Chores for the little ones

So as I mentioned earlier, I am a mother of two. One, let's call her Buggy, is 5 and the other, let's call him Cap'n, is just about to be 1. We don't have a large house but with four of us in it, we can dirty it up. Buggy has had chores since she was about 3. Over the early spring, Buggy and I attended a birthday party for one of her friends. Buggy came up to me later towards the end of the party and asked what else were we doing. I informed her that we have our chores to do. She agreed and went off to play. One of the parents overheard this while holding his daughter and said "Chores? What is that?". I replied that Buggy has chores and has had them. The father seemed intrigued but the daughter was definitely going to put up a fight later.

Why should kids have chores? Now mind you that Buggy's chores are appropriate for her age. However, the older she gets the more complex the chores. The easier chores will get passed down to Cap'n. Currently Buggy's chores are: pick up the shoes (we don't wear shoes in the house), pick up her room, make her bed, feed the dogs, dust reachable areas, bring her laundry to the laundry room, and clean her sink. She also has diaper duty which consists of throwing away diapers in the Diaper Genie when Cap'n is changed. Having these chores makes her feel responsible and gives her a sense of pride when she see the good she has done. Plus she really enjoys helping me. Now of course the worst chore is her room but she is a kid.

So why the post? Back to the birthday party, although the father was surprised I give Buggy chores, I was equally surprised he doesn't give his little one such tasks. How is she supposed to learn responsibility, independence, self-worth, or the meaning of unity and strength of that unity? Heck, even our cats have chores: catching mice (because I am deathly afraid of them and they are handsomely rewarded for this task). Now don't get me wrong, I do not treat the children as slaves. Mr. J and I have the lion's share of chores but the kids help out which creates more fun time for everyone.

What's your take on kids doing chores?