Safety Tips

Remember these safety tips when you have a child and some pets in the house:

1. When your child and pet are first getting to know each other, create games that require your child to rely on words and toys rather than on direct physical contact with your pet. This will minimize the risk that your child or pet will be accidentally injured because one or the other is overexcited.

2. Teach both your child and pet rules for each game, helping each to have positive, controlled interactions with each other. For example, when playing a game involving dog treats or toys, teach your dog that he must sit before earning his reward—if he jumps up or grabs at it, he does not get the reward and the game ends. This is important because many dogs will jump up on or grab at objects that kids are offering and may knock over or accidentally bite the child in their enthusiasm. This can scare or injure the child, while at the same time teach the dog that he can get what he wants simply by taking it.

3. Show your child that he can get your pet to listen by using rewards. This will reduce his feelings of frustration.

4. If anyone gets upset during play, a brief time-out is effective for both children and animals. Establish safe areas where your child and your pet can spend time by themselves, separately, for a brief period. For pets, 30 to 60 seconds is a reasonable time-out period. One minute for every year of age is the general rule for children. However, you may wish to consult with your pediatrician to determine an appropriate time-out period.

I thank ASPCA for this information I got from them. I just would like to share this with my readers.