Choosing the right pet can bring years of joy to your family. When you have kids at home, and you decide to own a pet, it can help your kids learn how to care for living creatures. Moreover, pets can also teach valuable lessons to kids about dependability and responsibility. Kids learn affection from pets, which can help them when they get older. But the question is which pet is more suitable, cat or dog for kids? If you are also looking for the answer to this question, then keep reading this article.
Table of contents
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Why Should You Bring Cat or Dog for Kids?
Before we find out which one is best for kids, it’s essential to understand why you should bring a cat or dog for kids. When you have pets and kids at home, both of them will have fun, and more importantly, pets can benefit kids in many ways. The following reasons will help you understand why pets are mandatory for kids.
Babies Who Grow Up With Pets Are Generally Healthier
Various studies have shown that kids who grow up with cats or dogs are less likely to suffer from respiratory infections, runny noses, ear infections, sneezing, and cough.
- Pets Help Kids Improve Their Reading
You have read it right. When students read something, they make mistakes or mispronounce a word. They can’t read loudly in class because of fear. But they can loudly in front of dogs and cats because they’ll not interrupt them. Moreover, they’ll laugh at them. Therefore, it will help them improve their reading.
- Kids Are Never Alone
When there is no one to love and listen to kids, pets are always there. Sometimes, kids don’t want to communicate with their mom and dad, so they prefer to share their concerns with a pet.
- Kids Learn to be Responsible
Pets need care and attention, and when you provide that, kids learn how to be responsible. Let your kids take care of a pet; ask them to feed the pet and clean their dishes and toys. In this way, they’ll learn how to be responsible.
- Lower Risk of Eczema
As mentioned at the start, kids living with pets have fewer chances of suffering from diseases. A recent study showed that kids who were allergic to dogs when they started to live with them, they have minimum chances of developing eczema. But it’s true for dogs, not for cats. So, be careful about it.
- Pets Provide Health Benefits to Kids and Adults
Pets are not only good for the emotional well-being of kids, but they also provide some health benefits. Kids get more exercise, and pets help reduce obesity, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels in kids and adults.
- Pets Boost Energy Level and Develop Sense of Well-Being
It’s the last reason for adopting a cat or dog for kids. When kids spend more time outdoors and explore nature with pets, they have more energy and an increased sense of well-being. More importantly, fresh air and nature are good for everyone.
How to Choose a Cat or Dog for Kids?
Now you understand the importance of having a pet for kids. Let’s find out the suitable pet for kids. If you’re not sure whether to choose a cat or dog for kids, the following questions can help you decide easier.
- Can You Train a Young Puppy or Kitten?
The best approach is to bring a well-trained pet if you have kids at home. Otherwise, if you can spare time to train and socialize them, bring a cat or dog home. If it’s impossible to train your pet, avoid bringing a young puppy or kitten, especially if you have kids. In this case, the best approach is to get an older pet that is well trained and socialized.
- Can Older Pets Perform Well with Kids?
Now, you have decided to bring an older pet home because you don’t have time to train and socialize with them. But ensure that they’ll perform well around kids. Older pets have mobility issues, and they’re not as active as the younger pets are. So, unpredictable, noisy, and fast-moving kids can create problems for pets.
The best practice is to ask for the pet’s history when you visit a shelter for adopting a pet. The breeder will let you know how pets react to children.
- Can Your Child Handle A Cat or Dog Correctly?
It’s essential to keep your kid’s capacity in mind when choosing a pet for your kid. For example, if your kid is small and you bring Great Dane, it can result in accidents. Medium-sized dog and cat breeds are ideal for small kids.
- Which Pet Suits Your Lifestyle?
It’s another important consideration while choosing a pet. Some kids are energetic, and they love to play with pets. On the other hand, some kids just love to cuddle with pets on their couches. Moreover, consider your living space and other factors when choosing a cat or dog for kids.
Our Recommendation
So far, you have learned why you should adopt a pet for kids and what to consider when choosing a pet. We want to share our recommendations based on our experiences.
- If your kids have allergy issues, bring pets that don’t shed much. For this, you can either bring a short-haired cat or a dog.
- Choose the dog or cat breed wisely. As mentioned earlier, if you decide to bring Great Dane, there is always a risk of an accident. On the other hand, if you have naughty kids and you bring a too small pet, your kid might unintentionally hurt them.
- Some kids are more caring and responsible than others, so medium-sized pets are ideal for such kids.
So, we can conclude that cats and dogs both are good options for kids. But you need to consider all the factors and questions mentioned above. The answer to this cat or dog for kids depends on your lifestyle, age and size of your kid and pet, and the pet’s training.
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