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Are you thinking about getting your child a dog? A dog could be one of the best things to come into their lives. Pets have a way of becoming a part of the family and your child will feel that way about their new pet.
However, a dog is a huge responsibility and you may be wondering whether or not it is really a good idea to bring a pet into your home. There will be a lot of changes involved for your child and yourself.
Here’s a look at why you should consider taking on the challenge of owning a pet and how your child can benefit from it.
Remove Loneliness
If your child has no siblings a dog can help you take away feelings of loneliness from your child. Your child will never feel alone when they have a pet to take care of.
While this cannot take the place of another sibling, it can give your child another living thing to just think about, care about and be kind to. This can help to develop their character.
Help Your Child Be Responsible
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of getting your child a dog is that it teaches them how to be responsible.
When your child gets a dog they will need to take care of their pet. Dogs have a wonderful way of teaching your child how to be extremely responsible as the survival of another living creature is at stake.
Build Your Child’s Immunity
One of the things that a dog can help your child develop a strong immune system. This is because dogs unavoidably have to bring germs into the home.
This is not to say that they overwhelm your house with germs but your child’s immune system will need to adapt and become stronger. This will help your child to fight off ailments a lot better because their immune system is stronger.
Get Protected
A dog is a time-tested way of protecting yourself from intruders. Not every dog is a watchdog but even if your pet is not a watchdog they will alert you should intruders try to get into your property.
If your pet is a breed of dog that is generally used as a watchdog you are in even better luck. A dog will help to keep your child safe in their home.
Dogs are known for their loyalty and having a pet means that your child will always have someone to watch over them now and for years to come.
Make Your Child Happier
One reason you should get your child a dog is that it will help to make them happier. A dog is naturally fun-loving and happy. They will want to play and be affectionate.
Having an animal like this in your child’s life will help to keep them happy. Keeping your child happy is probably at the top of your list as a parent. A dog will help to make your home a happy place and improve the overall mood of the home.
Keep Your Child Healthy
Often when health and dogs are spoken about in the same sentence it is usually to talk about the health of your pet. While taking care of your pet and making sure that they are healthy is paramount.
Having to take the dog for a walk, and give the dog regular exercise is important. If your kids are like most, then they will run and play with their dog.
They will also be eager to take their dog on a walk. All of this is a valuable physical activity that can help to get your child in shape.
Your Child Will Learn to Love
Dogs provide some of the healthiest forms of unconditional love your child will ever experience. Of course, they will get that from you but getting it from a pet makes it special too.
A dog can make a child who is insecure or has difficulty in making friends feel as if they are wanted and needed. Children with dogs will know the power of unconditional love more than just about anyone.
Dogs give love without expecting anything in return and they can teach powerful lessons to young children.
In addition to helping your child experience unconditional love, dogs can help your child to become less selfish. For example, your child may feel like sitting on the couch and being on their device all afternoon.
However, when they have a dog that must take for a walk they will need to move past their feelings and do what’s right for the dog. This will teach them how to be less selfish.
Help Your Child’s Speech
There are many developmental milestones that children should cross. Many children do not cross these milestones very easily. One such milestone is the development of proper speech. There are many children who have problems speaking clearly and finding the words to express themselves. When they have a dog they will be able to interact verbally with the dog even if the dog cannot interact back with them through speech.
A dog may be just what a child needs to start vocalizing things out loud. They will need to call the dog’s name and give the dog commands, this forces them to speak and may counteract any speech difficulties they are experiencing.
Develop Self Esteem
Owning a dog can help to develop the self-esteem of your child. If you think about it, your child will be learning how to take care of their pets and once they are succeeding, it will give them the confidence of knowing that they can accomplish things that they set their minds to.
Get your child involved in obedience training for their new puppy or dog. As they learn how to train the puppy to be obedient and follow instructions they will begin to develop confidence as they see something that they’re changing another living creature’s life.
Encourage Socialization
One of the things that a dog can provide for your child is the ability to improve their socialization skills. This is especially true if your child has to take the dog to the park or somewhere else where they need to interact not only with other dogs but with other people as well.
It can force your child to come out of their shell and start expressing their thoughts and feelings. A dog is a perfect conversation starter and it can help your child to build friendships that they may not have had access to otherwise.
Get Your Pet
As you can see there are a lot of benefits to getting a dog for your child. If you’re still on the fence then the list of benefits that have been discussed here should make you reconsider.
With all the benefits that your child will receive from having a dog, it makes perfect sense for you to get a pet dog for them sooner rather than later. The earlier your child begins to learn responsibility and how to take care of another living creature, the better character they will develop.
Through the act of loving, and caring for a dog, your child will learn some valuable lessons about love and duty. Bear in mind too, that if your child has speech problems, then getting them a pet is the perfect way for them to be forced to verbalize their thoughts and feelings. This can dramatically improve their speech development and get them on the right path.
