Pets and Babies

I'm a cat person, my husband is a dog person, so we have adorable little black kitty who is alternately fascinated by and terrorized by my toddler. Okay, so adorable is pushing it. I have an opinionated black cat who may or may not be the devil incarnate who hates all people but me and will tolerate my husband because I don't spend as much time on her as she'd like. However, she will only attack if provoked (or is scared out of her mind, like when traveling through major airports or if there's a house fire), so I was only mildly apprehensive about bringing a defenseless baby into her house (and yes, it is her house, we are merely tenants at her pleasure). Fortunately, while she doesn't really like it when my toddler chases her squealing with delight, the worst she has ever done is smack his hand (claws sheathed) when he corners her and will not leave her alone. Unlike, say my annoying mother, she knows better than to actually hurt him.

Then there is my parents' dog, an annoying, high-strung miniature schnauzer who is very jealous of them showing any attention to my son whom I would not trust for a minute alone with him. I think it's great to expose children to different animals and there are health benefits as well (children raised in a home with pets are less likely to develop allergies and asthma). I grew up with mainly cats and was terrified of dogs until I was a teenager, I would like to save my children this fate. The caveat being: know your animal! And even when you do, supervision is incredibly important, always! And teaching your child from a very, very early age what "gentle" means and to stay away from animals' faces.

At this point, my son has been around a lot of dogs at various people's homes and I still hover, even with the most gentle of them. Kids are loud and unpredictable, which is what will scare a pet more than anything. Having pets teaching children how to take care of things and compassion, both extremely important traits to have. Just make sure that everyone is safe in doing so.