6 Ways to Encourage Bonding between Kids and Pets

National Kids and Pets Day is a great day to encourage bonding between kids and pets. This article outlines just 6 ways to encourage bonding between kids and pets. It is hugely beneficial for your kids and their overall mental health to have a pet in their life as they grow. In this article, we will suggest easy ways that will help create a strong and unbreakable bond between the pets and kids. As the national kids and pet day is today, you must strengthen the friendship between the two.

Asking kids to help at mealtime

National Kids and Pets Day would be a great time to assign your kid the task of food preparation for your pet(s). Asking a kid to prep the pet’s meal is the best bonding that will bring the kid and the pet closer than ever. Whether the food is for a dog or cat, always ask your kid to help make meals this way as it will develop compassion and love in children. If you have children over 10 years of age, assign them to regularly feed the cats or dogs. Just for fun, you can also make a meal that both pets and kids can eat, like fruit or veggie bowls with carrots and apples.

Giving treats

Whether playtime or general interaction, treats are always good for bonding your furry friends with kids. Your kids will learn kindness when interacting with their pets. The best way to instill friendly habits in children is to let pets eat treats from their hands. In general, kids have a loving nature; therefore, it will not take long to teach your kids how to be a good pet parent. You can either buy your pet’s favorite treat and ask your child to present it to a dog or cat with the snack during playtime or you can also encourage healthy snacking for your pet and your kid by having healthy fruits and vegetables cut up on hand where the child can offer the pet appropriate fruits and vegetables while they also have a snack. Besides that, treats are also great to help train and reinforce good behavior within your pet while strengthening the bond with your dog or cat as most pets love people who give them delicious treats.

Let the kids participate in all pets related chores

National Kids and Pets Day is a great time for your child to learn responsibility by giving them pet related chores. They learn that pets are a responsibility that should not be taken lightly. The key is to make the chores age-appropriate so that you do not over-burden the child with big work tasks that are beyond the child’s age. Chores like bathing, brushing, cleaning the litter box, and helping in food preparation and serving are some of the tasks kids love to perform that build a lasting bond between the kid and the pet.

Schedule a photoshoot

Photos are the perfect way to look back at fond memories. As kids grow older, they love seeing photographs of themselves with their pets. The photoshoot works well for both cats and dogs. You could hire a pet sitter who can help you arrange the whole event, you can hire a professional photographer or take the pictures yourself. Set a theme like one for Valentine’s day, Halloween, or even a birthday party or family get together. Looking back at those photos and videos will bring fond memories to you and your kids. They will love to look back and might even become good pet parents and adopt a pet of their own someday.

Encourage your child to console the pet in hard times

Whether your pet needs assurance during a vet visit or is dealing with loud fireworks, some reassurance from people can go a long way. Ask your kids to talk to the pets or show bodily affection towards them in stressful times. Once it becomes a routine, the pet will look for the kids whenever stressed or in trouble. Little kids can bring pets, their favorite treats, or toys as a sign of peace and love.

Let the kids take the dog on the walk or provide playtime for your cat

One of the most important tasks is to ask your kid to walk the dog. When your kid gets somewhere between the age of 10 and 12 and if your dog has been appropriately trained to walk on a leash, then walking the dog is a great way to expend pent up energy in your kid and your dog. Both your kid and your dog can unwind and bond while walking. It will become something that both your kid and your dog will look forward to daily.

Cats on the other hand, truly enjoy play time with humans and you can enrich your cats life and greatly strengthen the bond between your cat and you kid by encouraging play time or what cat specialist sometime call play therapy. Have your kid get out their favorite pole toy, stuffed catnip mouse or whatever it is your cat enjoys playing with and spend time playing fetch with your cat or chase the feather toy attached to a pole toy.

Conclusion:

Although kids and pets are usually best friends, the scenario can be otherwise if the bond between the kid and their pet is not nurtured. National Kids and Pet Day is a great day to highlight just a few of the ways to help your kids bond with their pets and help them to become responsible yet loving pet owners in the future.