should schools have a pet ?

excaliburhc

just wondering off the top of my head if alot of the cruelty towards animals could be reduced if children were encouraged to connect with an animal in a safe controlled environment ?

perhaps rightly / wrongly i put down the blasé attitude to animals and killing them towards not understanding / realising / caring that animals are intelligent creatures that are capable of emotions.

i dont understand the attitude towards killing - and i am not looking to get into it but i have to wonder.

thoughts ?

homerhop

So what happens when you have kids who come from households that have hunting parents? There are plenty of them out there who are told to respect animals and understand nature around them. Are they to be excluded from society now because of this?
Should schools have pets, sure. Every child should be exposed to animals/birds/fish and get to understand them

Whispered

I grew up in a hunting house, I still love and respect animals and nature, perhaps more so. Where does it say anything about excluding anybody. The two are not mutually exclusive. I don't understand why you seem to have taken offence to the OP. Maybe I missed something.

Personally I think that it would be nice to teach this, but really it's a lesson that should be learned in the home. Empathy, caring, responsibility etc really should be learned from parents I think. Failing that field trip or having someone visit the school might be more appropriate than having a school pet.

angry kitten

It's an interesting idea. Seems to be popular abroad. Anything that teaches children to empathize and respect other living creatures has to be a good thing.

Chuck Stone

I think kids get trips to pet farms these days but I have no idea how educational they are.

Also if we're thinking about animal welfare should kids be informed about farming animals and meat processing?

homerhop

Whispered wrote: »

I grew up in a hunting house, I still love and respect animals and nature, perhaps more so. Where does it say anything about excluding anybody. The two are not mutually exclusive. I don't understand why you seem to have taken offence to the OP. Maybe I missed something.

Personally I think that it would be nice to teach this, but really it's a lesson that should be learned in the home. Empathy, caring, responsibility etc really should be learned from parents I think. Failing that field trip or having someone visit the school might be more appropriate than having a school pet.

I have not taken offence as such no am i saying that the two are mutually exclusive but....

i dont understand the attitude towards killing

what has that got to do with a school having a pet?

angry kitten

I think, dependent on the age of the kids, that giving kids information on where meat comes from or not should be a decision for the parents. I've been a vegetarian for years and I cook meat for my other half. I'd never dream of criticising others for eating meat.

Whispered

homerhop wrote: »

what has that got to do with a school having a pet?

I obviously read it differently from you, I took it that the OP meant that having a pet and teaching children is a good way of teaching them empathy. I actually read it as being something to do with cruelty to pets, as opposed to being connected with farming or hunting.

angry kitten wrote: »

I think, dependent on the age of the kids, that giving kids information on where meat comes from or not should be a decision for the parents. I've been a vegetarian for years and I cook meat for my other half. I'd never dream of criticising others for eating meat.

I get what you are saying about age being a factor and whether or not parents want kids to know, I'd question what we are refering to as "kids" - I would say that if we're talking about young primary kids than absolutely, learning about animals should be a lovely experience, all about how they feel, how to care for them etc. As they get older I think it'd be good for them to see the process of where meat comes from, in the same way they'd discuss how bread gets from the field to the shop etc.

I am unsure where you get the impression anybody is criticising people for eating meat.

angry kitten

Whispered wrote: »

I obviously read it differently from you, I took it that the OP meant that having a pet and teaching children is a good way of teaching them empathy. I actually read it as being something to do with cruelty to pets, as opposed to being connected with farming or hunting.



I get what you are saying about age being a factor and whether or not parents want kids to know, I'd question what we are refering to as "kids" - I would say that if we're talking about young primary kids than absolutely, learning about animals should be a lovely experience, all about how they feel, how to care for them etc. As they get older I think it'd be good for them to see the process of where meat comes from, in the same way they'd discuss how bread gets from the field to the shop etc.

I am unsure where you get the impression anybody is criticising people for eating meat.

Oops I didn't intend to infer anyone was criticising people for eating meat.

Whispered

Maybe you didn't! I seem to be reading this thread differently to other people. I'm very tired - so I'm going to blame that

angry kitten

Whispered wrote: »

Maybe you didn't! I seem to be reading this thread differently to other people. I'm very tired - so I'm going to blame that

Monday night weariness! I just tend to add that I don't criticise people who eat meat, as an afterthought really. It can be a pain in the backside when people think you're trying to take some sort of moral high ground by being a veggie. I've gotten into the habit of saying it just so I don't have to keep having that row with people. Maybe I sounded a bit sensitive about it.

Sigma Force

In one way it's a good idea but in another a lot of kids and teachers even don't like certian pets so there would always be someone objecting or some kid with an allergy.

I do think schools should encourage rescues to come to the class room for talks though and I do think rescues should spend more time doing this..yes rescues have little time and resources and I totally understand that but rescues need to do more to help educate the kids and they need to spend more time going around schools doing talks.
I know a lot of rescues do but it's not enough they can reach so many people both kids and parents doing this and spread the word ..it's actually a lot cheaper than a rescue taking out adverts lets face it and kids and teachers get to see the faces behind a rescue and meet some of the animals too.

Cherry Blossom

My niece is 5, she lives in a house full of meat-eaters and has been veggie for the past few months now. This was completely her own decision. She has her own (carnivore) pet that she is fully responsible for and completely understands why he needs to eat meat. She also fully understands that her own health comes first and if it suffers as a result of her diet things will have to change. She watches intently every interaction a person within viewing distance has with any animal. She understands population control of wild animals and why it is important. She has her own particular favourites among the wild birds she feeds and can tell them apart from the others (this is a skill most of us loose as we grow up unfortunately). She also understands that death is the natural conclusion to life and it's the journey taken to get there that is the important part.

I don't see how any school pet could even come close to what she has picked up on her own, I'd be much more in favour of a school pond (unfortunately, very rarely possible). If the home environment instills a different mind set there is no way the basic minimal input from a school pet could over-ride this. Realisticly how much interaction would a school pet get on a daily basis? I would have visions of a gerbil sitting in a cage in the corner day in and day out until it dies which I would consider to be miles away from setting a positive example. Good thread all the same OP

JustAThought

I think I was 16 when I saw a real little chicken ( not on a dish ) for the first time at the RDS: I was SO excited!!! I couldn't believe I'd gone do many years without ever seeing a horde of little yellow chicks!!!!

My first engagement with actual animals in school was dissecting a poor dead frog; and then a sheeps eye!! It didn't really engage me to love & nurture animals!!!

I visited an abattoir aged 22 & am still in shock so no ; I don't believe this should be part of the school cycle; but am for the fluffy nurturing part of animal introduction in a learning environment in schools. But kids can be cruel, and attention short-lived & holidays long. Who will be left minding the babies when teach is off in Ibiza for June, July & August!!! And what happens St weekends; or when the bunny keels over halfway through the Irish exam..!!!!

A nice relationship to have going would be visits to rescues with a fee going to the service ; perhaps on a bi- monthly basis with updates & adoptions; or those travelling farms like at PetExpo. Love them still!!! Little goats with devils horns & that monster ram with belzebub horns out back ; amazing!! Not to mention the Toucon & mad meercat things the Kinsealy petshop brought along... Fab!!!!

Sigma Force

One place had rabbits with guinea pigs at the expo not all the stalls are very accurate when it comes to pet care but in general they could be another option for schools as a day trip but expo. tickets are too pricey for a school tour methinks.

Same as we were taken to a meat factory that was about as close as we got in school to animals.

We have some wonderful wetlands and national parks in the country there's lots of options for schools to get their pupils involved with pet care and wildlife.

Cherry Blossom

Sigma Force wrote: »

Same as we were taken to a meat factory that was about as close as we got in school to animals.

I was taken to a dairy farm where they made their own ice-cream and everyone got some at the end , they also walked us all through the bull shed, bulls in stalls both sides of the barn, I'm not entirely sure that would go down very well with parents or health and safety folks these days!

homerhop

As posters have said it all begins at home.Grew up on a farm that had a few cows, and chickens. We got to feed the calves, see chicks hatch and feed the neighbours lambs. From a very early age I seen calves been born, cows milked. My mother woke us as children to see a hedgehog and her piglets and I remember it to this day. As kids we were always made aware of nature around us.
My little cousin got a poster off me of all the garden birds and he thought he was the dogs danglers going into playschool with a copy of it for his class. He has been shown how to behave around the lab pup and rub her gently. he doesnt know it yet but today in the book club that drops stuff into the office he will be getting 3 books My First book of garden birds, my first book of garden bugs and my first book of garden wildlife, all 3 for €8

angry kitten

I remember my uncle was going out with a farmers daughter and 1 sunday he took me out to see a calf being born. It was amazing and gave me a great respect for animals. In fairness he owed me big time for traumatising me as a child.

I'd just finished watching Watership Down for the 1st time and he came back with his shotgun and a couple of dead rabbits which he then proceeded to skin. I don't think I've ever cried as much as I did that day. The timing couldn't have been worse.

Daniel S

Maybe principals should be allowed bring their dog in or something. I'm sure the dog would love the attention too

Whispered

I'd imagine that would be an insurance nightmare!

angry kitten

It probably would. I'm amazed by the amount of allergies kids seem to have these days. Generations of kids played with animals, long before pet vaccinations were common, likewise there weren't antibacterial products for everything in the home. Now that many kids aren't out playing in their neighbourhoods we have childhood obesity and a seemingly endless list of allergies.

Misty May

I worked in a primary school as a classroom assistant for a time in the 80's.We were using a very old building surrounded by farmland & one morning, in the autumn, we heard a mouse in one of the cupboards.The teacher was terrified and amazingly hopped up on one of the kiddy chairs. That set all the junior infants off. Not having any problems with mice(rats would be another story) I caught the little guy in a biscuit box and used some card to trap him then encouraged the kids to admire him.The transformation of the attitude of the kids(and teacher) was amazing. We brought the mouse outside & released him into the wild again. So yes it would certainly be a very good idea to have animals around kids in a school environment.