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Children And Pets - Safety Tips

27 11:36:15
According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry the boy or girl that has a pet is is taught to take care of it with kindness and patience, can learn a valuable lesson in how to respond to people. They also explain that neglecting or carelessly treating a pet is a bad lesson for a child and obviously not good for the pet.

When picking a pet for your child, it is vital to choose one he can help nurture, feed, and otherwise care for, which develops good habits and attitudes. The pet's safety is also important. A child under school age shouldn't be left alone with a pet. He could unintentionally hurt the animal. A child under five doesn't have the ability to control his temper and should always be monitored, while around the pet.

The best pets for children less than six are fish, gerbils, hamsters, budgies, and guinea pigs. Rabbits don't make good pets for smaller children because they are sometimes temperamental. Reptiles aren't good for children under school age because these kids are more prone to contract salmonella.

The tasks your small child does to help take care of his pet should be appropriate for his age. When younger, he could help you clean the animals bowls or help clean the cage. When your child is older, the responsibility of brushing a cat or brushing and bathing a dog is more appropriate. When older, he could apply the ear mite medicine to the pet's ears.

Reptiles like snakes and certain geckos eat live food, which may be too disturbing for a smaller child. The bigger reptiles are more prone to being aggressive. The little ones like anoles, which are small lizards are interesting to watch, take minimal maintenance, and are a cheaper pet to purchase.

Birds need more daily maintenance like cage cleaning and fresh water and food. They are easy to feed needing seeds and pellets and sometimes fruit. The small birds are more fragile. Some birds are very affectionate and like interaction with people. Some birds are expensive. Some species bite. Sometimes birds carry a disease called psittacosis; children, people whose immune system is weak, and older people can contract this illness.

The majority of fish are cheap and easy to maintain. Most of them are easy to feed and a simple aquarium will do. The parents will need to be sure that the water temperature, nitrogen level, and the pH balance are correct, when the fish belong to small children and older children can learn to check these things on their own.

Rodent pets are basically inexpensive, simple to house, and are low maintenance. Some rodents bite, chew on stuff, and some are escape artists. They are fun to watch and some like human attention.

Chinchillas are low cost, affectionate, and fun. Feeding and maintaining them are simple tasks. They do require dirt bathes that are messy. Warm weather can cause them heat stroke.

Rabbits are inexpensive, easy to shelter, and they don't need much attention. They are low maintenance, just feeding and cage cleaning.