Surprising Pet Makes Kids Smarter

[Roni Jasper]

Came across this and thought it was to cute not to share.

Surprising Pet Makes Kids Smarter
By Webvet | Animal Nation | Tue, Jul 17, 2012 9:05 AM EDT | Comments
By WebVet.com

If you want your children to do better in school -- get them a chinchilla. A new study found a link between a better performance in the classroom and kids who have pets, especially the aforementioned soft rodents.

Surprisingly it was the chinchilla that emerged as the most likely animal to boost a child's cleverness, with 55% of owners reporting an uptick in creativity. If it's just a kid's homework that needs a boost, consider adopting mice or rats as 92% of rodent owners reported a better performance on assignments, compared with 86% and 80% for children owning dogs and cats respectively.

http://shine.yahoo.com/blogs/animal-nation/

 

[ChinnyMom]

i don't find it cute at all. this article is going to lead to a number of mis-treated chins.

 

[Jenn]

i don't find it cute at all. this article is going to lead to a number of mis-treated chins.

Hopefully not. And if these are kids/families who are concerned about doing well academically, maybe they'll also be smart enough to only bring home animals that are appropriate for the maturity of their kids. And I don't think this will appeal to all families. If my mother had read this when I was growing up, I know she wouldn't have been influenced to bring home an animal just so I could perform better. But I do agree that having animals in the home is beneficial to a child's growth, but again, it has to be appropriate for the child's age and maturity.

 

[menagerie]

It's not a scientific study. The kids felt smarter.

The underlying belief is that caring for a pet makes children more responsible. In the Pets at Home study, nearly half of children said that owning and looking after a pet makes them happier, a third claimed to be calmer, while a fifth feel smarter.

 

[TeaEarlGreyHot]

There are no actual study findings in here except for some numbers. But I, myself, have a chinchilla and I have a 7 year old daughter. I think just by her watching how to properly take care of a chin and she just joins in for playtime with the chin that she is SO much calmer and more mothering than before we got the chinchilla. It will make her a better chin owner in the future when she is ready. I didn't agree with how they worded this article- saying that only animals which the child has sole responsibility of. A parent should ALWAYS aid a child in pet care, just like in everything else a child does- it's the parents responsibility to teach the child the proper way to do things.

 

[Vyxxin]

Well, most people would not go out and buy a pet because of a simple study that hardly anyone knows about. I do find it cute, and sure know chins are a good teaching tool for children. My two, ages 3 & 4...BOTH have their own chinchillas in MY herd. Blackie (yeah, my 3yr old named her so) gave birth today and my children were delighted. Due to my chinchillas my children have learned more about keeping hands clean (they help feed) as well as proper gentleness (I hold, they pet) and responsibility. They know the chins need fed daily. They know the pet chins get out for playtime. They know the cages need cleaned (I don't allow them to help with that) and they know that not everything is safe for a chinchilla to eat which also transfers into not everything is safe for THEM to eat I think having chinchillas as part of OUR family has benefitted my children. Though, I think any pet properly taken care of would do mostly the same. Neat finding.

 

[chinnmyheart]

Cyxxin, that funny your daughter name one of the chins blackie. I had a chin name blackie too.

 

[Terbear24]

Its a very cute little article. I also think it helps with the responsibility aspect and helps with their maturity!

 

[momenteller]

Love it! That's why my children are so clever.

 

[Chinbutt]

Hopefully not. And if these are kids/families who are concerned about doing well academically, maybe they'll also be smart enough to only bring home animals that are appropriate for the maturity of their kids. And I don't think this will appeal to all families. If my mother had read this when I was growing up, I know she wouldn't have been influenced to bring home an animal just so I could perform better. But I do agree that having animals in the home is beneficial to a child's growth, but again, it has to be appropriate for the child's age and maturity.

Well stated Jenn. I think having any animal in the household is typically going to have a positive impact on the social and emotional well being of growing children. But like you said, it needs to be appropriate for the age and maturity of the child.

 

[Zoaea]

Media often twist unrelated data for entertainment. I'm sure owning a rat doesn't effect school performance at all, rather more mature, intelligent kids might be attracted to rodent pets, ect.

Some comments about kids not being responsible enough to take care of pets, it entirely depends on the child. I think some kids are capable of it with the parent only monitoring that the pet is not neglected.

When I was 8 I was required to fully research (back then by book) guinea pigs before i could buy one. Also, at 14. I was the one that saved up for, researched, and choose my chinchilla. My mother would have been clueless, and proved that when for my next bday she bought my male chin a friend from a pet a store that was female and died from a heart attack at 9 months.

Kids, parents, they all can have a range of ability to care properly for small animals.

 

[mrsmitchell]

Animals are great for kids to grow up with, as long as the parents are the primary caregiver and willing to teach the kids the appropriate way to care for each animal in the home I think my son is so lucky that he has an animal lover as a mom!

 

[Nerk]

I think pets are wonderful for children. I started with hamsters when I was about 10 then went to owning guinea pigs and now I own a chin. I actually adopted a1 year old hamster from our local shelter and let my niece help out with her whenever she was over(she passed last July and then we had to teach my niece about death). I believe they're a great learning experience for children but only if they're ready, responsible, and with the right pet.
At 10, I admit, I would never been responsible enough for a chinchilla.

 

[akane]

I've been the primary caregiver of a pet since I was 8 years old. At 12 I took over a stable of 20 horses because my grandmother passed away and no one else was interested in them. Every decision, deworming, feed, supplements... was mine. We also always bred guinea pigs under my supervision. I wanted sugar gliders in highschool but I couldn't make it work so I filled my room with first gerbils and then aquariums and guinea pigs.

 

[jacoby]

My kids have always loved animals, they get it from their Mom. There are rules about how we handle ownership. Research must be done first to see if our home is a good home for a certain pet. Just because they are cute doesn't mean we are the best choice. They are helped to take care of the pet and for my youngest two children there are rules as far as when they interact with their pet and having adult supervision. They have been taught to respect animals and each is gentle and loving. My 9 year old KNOWS when the beta has to have a water change and will let me know its NOW, TODAY Mom with urgency in his voice. I'm glad my children have been raised with animals. With love, rules and boundaries it has been beneficial for the animals and for us.

 

[chingo66]

This is TOO cute and heart warming....thanks for sharing!!!