Kids and pets

807 Views 8 Replies 9 Participants Last post by snuggly mama, Jun 8, 2005

USAmma

Discussion Starter · Jun 7, 2005

I'm so glad I got a dog for Abi. Faye is a humane society rescue that Abi got for her 4th bday. Abi has had to learn to be gentle in order to get Faye's love and attention. I hae talked to her about friendship until I'm blue in the face but talking is just talking. The relationship these two have is so special. Abi has her own language for talking to the dog. She actually makes up words, and she also talks to the dog with "dog-like" sounds of whining and grunts. It sounds very strange to someone who doesn't live in our home, but it shows how strong their bond is.

Abi runs to Faye and hugs her and cries into her fur when she's upset. Usually when Abi is mad at me for some consequence of a bad choice on her part. We don't have any extended family around except my workaholic dad and his student-aholic wife. Abi's sib is too young to play with except at a very basic level. They can't have conversations yet.

So Abi has Faye. She's an angel dog. Okay so she chews stuff up but other than that she's such a special dog. I really think it's so important for kids to have relationships with animals.

Here's a photo taken today that shows just how close their bond is. Abi is "talking" to Faye in dog language and Faye is actually talking back.

I would love to hear your stories of your kids and their pets, or your thoughts on kids and pets, even stories of pets you had as a child and how they changed your life.

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Hoopin' Mama

· #2 · Jun 7, 2005

Oh, how sweet that photo is!!!
We had two dogs when my ds was born, an aussie and a newfie, but sadly our Newfie has since died. He truly was a gentle giant and would have been a wonderful companion to my son.
Our Aussie is my FIRST baby, and how his life has changed. He is dealing with his new place in our family well, and is curious and slightly freaked about the baby. In the beginning, everytime Jude cried, the dog howled. Now that my babe is crawling, the dog seems a little freaked out, and I will not yet leave them together unattended. But I know that someday soon they will be best buddies.
Congratulations on the new addition to your family!

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faythe

· #3 · Jun 8, 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by boongirl
...We also have two butthead cats. They are lovely to us at night after P goes to sleep but they don't like her much.

LOL :LOL ! We have one of those, too. The older girls came up to dh the other day and asked him why she hisses at them. She also hates me.

We have another cat that is very good with the girls. She lets the baby pull her fur, lets the toddler "walk" her by her tail and rotates between the older three girls' beds.

My favorite was our dog. He died a few weeks before dd3 was born, so the girls really don't remember him, but he was wonderful with them. He never showed a drop of jealousy when my attention was suddenly consumed by two crying babies. As they got older he got more and more interested in them. When they were learning to crawl he would get down on the floor and crawl with them. When they were pulling up he would walk over and stand next to them so they could pull up on him. Once they were walking he would keep tabs on them - everyone joked that he would be a good babysitter when they played outside (he was a border collie, and yes, he had a very strong herding instinct). Just thinking about it all really makes miss him and want another dog!

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iris0110

· #4 · Jun 8, 2005

Ds has some how managed to become friends with our Chihauhau. If you would have asked me when he was a baby if those two would ever be friends I would have said no, but now they are best buddies. Ds has had to learn to be very gentle because Fay (it's funny that our dogs have the same names) is so small that she could be hurt very easily. They roll on the floor together, and when Ds cries Fay is there to cuddle and lick his face. I didn't even know chi's knew how to play, but those two actually play together. She is even small enough for him to walk (our other dog is a rather large sheltie and she pulls him over when he tries to walk her). I can't believe our overly babied 8 yr old dog is such a good friend for a 3.5yr old.

Ds's other best friend is dh's tubby tabby cat Eddie. I have never seen a cat that would take toddler loving with such a good nature. Eddie gets laid on, carried around the house (which is really funny because ds can only lift Eddies top half so his feet drag on the floor), and squeezed in giant hugs, but he takes it all with a dopey smile and lots of purring. I think having pet friends has done ds a world of good.

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mamalisa

· #5 · Jun 8, 2005

I cursed my husband for a long time for getting us a dog (surprise!!) but I have grown to love her, mostly for how wonderful she is with my ds.

They adore each other, annoy each other, snuggle, play and generally behave like brother and sister. It's really cute. He's learned a lot of responsibility from having a dog and it's been really good for him. Too bad I can't say the same for dh :LOL When we're gone for a long day, he's worried that she will be lonely

If he gets mad at us, he will drag her in his room to complain

When he gets her eye boogers and she tries to bite him he says stuff like "well you can't go out with crap on your face" (just like I say to him when I wash his face) When he had the flu, she slept on the bathroom floor with him and when he would wake to throw up, she would sit outside the bathroom door until he was done and I left the room. Then she would go lay right back beside him.

So even though I still give my dh grief for getting a dog, I don't regret it anymore. She's part of the family.

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jadegirl553

· #6 · Jun 8, 2005

When DS was born we had a chow/lab mix. He didn't really work out. Small apartment+large dog+toddler is not a good situation. BUT...

We traded with my MIL for my husband's old terrrier mix dog. She is the sweetest thing. She's never even growled at DS. He loves to hold her face in his hands and talk to her. He even gives her kisses and tells her to be a good girl when we leave the house.

They also snack together. When DS is in his chair eating, Puppet sits beside him waiting for the leftovers. And when he's walking around with a snack, she's right behind him, cleaning up what he leaves behind.

I am really glad that we have this dog, and it is so sweet to see them together!

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BusyMommy

· #7 · Jun 8, 2005

ITA
My kids, 2 & 4, see our cats & dogs as furry siblings. That respect was just learned from birth. Funny, the cats even camped out in the bedroom for both births. I wonder what was going on in their little heads...oh NO! Here comes another one!!!

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AmyAngel

· #8 · Jun 8, 2005

My 2 younger sisters and I grew up on a small dairy farm, and spent loads of time playing outside in the woods, fields and pastures pretty much unsupervised. Our dog was our babysitter! She was a herding dog, and after she had done her work (herded all the cows to the milking parlor) my parents would tell her to watch us and she would follow us around, run beside us as we rode our bikes, and lay at the entrance to our "clubhouse" (at one point a shed, later a pine thicket with haystring around to keep the cows out) and watch us. She guarded the house, too. If she wasn't with us the parents could tell her to find us and she would come running to wherever we were.

We always had cats, too, including one who would sometimes let us dress her in our cabbage patch kids clothes. They didn't survive as long as the dog, though, as the house was on a busy road.

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snuggly mama

· #9 · Jun 8, 2005

My son really loves his fish

I know, it's kind of dorky, but we can't get him the dog he really, really wants, so he showers this fish with lots of love! He's such an animal kid that I feel tremendous guilt over not having a dog or even a cat for him. He watches Animal Planet all the time (even the animal births, which cracks me up since he can't stand the idea of human birth!) We did try to have a puppy last summer -- it was a complete, total disaster. I cried for three days straight until we finally returned her to the shelter

What a mean mom, huh? It's just, I had no idea puppies were so much work, and our youngest dd has SN. Trying to care for her and work on puppy-training was too much.

I hope in the next year or so that getting a "real" pet might be possible. I just hope I'm not squelching his dreams or something by not getting one yet.

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