The Puppy Test

Puppies are some of the cutest animals on the planet. They also are a great way to get used to working with children or having children in your life. It is a simple test my parents mentioned to me. If you are thinking of children, get a puppy and see where to go from there. They are a great start for some of the basic needs for learning how to raise children.

Potty Training

Potty training sounds easy to say the least, but sometimes most puppies take to training a little bit more than most. Some puppies can learn how to potty train within a few months, but for others it may take a year or more. The same goes with human babies. Some may show signs of wanting to start potty training such as dry diapers or copying what some of the other children might do.

One of the best indicators for when a puppy has to go outside to use the bathroom is if they scratch the door or they are whining and barking while pleading to be outside and do their business.

Puppies are recommended to be house trained around 12 or 16 weeks according to behavior experts. For human children it is around the age of two or three. However, some children can be taught earlier if they are showing eagerness to learn.

Teething

Teething is one of the worst things any parent of a puppy or a human baby has to endure. For puppies, they have a constant need for teething because their teeth are starting to grow and mature. The same goes for human babies, though it is more discomforting because the skin of the gums is being broken by their teeth. Some old methods for human babies would be to rub a thimble of whiskey or bourbon around the gums.

The best way to prevent babies and puppies from teething and chewing on objects that could be dangerous to their health is to provide them with enough chewing toys or have them try sucking and chewing on an ice cube to ease the pain in their gums.

Exercise & Activities

Making sure your puppy or baby has enough stimulation is also important. Exercises and activities such as regular walks and basic commands for your puppy would be the same when it comes to your child learning how to walk, speak, or read.

Human babies require stimulation to learn social and cognitive skills, such as how to throw a ball or how to use a sorting toy such as those peg-hole toys that only fit in their respective shapes. Learning how to read or say certain words also improves their communication skills and they can learn how to ask for things or to perform certain tasks. Puppies require stimulation such as playing fetch, learning how to sit, roll over, or do other things such as learning how to grab the newspaper are some of the tasks that could require your puppy to learn how to do certain things around the house.

The End Result

In the end, couples who have undergone the puppy test experience more desire or interest in working together to raise a child. Not only does a puppy prepare a couple for a child, but they also have lower stress levels to certain problems such as crying in the night for food or a soiled diaper, the struggles of learning how to walk or crawl, and the teething dilemma that could mean endless crying throughout the night.

Couples who have a puppy also work better. It doesn’t mean that you have to read a basic pregnancy book or parenting book, because children come without instruction manuals, but it gives you a better advantage to keep a calm head and push through the struggles of raising a child together.