PDD-NOS and Dogs

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-15-2008
PDD-NOS and Dogs
11
Tue, 01-22-2008 - 1:11pm

My son has hypotonia as well as PDD-NOS.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-07-2003
Thu, 01-24-2008 - 12:15pm

Pets in general can be a really good thing for any child. It depends on the type, the breed and the nature of the animal.


I had my 2 cats before I had kids. And after we had Joshua, we would watch and keep the door closed to his bedroom when he was in the crib to keep the cats out. Once Josh was able to sit up properly on his own and stand etc. that to leave the door open a little bit. i used to catch our male cat Buddy in the crib all of the time at that point. The cat would interact all the time when Josh was little. He was very tolerant , even when Josh would pull his tail the most we would get was a little meow and Josh would get a gentle nip. I also used to catch Josh knocking the cat off the sofa. And yet the cat would go back for more. We lost Buddy this past spring. On the other hand our female cat Sally just never bothered with the kids. She acts like a queen, even more so now since Buddy passed. And now she kind of keeps to ourselves since we got the dogs.


As far as the dogs are concern. We had gotten them both as adult dogs, one a couple of years after the other. And Josh being older now also has responsibilities towards them. Like feeding them, walking them(at least Sammy any way but that is another story) And picking up the dog poop in the back yard.


But the dogs are much more interactive than a cat. Dogs will seek a person out when they want attention. They are also easier to read with body language. Sammy can be a very stubborn dog. And if he doesn't want to walk or do something not his way the darn dog will just sit him self down and not move. And he does this to Josh a lot. And some of it has to do with Josh's tones to the talk because Josh has ben know to screech at the dog when the dog gets stubborn./ The dog could be crossing his legs and need a major dump but the setting and person isn't just right..LOL


And yet Sammy is the most tolerant dog. He would let Jeremy, when he was a toddler, lay on him and fall asleep. You can put your hand in the dog's mouth and take his food away etc . And the dog won't become hostile and try to bit.


Prince is more hyper but he will tend to interact with the kid better when they play with him. Prince is very obvious when he wants to play. And Josh can visible see that. But Prince is not always so good when he is sleeping. Prince was a rescue dog, meaning we had adopted him from a group that rescued collies. And Prince would snap if you stepped on him if you did something to him like step on him by accident when the dog was in a sound sleep. Jeremy had to learn quickly to be careful with that. Now you just have to call him if you walk by the dog. But even that has past since he has been in our home. I think that may have just been a residual thing from before we go him. But again with Prince, very tolerant, much more cooperative. You can put your hands in his mouth etc. Very happy dog. Not so stubborn


I think you just have to be willing to teach your kids how to treat animals. Most breeds are great with kids. And I think some do know if a kid needs more help than others. It helps these kids with learning how to read body language, dogs are not very subtle. It teaches them some for of responsibility.


I know it helps Josh.


Rina

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