A new study suggests that pre-school children with pet dogs may behave better compared to those without them. Experts believe that younger children who spend time with their pets when they are not in school learn better empathy.
Researchers from the University of Western Australia and Telethon Kids Institute analyzed more than 1,600 families with children aged two to five.
As part of the research, parents were asked to fill out a questionnaire that measured children's antisocial behavior, social interactions, and problems interacting with others. Furthermore, they also measured the childrens' prosocial behaviors, such as sharing and kindness.
In their findings, the researchers found that children from households with pet dogs were 23 percent less likely to have problems expressing emotions and social interactions than kids who owned no dogs.
Furthermore, the authors of the study found that paying with their pet dogs three or more times a week made children 74 percent more likely to be kind towards others. According to Dr. Hayley Christian, the leader of the study, having a dog could benefit the childrens' wellbeing and development.
Furthermore, she said it could be ascribed to the attachment between children and their pet dogs. The findings of the study were published in the journal Pediatric Research on July 6, 2020.
Pets and Children's Health
According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), dogs and children can be great friends and even life companions. Furthermore, having a dog can help children develop kindness, understanding, and respect for living things.
Dog companionship can improve a child's social skills with people. Moreover, caring for a pet can encourage responsibility.
By owning their own pet dogs, children can quickly understand and learn to treat the dog as part of the family. However, parents must teach children how to stay safe around dogs. Establishing safety guidelines would help protect both the child and the dog.
According to the National Institutes in Health, the unconditional love of a pet can do more than keep a person company. Pets can decrease stress, improve heart health, and even help children develop emotional and social skills.
How Having a Pet Affects a Child
Children raised with pets show many benefits, says the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Developing positive feelings about pets can help build up a child's self-esteem and self-confidence.
Positive relationships with pets can also contribute to the development of childrens' trusting relationships with others. Furthermore, a good relationship with a pet can also help in developing non-verbal communication, compassion, and empathy.
Pets can serve as different purposes for children. They can be safe recipients of secrets, and they can also be bearers of important life lessons correlated to birth, reproduction, illness, accidents, and death.
Owning pets can also help a child develop a deeper connection to nature, and it also teachers them respect and responsibility.
Furthermore, pet ownership can fulfill physical and emotional needs, such as comforting contact, love, loyalty, and affection. Finally, it provides an experience with loss if a pet gets lost or dies.
