With just a little planning, you can teach the responsibilities of pet ownership and set the stage for your child to learn the basics of pet care, while they have a great time with their friends celebrating their special day. Birthdays are the one holiday each year that belongs to the birthday boy or girl, and making them the focus of the event is a great way to let them know how special they are.

Begin by purchasing or making invitations to the party. Be sure to include definite times for guests to be picked up and dropped off and a map to the party location. Double check to make sure the guests do not have any pet allergies or phobias, and include any special instructions such as the need to bring warm jackets for outdoor activities or explain that this is a cat party, and ask for guests to bring a pet care item such as food, catnip, cat toys, or kitty litter instead of traditional gift items for the party boy or girl.

When planning such a party, remember to keep the guest list relatively small if there will be new pets present, since everyone will want to play with the new pet. Serve snacks such as cookies baked into the shape of doggie bones, make puppy chow, and serve them all in doggie bowls. To entertain the masses, read books on pet care techniques, and play games of pet care trivia and give a prize to the one who gets the most answers correct in the best ways to care for pets.

When the party is over, consider taking your child and one guest to the animal shelter to choose a pet to adopt. There, enlist the aid of shelter personnel to point out why the pets are at the shelter and emphasize the responsibilities of pet ownership.