My son mistreats animals. my son out of spite cat tail pull. I don't know how to explain that they are part of the family, they are not toys and you have to treat them with respect...
Does this type of comment or phrase sound familiar to you with animals? Although it may seem unbelievable that a child wants to harm another living being, sometimes there are cases in which «they like to mistreat themwithout being aware of it. Today we will discuss the abuse to animals by some children.
It may happen that children are attracted to animals although their approach, especially if they are very young, is not always appropriate. They are discovering the world, and among all that they discover we find the animals. Living beings that move, that are different from them and that look like the eluches that they can see in their room or in cartoons.
It's not hard to see children tormenting pets, killing small insects or capturing reptiles in order to observe and learn about them. And that doesn't mean they're bad people.
We will approach the subject from a psychological and scientific point of view.
False myths and false beliefs about the relationship between children and animals
any act of violence committed by a child towards an animal is certainly an act that in the eyes of a parent raises concern. And that is normal because we are aware of what is happening, but the children are not.
In general, when children are very young (we are talking about an age of preschool) their natural curiosity can generate unpleasant experiences for your pets. It is probably your first experience with an animal and you have not yet learned how to treat and care for them. The children are not ready to interact with an animal and less with the unpredictable reactions of small beasts. We must teach them how to do it.
What does science say about raising children with animals?
In a scientific study published in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology It was investigated if educating children in the correct relationship with an animal can be effective and how it could be done. The fundamental point that emerged from this study is the unpredictability of the reaction of both very young children and the animals themselves. Reactions that can sometimes be unpleasant and cannot be controlled.
En preschool, what is confused with abuse can, in most cases, be read as a lack of care experience (or play) of behavior with the animal.
The speech is a little different when it comes to older children. In this case, school-age children are already able to understand that the animal is not a toy, but a living being that can feel pain if it is hurt. In this case, if you notice this behavior on the part of your child, my advice is to contact an expert in educational psychology who can help you and give you valuable information.
These are our tips:
What emotions do we feel?
“I am afraid: will it be a criminal future?”
"It makes me angry, I like animals so much!!"What do we think:
"Why are you doing that?"
"Maybe I didn't give it proper attention!"
“What if this situation gets worse?”
"Who knows what my neighbors will think when they see these scenes on the balcony!"What we can do:
"Can I ask"
“I can talk to a specialist who understands my concerns and knows how to give me useful information”
What can we do in practice?
- Don't expect your child to be able to take care of an animal right away: learn to care it is something that must also be assimilated, understood and learned. Slowly.
- Pay attention to your thoughts: try to limit the sensations to the situation you are observing.
- Try to notice small improvements (such as approaching the animal gently) and pay due attention to these moments, praising him when he approaches appropriately.
- If inappropriate behavior occurs, ask your child how they felt (and not why they did it).
- If the behavior becomes very prevalent, seek expert advice.