20 month old being mean to pets. . .additional info.?

Question

Thanks everyone who has answered my question so far. My daughter is pretty close to an average 20 month old, but she doesn't talk much. Her first real word was the dogs name though. Sometimes she is great with him and other times she isn't. They grew up together and this is more or less new for her. I do agree with people saying its a game to her. One of my parents cats will play back at her, even gets her with his nails sometimes. She will come to me crying and usually I will make sure its not bad but I don't really comfort her since she does need to learn from it. But a few minutes, or not even, later she is back over messing with the cat. I have tried sitting with her in my lap and showing her how to pet and be nice to the animals. Usually it ends with her giving me a look and then pushing or hitting the animal. That is the point where she doesn't have contact with the animal anymore.

Answer 1

She is too young to be around animals without supervision. Keep her away from them. You are the parent. You need to take control of the situation.

Answer 2

You are definitley on the right track trying to correct this behavior. Our 2 yr. old will at times walk up and kick the dog- we have no idea why, but we generally tell her "do not kick the dog. Would you want to be kicked?" and she'll answer "no." Then we put her in time out for about 2 min. & when she comes out, make her apologize to the dog. This has hampered it quite a bit, but everyone is different. This technique works for us. Best of luck to you!

Answer 3

It is totally unacceptable for your kid to be mean to animals!!!!

Answer 4

Well I think it's really normal - I also did so when I was little (and sometimes still do).

It might change when she grows up...