Is it Time to Add a Pet to the Mix?

As your child or children is growing up, one of the more important things is to help your child develop their social skills. But as parents, you may be very busy trying to provide for your children, take care of the household, cooking meals, sometimes working from dawn to dusk. With such a hectic lifestyle, it is not always feasible to be able to socialize and play with your children. Play dates with other children can only be so often, so families often will look elsewhere for companions that can be added to the family. Many of us grew up with them, we all love them, and a great addition to any family can be a pet.

Of the various pets that people add to the families, the dogs, the cats, the rodents, the chickens, the horses, the pigs, the goats, the fish, the lizards, the goats, the snakes, more often than not, you and your child will certainly cherish the addition to the family. If you are completely out of sorts on what kind of animal to add to the family or that your child would appreciate, but do think it’s a great idea, here’s a little bit of a shout out on how some of my favorite animals have helped the lives of families.

Dogs – Man’s best friend, and there is a reason for it. Dogs, if properly trained, can certainly provide valuable love and protection for your family. Certain species of dogs are bred for certain purposes, but the average suburban family uses dogs for protection, and reciprocated love. Most dogs are great with young kids and can provide a ton of entertainment and affection for your family.

Cats – Bringing a cat to the family could certainly help provide some entertainment and love to your home. Some kitties can seem just like a dog the way that they can reciprocate affection given to them and the certain degrees of playfulness that they exhibit.

Birds and Chickens – If you are more of an out of the coop kind of family, a chicken or bird may be appealing to you. I tend to favor bringing in a chicken to your home after visiting my sister’s backyard that is full of chickens. She originally got the chickens for the organic pest control service that they provide. Since chickens eat the insane number of bugs, spiders, roaches, snails, and slugs that roam the common plant filled backyard, they serve more of a purpose to your life than just as a pet. As an added bonus, there is no doubt that most children love chasing and running around with birds bringing a multitude of fun to your backyard every day.

Rodents – Rats, mice, gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters, and other rodents should absolutely be purchased from a pet store where you can have a better idea of quality of animal you will be bringing to your kid. If you luck out, you could get a lively animal that could be allowed to scurry about the house. Many children like the smaller animals and it gives them a chance to learn how to care for something that isn’t nearly the responsibility larger animals like felines and canines are.

Fish – Some fish breeds can be of high interest to a youngster. With the vast variety of fish that can be chosen from, they can be a very simple pet to take care of, and a modest addition of life to your home.

Farm animals – The various farm animal breeds, goats, horses, and pigs can all make fantastic pets as they often carry pet-like tendencies as compared to the other farm breeds like a cow or sheep. With love given to these animals, comes love received back. If you can manage it goats, sheep, and pigs can be an absolute blast for any child to play with! And they definitely bring the opportunity of uplifting your family.

So as we are approaching summer, there is bound to be a lot of time for your family to make the decision if this is the summer you are going to add a pet to the mix. Hopefully we were able to provide some guidance on your decision!

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