You brought a new pet into your home? This is grandiose! However, together with joy and excitement comes the necessity to take care of a furry buddy. The best part is that it’s a great opportunity to teach your kid lessons in empathy, commitment, and responsibility. While kids can’t do everything, tasks like adding dental powder for dogs or giving them water are something munchkins can manage. We’re here to provide some quick tips on how to teach your child to be a responsible pet parent in the future.

Be a Good Example

No matter how hard you try to teach them to take care of their pets, they will 100% watch you and do it the way you do. Show them how to treat the animal gently, feed it on time, clean its space, and speak to it kindly. Only you can show them that taking care of their new buddy is crucial.

Choose Tasks Appropriate for Their Age

Matching your rug rat’s ability and age is a must when assigning duties. For example, they can fill the water bowl, brush the pet with supervision, and put away toys at the age of 3-5. When they’re 6-9 years old, they can feed animals if you remind them, help clean cages or litter boxes, and go on walks with a parent. At the age of 10+, little ones take full responsibility for feeding, grooming, and basic cleaning.

Set a Routine

We recommend creating a special schedule and posting it somewhere in the house where the tot will see it at any time. It’s important to include things like feeding the animal in the morning or in the evening, walking, grooming, cleaning the cage or litter box, playtime, etc. The point here is that if you want to build a habit, you have to repeat the same routine again and again. Plus, your children won’t have to guess what should be done next.

Explain All Whys Behind Every Task

Don’t just show up in their room and say, “Go feed Julio,” or “It is time to groom Fluffy Meowington.” Instead, say something like, “Our cat needs a clean place to go to the bathroom – just like we do.” When they understand the reason why you give each task, they’re more likely to take it seriously.

Add Some Fun to the Process

Fun is an essential part of everything kids are engaged in. Turn meeting the animal’s needs into a learning opportunity. For example, you can read books about grooming fluffballs, watch documentaries about furry companions together, or play pretend groomer or vet to cultivate empathy and love.

See? Teaching your little champ to take care of your new family member is not hard if you make sure to stay consistent and show the best example possible. And the best part is that it’s not only your child who is taking care of a four-legged friend, but also the pet that is helping raise them, too.