Many parents become pet owners without even trying. The children might pick up a stray on the way home from school and beg and plead with their parents so that they can keep it. Before the parents have the chance to explain all of the things that pets require, the wide eyed looks from the children will make the parents heart melt and suddenly, there is a new pet at home that the entire family will grow to love over time.

The children might take turns giving a new dog a bath and will certainly be willing to take the dog for a walk. The children might not be aware that the pet has to go visit a veterinarian several times a year or how much the inoculations, flea dips, worming and office visits are going to cost the parent. They only know that they love the animal and can not bear to live their life without them being at home.

Most parents will put a lot of thought into owning a pet before they give their approval. They have to make a commitment to care for the animal because they know that their children will not always be capable of doing things that the pet needs done everyday. The entire family has to come to certain agreements on the care of a new pet in the house.

If the parents chose to adopt a pet from the SPCA, then they know that the animal they adopt will already be spayed or neutered. A stray animal might not be so lucky and the parents might have to bear the cost of getting the animal spayed or neutered if they are not already expecting a litter. If the parents chose not to do this, then they should be realistic and expect more pets in the family very shortly.

Many people bring new pets into the family and fail to care for them properly. Pets require just as much medical care as a small child does. Pet owners that love their pets will have their teeth cleaned on a regular basis and schedule a trip to the vet every 6 weeks to ensure that no parasites are living inside the animal. Bringing a pet into a family is a big responsibility for everyone to take a part of.

Most kids will trade off some of the less enjoyable tasks of taking care of their pets living space by offering to walk, wash and play with the animal. Parents should hold children to the agreements that they made because at some point in their life, they will be faced with the same dilemma with their own family pet. The family should think long and hard on what area of the home that the pet will be allowed in and which areas are going to be off-limits. Then the family will have to take the time to train the animal to obey the rules of the house.