In recent times, pet related injuries and mortalities have sparked heated debates about whether it is healthy for children to be around pets. In this essay I shall argue that such dangers are overemphasised and that children receive substantive psychological benefits through having pets.
To begin with, although exotic pets, the prime example is snakes, spiders have been known to occasionally abuse and even kill children, such incidents are so statistically rare as to be negligible. This is because the overwhelming majority of children have non-lethal cats, dogs, fish, rodents and rabbits for pets. For example The Child Safety Institute found that over 90% of the children owned the aforementioned pets, and professed that they had never felt in the least bit endangered by them. Seen in this light, it is clearly unfounded to claim that pets present any physical danger to children.
Secondly, pets can impact positively upon child psychology. This is because young pet owners frequently empathise with their pets and perform a diverse range of actions to maintain their well- being such as feeding, grooming. For instance, the Cambridge Developmental Psychology Unit found that children who had grown up with pets were 30% less likely to bully others and resolve conflicts through aggression. Consequently, it is undeniable that a child’s pro-sociality and mental health can be improved through exposure to pets.
In conclusion, the cited evidence provides strong support for the view that children owning pets is a good thing. In the future, as more laws are introduced to ban the ownership of illegally acquired exotic pets, this viewpoint will no doubt surge in popularity.
In recent times, pet related injuries and
mortalities
have sparked heated debates about whether it is healthy for
children
to be around
pets
. In this essay I shall argue that such
dangers
are
overemphasised
and that
children
receive substantive psychological benefits through having pets.
To
begin
with, although exotic
pets
, the prime example is snakes, spiders have
been known
to
occasionally
abuse and even kill
children
, such incidents are
so
statistically
rare as to be negligible. This is
because
the overwhelming majority of
children
have non-lethal cats, dogs, fish, rodents and rabbits for
pets
.
For example
The Child Safety Institute found that over 90% of the
children
owned
the aforementioned
pets
, and professed that they had never felt in the least bit endangered by them.
Seen
in this light, it is
clearly
unfounded to claim that
pets
present any physical
danger
to children.
Secondly
,
pets
can impact
positively
upon child psychology. This is
because
young pet owners
frequently
empathise
with their
pets
and perform a diverse range of actions to maintain their well- being such as feeding, grooming.
For instance
, the Cambridge Developmental Psychology Unit found that
children
who had grown up with
pets
were 30% less likely to bully others and resolve conflicts through aggression.
Consequently
, it is undeniable that a child’s
pro-sociality
and mental health can be
improved
through exposure to pets.
In conclusion
, the cited evidence provides strong support for the view that
children
owning
pets
is a
good
thing. In the future, as more laws
are introduced
to ban the ownership of
illegally
acquired exotic
pets
, this viewpoint will no doubt surge in popularity.