If you have children, then chances are they have been asking you for a dog. Being a parent, it is your job to decide whether it is a good idea as well as if everyone will remain involved with its care. Regardless, having a pet dog may be able to offer your kids a way to be more responsible. It is a fact that when a child has a pet growing up, they are able to understand empathy through caring for something else.
The child and other family members will then know how to manage the care of the pet dog. This is why a pet dog would be a great way to learn lessons as a family. You can involve the entire family with your dog´s care regardless of it is a golden retriever or micro Frenchie.
Below are a few ways that you can get the entire family involved with the responsibilities of owning a pet dog.
Providing Exercise Opportunities and Walks
After you get your dog home, your family needs to understand that a daily walk and exercise will play a vital role, as it also needs to be the time when they have their potty breaks.
By having the entire family involved with the walks, there will not be a single person responsible for the daily duty. By taking turns walking your dog, each family member will also get their share of walking exercise as they enjoy the outdoors and not inside playing video games.
Besides having the dog learn to go potty outside while they walk, a walk can also provide exercise, especially if you go to a dog park. By implementing a few hours for your dog´s exercise, you will be able to keep them active just by playing with them. When active play is finished, your dog will be able to stay relaxed and thus behave more while indoors.
Developing a Daily Routine for Feeding
By developing a feeding routine, your kids will be able to learn when their dog should be fed throughout the day. Besides feeding, this responsibility also involves providing water throughout the day. As part of feeding your dog, a schedule needs to be established as well as knowing how much food the dog needs to be given at each feeding time.
The entire family needs to realize that the dog requires their diet to be healthy and the way to do this is by deciding on which food will be best as a whole.
By teaching your family the importance of a healthy diet, they will understand why it will keep their digestion in check as they eat their meals at the same time every day. You should also explain the importance of food quantity so that they can maintain a healthy weight that is appropriate for their breed.
Although it is great to have everyone involved with feeding, you can easily be confused by the sheer number of food options available on the market. In order to make a perfect choice, you need to find out as much about the food as you can since all dogs will have different nutritional needs.
If you come across brands that provide personalization towards your dog’s breed, then this type may be the best choice. Just make sure that it is full of flavor and nutritious.
Ensuring Their Environment Is Clean
As a family, you should be able to ensure that your dog´s environment is clean. This is the perfect time when the kids need to keep their toys put away so that there will be no chew marks in the morning.
Having your kids maintain a clean environment will also include keeping the dog´s food dishes clean while not in use. Teach your kids the importance of having a clean environment and how it will help keep your dog healthy.
As a family raises a dog, the rewards can be plenty and your kids will learn a lot about responsibility. Not only that, but the entire family will enjoy helping each other to understand the importance of what the dog requires. The lessons the family learns will provide a bit more responsibility in other aspects of life.
