Owning a new kitten is just about the most exciting time of your family life. Those first few weeks are something special which will live long in your minds. It’s also a great chance to involve your children in learning how to take care of their new pet. It can become a really meaningful bonding time for the entire family.
What better way to introduce children to new responsibilities where they learn to become accountable for the smallest member of the family. Children can learn to become more reliable and as well, they will appreciate the satisfaction that comes with the added responsibility. Also we recommend you reading this post on how to introduce your dog to a new kitten.
Getting Your Kids Involved in Caring For Your Cats And Kittens
It’s always a good starting point to involve the kids in the selection and naming of your new cat. Just as important is making sure your children understand the range of caring activities that will be involved and to emphasize that they will be responsible, along with the rest of the family, for a living creature not a toy that can be put away. It is a whole new ball game.
Now, it’s not necessarily a difficult task to care for your pet if you really love them. Let’s face it, who doesn’t love their cat? I’ve seen people who say they hate cats simply melt after they’ve spent a few days with our family and go on to buy one for themselves.
What I’m saying here is that although the enjoyment you will get from your kitty will have to be balance against the daily tasks of feeding, cleaning up the bowls, refreshing the water and the medical concerns like fleas, heartworm and general grooming and cleaning up cat hair.
But, when all is said and done the time you have to allocate to these matters pales into insignificance when you experience the ultimate enjoyment of watching kitty at play and sleeping soundly on your lap.
I have found that kids really respond to the responsibilities when tasks are allocated equally among family members wherever possible. This ensures that tasks are seen as a family responsibility and can be a great learning experience and contribute to the children coming to understand that life’s pleasures are balanced with responsibilities and that is the way life works.
If you concentrate only on the jobs that need to be done or leave the “dirty” tasks to only one family member, then it could lead to resentment and then everyone, including kitty, will lose out. Having a balanced approach to pet ownership will have life long benefits when you learn to enjoy your cat and take care of them with love. It’s a life lesson we can all benefit from.
