scac

1. 1
How Presence of Pets Influences Such Qualities as Kindness, Empathy, and Intelligence in
Children
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Course
Professor’s Name
Date

2. 2
How Presence of Pets Influences Such Qualities as Kindness, Empathy, and Intelligence in
Children
Contacts for help:dorineadalyn@gmail.com
ildren
The essay explores how pets' presence in the life of a child helps in developing such
social attributes as kindness, empathy, intelligence. The focus is on how a child's likelihood to
have these attributes is pegged on whether the child owns a pet or not. The essay shows why it is
crucial for parents to allow kids to keep pets by highlighting how important it is to a child’s
social life even beyond childhood.
Pet ownership allows a kid to form emotional bonds. It goes beyond the bonding with the
pet to social bonding and the ability to form social connections. When a child proves to have the
capacity to build a bond with a pet, it is arguable that the child can build bonds with the parents
and peers. Emotional bonds are the perfect environment for such virtues as kindness, empathy,
and intelligence to grow (Worthylake, 2014). The pets also provide the needed loyalty and need
to be loved and cared for, making the child feel obliged to care and reciprocate the love. Pets are
available whenever the kids need comfort. It teaches a kid to reciprocate the need to reciprocate
to others by providing comfort to others.
A child learns about care through interaction with pets. Children who own pets appear to
be more caring from the early developmental stage. It can be explained by the sense of
responsibility that comes with a pet showing the craving to be cared for and tendered. The child

3. 3
learns to show kindness because the pet provides the immediate emotional need to be fulfilled.
The habit forms part of the child's social behavior that goes way beyond childhood. From pets,
children learn about loss and sickness and what to do when someone they care about goes
through either. The death of pets also makes kids more responsive to failures in life.
Pets influence the ability of a child to show empathy. Kids who grow up having pets like
cats and dogs have exhibited a higher empathy level than kids who didn't have the same
environment growing up (Vartan, 2020). Pets help children grow a broader emotional
intelligence, paving the way for a higher Intelligence quotient, as studies have shown. When kids
have pets, they feel assigned and involved. The feeling of being in charge of something helps a
child build self-esteem. High self-esteem increases the likelihood of higher intelligence in a
child. A child with a pet grows up into a more compassionate adult who is aware of others' need
for empathy and comfort.
Pets have increased the ability of kids to cope with stressful situations. Stress is a
significant hindrance to the development of a child's ability to care for others. Most children
have sought reprieve from pets during stress, and the emotional response that the pets have
shown has helped the kids develop the necessary traits to get through the stress. Hence, it points
out the emotional intelligence that a kid receives by seeking comfort from the stress.
Keeping a pet is proving to be more helpful than it sounds. The development of vital
social skills by a child is made more reachable when pets are involved. Pets make kids more
intelligent. Pets also make children kinder and more empathetic towards different life situations.
Moreover, kids with pets tend to learn the virtue of responsibility and care through interacting
with pets earlier in their life. Pets, therefore, are an essential aspect in developing an emotionally
intelligent kid.

4. 4
References
Vartan, Stare. (2020). Kids Who Grow Up With Dogs and Cats Are More Emotionally
Intelligent and Compassionate. Retrieved from. https://www.treehugger.com/kids-who-
grow-up-with-dogs-and-cats-are-more-emotionally-intelligent-and-4868147
Worthylake, Megan. (2014). Family Pets teach Children Empathy. Butte Human Society.
Retrieved from. https://buttehumane.org/family-pets-teach-children-empathy/