Everybody wants their home to look good and cozy, but some of those comforts are limited when having a baby or pet around. What works for an adult will not work for a child in most cases. Statistics show that children have gotten into accidents such as drowning in their homes. These accidents would have been avoided if the parents were careful in making the environment more baby-friendly.
Children are very swift. You cannot even comprehend how a crawling child will be right behind you in the kitchen when you have left them in the living area. That is the more reason you should ensure that your home is child and pet-friendly. Sometimes it is for privacy, but the most important thing is their safety.
1. Always keep the doors closed
Children are very curious. If you leave a door open, the highest probability is that they will walk out or in that door to find out what is in the room or outside. Imagine you live in an apartment on the 5th floor, and you left your front door open. Don’t you think that would be very risky for a child?
As a parent or caregiver, you should always ensure that you keep your door closed and locked. If your children are at the age where they can open the door themselves, installing a more secure door would be great. A barn door hardware kit will do the job for you.
2. Use trellis doors and gates
A trellis door and gate help confine children and pets in the areas where you want them to be. Use the gates to ensure that kids do not get into the kitchen where there is the risk of getting a burn. Have you ever heard of a child who drowned in a bathtub or a toilet bowl? A trellis gate should help you keep the children and the pets away from the bathrooms where they risk drowning and come into contact with cleaning solutions that are harmful to their health.
3. Secure electrical plugs and cords
Like we said earlier, children are very curious. They want to know how everything in that house works. It wouldn’t be strange to see a child trying to get their little fingers in the electric socket. That is a life-threatening scenario. To ensure that this does not happen, please invest in seals that prevent them from having access to the sockets. No cord should run across the room, even under a mat. A child or a pet can pull the cord, and that would cause a fire. There have been cases where children tied themselves using the cords and strangled them.
4. Strap furniture to the walls
How to keep your sleeping baby safe and comfortable should not be the end of your concern. Imagine what they will do when they wake up in your absence. Probably, they will try to climb out of their crib. If there is a chest of drawers next to their bed, they may want to try climbing on it. How safe is that for them? As a parent, ensure that all the furniture in your house is securely strapped to the walls. That means that even if the baby tries climbing on them, the furniture will not tumble down on them. It is also a great idea not to put any furniture near the windows as the child or pet may climb and fall from the window.
5. Be keen on the “keep away from children” caution
It is a sure bet that you have seen the keep away from children in all medication bottles and sachets. Does that mean that it is the only medicine that should be stored away from children’s reach? It would help if you addressed many safety hazards in your home.
Ensure that you have high cabinets to store cleaning solutions other than storing them under the kitchen sink. If you have to store them there, let them be locked. Any sharp thing, especially kitchen knives, should be stored and locked in a drawer. Small toys or plastics should not be left on the floor to prevent choking.
While infants need protection, toddlers need supervision, and school-age children should learn about safety measures. The tips above will help keep children and pets safe in the house. Here are additional property privacy ideas for you.
