The Problem with Treating Pets as Children
The Behavior Can Range from Mild to Very Severe
While it may seem like a small problem, it really isn't. Treating pets as children or little humans can and will create problems in your household. The pampered pet may continuously compete for your attention with your spouse. While you sleep soundly in your bed with your dog, your partner must spend nights on the hard couch, watching TV to pass the time.
This will eventually create more and more problems in your relationship. Your spouse will begin to get angry because you are essentially treating your pet better than them. Relationships have ended over too pampered pets, and even the court systems are starting in on the trend. Now, pets are beginning to be treated as children, and battles are fought over who will get the pet once a divorce occurs. This only adds to the idea the pet has in its mind that they rule the household.
Cesar Milan, better known as The Dog Whisperer works with pet owners to stop treating them like children and more like the pets they are supposed to be. Many owners are afraid that telling their pet no, or disciplining them when they do something wrong is bad. They are afraid of hurting their feelings, and eventually give into whatever they want and desire to do, because of this. Their dogs become unruly and take over the entire house.
With the continuous pampered treatment, pets will eventually become spoiled. Cesar has worked with dogs whom have become so spoiled they will only eat 'people foods' that are prepared a special way, they will only sleep in the finest situations and often this means, in bed with one owner while the other rides the couch. Not only does this treatment cause spoiled behavior, it can also cause violent behavior as the pet is used to being treated one way with things being done in one way. This irritates the pet and they become aggressive, or even refuse to eat and play. In a sense, they become depressed.
So, how can you prevent this behavior? The answer is simple really; don't over spoil your pets! They are animals and should be treated as such. It's ok to buy a new toy now and then, it's ok to give them treats, but over doing it should never occur. Being constantly pampered allows them to feel they are in charge. You don't want a pet that won't eat dog food anymore, or a pet that won't sleep on the floor. It is important they know they are a pet, and they know their place. When they do not know this concept, problems can arise.
How can you stop this behavior? If you're afraid of completely stopping the behavior all at once, and don't want aggressiveness to be a problem, wean them off of what they like the most. If they sleep in your bed constantly, reclaim it with your partner. When they jump up, push them onto the floor and continue to do so until they get tired and start to realize that is not where they belong. Don't let them take over the house! It is yours, you worked hard for it, and it's time you showed it.
If your pet is used to eating people food, and turns up its nose at pet food, buy it and place it in their dish anyway. It's important not to give in and let them have what you are eating. Let them know they won't get anymore food until what is in their dish is gone. The behavior stops today. Be persistent, it will pay off.
It is important to remember that the behavior will not get better in one day, especially if it has continuously occurred for months or even years. It will take time.
Published by Traci Brown
Traci has a Bachelors of Science degree in Child Development and Family Studies. She is currently working as a Preschool teacher, an English tutor and as a writer online. View profile
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16 Comments
Post a CommentWe all belong to animal species so should we treat each other as animals....Think before you write...Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Primates Family: Hominidae Tribe: Hominini Genus: #$%$ Species: H. sapiens
I am sorry but I had to continue with a separate box....can someone please email me with some suggestions or solutions please!!! daizie74_99@yahoo.com
Thanks!!
ok I am just reading this but the problem that we are facing is that its not our dogs, they belong to my boyfriends parents and both of them treat the animals like children, calling them babies won't both leave the house for long periods of time afraid that something will happen to dogs, feeds them dinner with special prescription food and then tops with cheddar cheese and grilled chicken and it has to be cheddar, cause that's what Lucy(the dog) prefers. And both dogs get fed from the table more chicken or wieners(either grilled or cold but it has to be 97% fat free) and one of the dogs constantly groans or barks till he gets something, which means that one of the two is constantly feeding one of them instead of themselves...dinner time at the table for us humans is controlled by the dogs...if there is too much noise at night my boyfriend and I get yelled at cause we might wake the "babies"..(mind you we're both in our late 30's)! We don't know what to do,
My husband is so affectionate with our dog but not our kids. He wakes up, feeds the dog, not our kids. Calls to ask how the dog is doing. Lets the dog on top of the bed even if her paws are muddy. Dog gets to eat in the living room. Dog never gets discipline, yet our kids get yelled at all the time. When I try to talk to him about it his answer is always the same, "Dogs have no say, humans do."
I wrote disciple instead of discipline in the end portion of my rant. Fail for me. That proves we should all proofread before posting comments!
Your article is named "The Problem with Treating Pets as Children" and makes the broad claim that treating pets as children means there will be household problems because pets aren't children.
I'm sorry, but your article is ridiculous. Not because I disagree, which I do, but because all of the problems you're attributing to pets are the same problems that can be caused by children.
Spending too much time over the children can cause a rift in a marriage, spoiling your children by buying them the newest toys and clothes is detrimental, and letting kids eat and do whatever they want is also a problem because it can cause undesired behavior, therefore-- GASP! We need to discipline our children.
If your article is to insinuate that we should treat our pets as we should treat our children (with disciple and a proper social place) then, fine. Your article DOES technically make that point. However, I know that's not what you were going for. So, fail for you. Maybe you should try again.
My wife treats her two dogs as if they are her children. It is destroying our new marriage. I can't get near her without competing with the presence of at least one dog. There is no room for us as a human couple due to all of the dog clothing and other supplies. She treats and speaks to them as if they were the finest human and me, well, she treats me like dirt. I have asked her to treat me like a dog (from her perspective). Dogs are animals/pets. Spouses are humans worthy of being treated better than the pets.
if you spare the rod and spoil the child or pet they are going to be unrully.......
i dissagree with the writer. i sleep with my boy (pepper my dog) every night. he is very manerable, he dont potty inside and he excellent @ the groomer's spot. he has his own wardrob plus 3 different coach collars that he's never chewed on. i love my boy and ill keep spoiling him. to each is own i think it's kinda cool to let your dog feel very speacial in the household.
I agree with Carla Blair's comment. I let my dog sleep in my bed with my boyfriend and there is no problem. The same goes for our cats. As for Monika Fay Zoltany's comment, I dress my pets up all the time when taking them out, even paint their nails. But by doing this, i have not confused my pets to be human. I let them do all the natural things they do minus chewing on stuff they find on the street floor. There is a deffinite limit to spoiling pets just as there is to spoiling children. However, I consider my dogs a part of the family and its great. Even though they sleep in our comforters or on our big fluffy pillows, when we're not in them, they'll sleep on the floor - carpeted or non- carpeted. I dont see the problem with any of this. I know when to say no to my dogs and cats, and even punish them and there are times that I treat them like my children. But through out all of this, my dogs have remained very happy, very friendly with their own personailities and it seems a