Characteristics of communication skills in children belonging to multispecies families.
Ana Paula Santa Helena, Maria Claudia Cunha
PMID 37493691WHAT IT FOUND
In families with dogs, parents often talk to their babies about the dog to help them understand what it is doing.
As children grow, they start talking to the dog themselves and taking care of it, needing less help from adults to interact with the animal.
Key findings
01For babies aged 0-11 months, parents frequently interpret the dog's behavior for the child, such as saying 'Tita doesn't want to play' when the dog refuses a toy.
02By age 2-3, the dog becomes a common topic in conversations between the child and adults, and children begin to initiate interactions with the animal.
03In older children (4-5 years), there is greater independence in interacting with the dog, including performing care tasks like walking or cleaning the animal.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
This is a descriptive study of typical development, not an experimental study. It cannot prove that living with a dog causes better communication skills. The sample was small (34 children) and recruited via social media, which may introduce bias. The study did not include children with communication disorders, so findings may not apply to clinical populations.
Declared interests
Funded by CNPq (Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development). No other conflicts declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that owning a dog improves a child's speech or language. This study only observed how children and parents naturally interact with dogs; it did not compare children with dogs to children without dogs, nor did it measure whether the dog caused any developmental changes.