Information for Parents
and Care-givers

Children will learn a lot through watching, listening, thinking and copying what their parents and caregivers do. So naturally, if a child is consistently exposed to responsible pet ownership practice and empathetic treatment of living things, it is highly likely that child will begin to practice those same behaviours. These behaviours are likely to become instinctive and that child’s “norm”.

Unfortunately the same can be said when a child is regularly exposed to irresponsible and undesirable animal interactions.

The way that animals are treated by a family will strongly influence whether or not the children within the home learn to treat living beings with dignity and respect. For example, if a family’s dog is left chained in the backyard all day every day with no shelter or exercise, or a rabbit is kept all alone in a small cage in the backyard, a child exposed to this practice will learn to believe that it’s ok to disregard the needs of others rather than have consideration for them.

Tip for Parents/Caregivers:

When children see parents making an effort to care for those who cannot care for themselves, they learn that this is the proper way to behave. Model responsible pet ownership for your children so that they will learn that animals are sentient beings with their own wants and needs.

Show your children that pets are not toys or objects for them to use and then disregard when the novelty has worn off. Modelling this type of empathy and compassion will give your children the ability to consider the thoughts and feelings of others and act accordingly.

Research studies have shown that a child’s emotional intelligence is a stronger predictor of future social and occupational success than traditional I.Q. scores. As they grow up, children who have learned empathy and compassion are more likely to become trustworthy friends, valued co-workers, and respected members of their community.

Tip for Parents/Caregivers:

Paying close attention to how your child interacts with family pets and/or other animals they meet. If you ever see inappropriate or cruel behaviour, instantly and consistently stop this and instead, promote and encourage positive behaviour.

From a very young age, most children are surrounded by animals in some shape or form. Many children have animal themed clothing, bedding, toys and stuffed pretend animals.

We often see young children cuddling, naming, talking to, and playing with their animal toys. Walking into most early childhood centres, you will witness children learning their alphabet and practising their counting with animal pictures and library corner shelves filled with animal themed picture books.

Throughout primary and intermediate school, outings with friends, family or class groups will often include visiting animals at the zoo, birds in a park, and fish in an aquarium or fishpond. Children will watch animals on television and starring in block buster movies. It’s therefore not surprising that from an early age, children have a fascination with all kinds of furry friends. With a fascination of animals, children usually want to interact with them, eager to hug and squeeze them.

Though this is a child’s way of expressing affection, unfortunately this kind of attention is often less than empathetic since the needs of the animals are being disregarded. Most pets don’t enjoy being chased, grabbed or pulled by young children who want to cuddle with them. It might seem harmless for small children to poke and prod animals, since they really can’t do them any physical harm, but remember numerous studies have shown that the way people treat animals is closely related to the way they treat people.

Tip for Parents/Caregivers:

Discourage your children from chasing, grabbing, pulling or poking animals. A child who holds onto a struggling pet is not learning to consider and respect the needs of other living beings. Instead, encourage pro-social behaviours such as sharing, compromise and cooperation.