or cats to play with will more likely be fitter and more active than those without. This increase in activity levels has many positive spin offs. Increased activity in children leads to a lower chance of obesity. It improves sleep and can help with sensory integration.

Allergies

Several studies show that children who are raised with one or more pets in the home are less likely to develop allergies at a later stage. Some studies even suggest that early exposure to pets can reduce a child’s risk of developing asthma.

Healthy Hearts

The young hearts of growing children will benefit from the cardiovascular exercise achieved by walking a dog or playing with a pet. The release of endorphins (and subsequent stress reduction) when stroking an animal will also improve health heart.

Mental Health Benefits

It has been proven time and again that animals have a positive impact on a person’s mental wellbeing. Childhood is a time when the development of a human’s emotional capacity is at its most impressionable. The addition of a pet at this juncture can be of great benefit.

Stress-relief

Pet therapy is becoming an ever-popular form of stress relief. The burgeoning of pet cafés in big cities around the world is a testament to this. The human body releases endorphins (feel good hormones) after coming in contact with a loving pet. Simply the touch or act of petting an animal can help to relieve stress and reduce anxiety.

Companion animals can be a great source of comfort. For children who have difficulty expressing themselves, pets can be a wonderfully unjudging ear to speak into. Pets make for the safest member of the family to share secrets and fears with!

Improved Self-Esteem

Not everyone is born with a generous helping of self-confidence. But pets don’t care. They don’t judge. If you treat them with love and kindness, they will be your friend for life. For children who struggle to make friends, this is especially valuable. A pet that makes such a child for needed and secure can do much for improving confidence and independence.

Improved Social Interactions

Dogs especially, are sociable creatures. Owning a pet can help with the building of one-on-one relationships as well as being more confident in group settings.

Making Friends

Having a pet can help children to make friends. It gives them a common ground with other kids who have a family pet. A companion animal gives children something to talk about. If out on walks with their doggo, children will be less overwhelmed by people trying to make conversation as they have the familiar comfort of their pooch with them.

EQ

Understanding that the needs of others will sometimes come before your own needs or wants is an important lesson for children to learn. Learning when to prioritize the needs of their furry friend (e.g. meal times/ daily walk), can help children to grow into empathetic and responsible adults.

 

Can Owning a Pet Make my Child Learn Better?

In short, “Yes!”.

Children, with or without learning difficulties, generally find it easier to read to a canine or feline audience as opposed to a human one! Parents of children with pets will relate how their young kids will curl up with a family pet and a couple of books and read them a story. This not only boosts confidence and learning, it will boost their imagination too!

Spending time playing with a pet, can help children to relax and recharge the batteries in a healthier way. This will lead to improved focus when the time comes to sit down and get some homework done.

Children who spend time playing with their furry friends are likely to spend less time watching TV. This translates into better sleeping patterns as well as improved focus.

 

Pets for Children with Special Needs

For children with behavioral challenges or learning difficulties, bringing a pet into the home can have awesome benefits!

Autistic Children and Pets

Children on the autism spectrum, range from being able to interact with others to those who are wholly unable to hold conversations. Obviously, these different needs will require different pets. Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) can benefit from caring for a pet in much the same way/s as other children do. For example; cultivating social abilities, decreasing stress, improving the immune system.

In the case of children with an ASD, it is believed that companion animals can assist in behavior improvement as well as with learning abilities.

Some of the issues that autistic children face:

· Challenges in Communication

Some ASD children find it incredibly difficult to communicate verbally. In this case, a pet can be an ideal companion. Furry friends do not communicate with words. They can provide the child with interaction on a level that is more familiar and easier to handle.

· Inability to Gauge Emotion

Autism can make it almost impossible for some to understand what and how other people think. Owning and relating to a pet can assist in subtly improving understanding.

· Self-harm

This is the most drastic aspect of ASDs. It is characterized by autistic children lashing out at themselves. This lashing out can be with an object, with which they cause damage. Or, it can be to hit themselves, generally over the head, with their own hands. There are dogs that are specifically trained to assist an ASD kid. They are trained to reach out and stop the child from hurting themselves. Some will even offer emotional support in the form of a cuddle. This could help defuse a potentially damaging situation.

Children with Physical Disabilities

Some children have disabilities (such as visual or hearing impairment) which make it super difficult to take part in daily activities that others do easily. In these cases, a child can be paired with a pet that has been specifically trained to help with these tasks, AKA a service dog. A service animal can help to perform tasks such as:

– Picking up items that have fallen on the floor

– Pushing buttons

– Opening doors or cupboards

– Assisting their human to sit down or stand up

– Retrieve items in an emergency (medication, phone to call for help)

– Bark for assistance when there is an emergency and no-one else is close by

A service animal can be of particular importance to a child with a disability. It will allow them to still be a functional part of their society so that they don’t grow up feeling isolated and alone.

Pets and Children with ADHD

Attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic medical condition which exhibits as an inability to focus, hyperactivity and lack of impulse control. Taking care of a pet can help kids manage their ADD.

1. Pets need to have a schedule for feeding and perhaps walking and bathing. Having a pet can teach an ADHD child to schedule and plan.
2. Playing with a pet can help to burn off excess energy in a hyperactive child.
3. A pet can be a great icebreaker for kids who struggle with social interaction.
4. Exercise and being outdoors is very beneficial to kids with ADD. Fresh air and aerobic exercise can increase the flow of oxygen-filled blood to a child’s brain.

Should You Consider Getting a Pet for Your Children?

As with every decision in life, one must weigh up the pros and cons! There are so many advantages to raising children with pets (physical, mental and emotional). Yet, there are some negative aspects to take into consideration too. Every family has different needs. Children are unique and so are the puppies or kittens that they might choose to adopt. The challenge lies in finding the perfect combination and teaching your children how to love and respect their animals! For more information regarding making your pet an ESA for your child, here is how to ask doctor for emotional support animal.