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Awhile back I posted on another forum about children and farms and one poster suggested that "farmers did not make for very good parents." I did not comment on it then because its silly to explain rural life to those that don't know, but I bring the question up here.
Do the dangers of rural life outweigh the added dangers we live in?
I don't think you have to be a farmer per se to chime in on this. I had a best friend whose 10 year old sister was killed while riding a horse.
My parents were pretty lax, letting me drive my first tractor at 8 or so, not to mention forcing us to run around in the silo "packing it down" as they blew up corn at with chunks of corn cobs bouncing off our heads! I don't know what they were thinking anyway...I weighed 50 pounds...like I was packing anything down!
Now I am a bit more safe then that with my own 2½ year old daughter, but I admit I do put her in some danger. We all know a tractor only has one seat, but I do stuff with her all the time riding in my lap. Being around tractors, trucks, moving equipment lagoons, silos and bunkers is questionable too. Of course she is also around sheep, cows and donkey's on a daily basis too. So yes, dangers exist for sure...
But I don't see myself as being a terrible father. My daughter once got in trouble at a birthday party because the parent there made them go for a walk with all the kids holding onto a rope. I let my daughter explore the yard on her own...no rope needed so she did not want any part of holding onto some stupid rope. She is also raised with Grandparents, Uncles, Aunts and other children, not to mention being with me and learning my ideals, work ethic and just strengthening that daddy/daughter relationship. Overall she has got a smorgasbord of learned behavior to pattern herself after.
I suppose being in daycare and whatnot might get her more adjusted socially to kids her own age since no one is her age here. She would also do more sports related stuff rather then simply work. But being around so many dead calfs and lambs, she has a pretty good grasp on death for such a young age. That sounds odd but todays kids who do not deal with death on a daily basis are often shocked when a death occurs in the family. My daughter understands the cycle of life for the most part (hey she is only 2½).
So I don't know. My daughter is in dangerous spots sometimes, and sees things most don't, but does it make me a lousy parent because she does?
Awhile back I posted on another forum about children and farms and one poster suggested that "farmers did not make for very good parents."
What? What WERE they smoking?
I've lived in the city with kids and in the country with kids. I was raised pretty much in the country, my husband in the middle of a big city. You simply can't make a broad generalization like that and expect to be taken seriously.
There are dangers in city life and dangers in country life. Not necessarily the same dangers (though some are shared), but there is danger in life.
What I find being a bad parent is teaching your child to be afraid of the world. That has far-reaching negative effects that those who think they can remove every danger don't think about.
I grew up in a semi-rural area that has since been suburbanized to death, and then some. Like all adolescent males, I took crazy chances, jumping into ponds and rivers, climbing trees, all that usual Huck Finn stuff. But I survived.
The thing about country dangers is that they don't come looking for you (well except for mean bulls...) while city dangers frequently do.
I would take my chances any ole day raising kids on a farm before I would some cities across this nation of ours.
Its just like anything you wouldn't sit a 10 year old kid on tractor and turn him loose alone. A parent knows if his child is responsible enough to handle equipment and what kind. They learn by sitting on their parents lap while driving a piece of equipment. It used to be that some local 4-H chapters also offered farm safety programs for youth, not sure if that is still offered or not.
My kids were raised on the farm/ranch, they handled the tractors well after they got some experience. They still got all their fingers & toes and limbs in straight condition. They went throught some pioson ivory a time or two, bee stings, and some other bites. I think they they grew up well.
i grew up on a farm, and so did my husband. we have 5 kids all grown with all of their fingers and toes. they all learned to drive tractors when young, and none has ever had a car wreck. worked around all kinds of livestock. they all learned to work, and they all have jobs/homes/families. 3 emergency room runs: a bunkbed fall for 4 stitches, a cat bite, and a bicycle incident involving teeth and asphalt while one of the girls was visiting in town. oops, forgot the broken finger from playing volleyball at school.....4 ER runs.
statistics say the kids who die on farms are the two year olds that no-one was watching and the 14 year old boys who work like men without the wisdom of a grown man. yes, you have to watch out for the kids.
I grew up on a farm with 10 brothers and sisters. We worked hard and SMART.
Kids can get hurt in the city as much as a farm.
Farmers make excellent parents. They do not let their kids sit in front of a TV locked up in the house all summer while they go to work. They take the kids with them to sit on the wheat truck or tractor. I worked side by side with my father fixing fence and driving by the age of 10. Working next to my dad ( my first boss) makes me the hard working employee that I am today. The memories of working with my parents side by side are priceless.
Its just like anything you wouldn't sit a 10 year old kid on tractor and turn him loose alone. A parent knows if his child is responsible enough to handle equipment and what kind. They learn by sitting on their parents lap while driving a piece of equipment. It used to be that some local 4-H chapters also offered farm safety programs for youth, not sure if that is still offered or not.
My kids were raised on the farm/ranch, they handled the tractors well after they got some experience. They still got all their fingers & toes and limbs in straight condition.
This we are kind of guilty of. Last year we needed some help during planting season so we employed one of the kids to drive Big Blue. He was tilling a field for us and a the soil sample guy showed up and was looking for my Uncle. He was a little taken back when the 7 year old said he was back on the farm.
Big Blue is a 400 hp tractor and was pulling a 33' disc harrow, but in all honesty, the bigger the tractor the easier it is to drive. Heck snap on the GPS and you don't have to steer at all (LOL) The kid did fine, but I think 7 years old is a bit young. I think sometimes we expect a bit much from the kids here.
It is funny though to watch a 1 year old go around to the cows and kick at them to get them up to go into the milking parlor. Here he weighs 25 pounds and the cow weighs 1200 pounds and he is getting them up. That is where you build confidence in a child!
The thing about country dangers is that they don't come looking for you (well except for mean bulls...) while city dangers frequently do.
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