How to Know if Your Child is Ready for a Pet

At every opportunity, my children try to add an animal to the farm. It doesn’t matter if it’s a chicken or a chinchilla, they’ll try to tuck it under their sweater and sneak it into the house.

I’m a softie, so let’s just say that we’ve got more pets than the normal amount. Here, the rules are simple. If it’s yours, you take care of it. You feed it, water it, clean out its cage/stall. If you don’t, mum will find your creature a new home. Now, rehoming animals is off limits for us (in short, we don’t do it, given our rescue efforts here at Old Wood Hollow), so luckily for me, I’ve never had to do it (but I do have a couple of people who can hold said pet hostage for a few weeks).

Of course, there’s the most important rule: all creatures must be treated with kindness, even in moments of frustration (i.e. bunny takes a nibble, kitten plays a little too rough). Now this one is difficult to manage for us sometimes because children aren’t known for their patience. While mine are well-versed in the ups and downs of animal language, they can get tired and upset, animal or no. I do not believe that there is a child in the world who can regulate this without practice. It’s also why I don’t recommend pets to children under six years of age unless mom and/or dad are ready to be hands on.

I get it. We are all convinced that our children are the most patient, kindest beings in the world, but the reality is that they are sensitive and reactive. Considering this, a pet can help your child to:

• regulate his/her emotions

• to follow through on an idea, beginning to end

• open the door to the importance of a life, especially one outside of themselves

These are all wonderful things. But it is important to remember that a pet will not teach your child responsibility—they have to be ready to take it on. They can show you this in many ways, from:

• demonstrating the ability to see a chore through, from beginning to end

• scale the rate of your child’s patience.

• be honest with yourself and their attention spans. How long have they shown an interest is having a pet?

These are the questions to ask yourself. Every animal comes with the consumption of time, from cleaning to feeding to the odd emergency. They can force us to slow down, in the best way possible, especially when it comes to our children. Once you’ve rounded the corner on this idea, then try considering what might be the best fit for your family. More on that here.