Thinking about getting a family dog or cat? Beyond being an exciting addition to your family, a new furry friend can help you teach your kids some crucial skills related to responsibility and time management. And there’s smart tech that can help make it easier and more fun.

Here are five ways to incorporate digital technologies into your family’s pet care routine that can help your kids become responsible pet owners.

Start with your smartphone or smartwatch. A tech-forward approach to pet care can start with your existing smart device. For example, you can use the built-in timer tool on your phone or watch to make sure your new dog gets outside for a potty break at regular intervals. You can even use your device’s built-in step-counter to track and set goals for your daily walks.

Try this: Schedule daily dog walks and assign the walks to members of your family with the built-in calendar app on your phone. The recommended number, length and intensity of daily walks will depend on your dog’s age, breed and energy level—but according to the American Kennel Club, new puppies should generally get 2 – 3 short (10-minute) walks a day as they build their stamina and leash skills.

Track your pet’s location with GPS. Did the cat get out? It happens. Smart collars mean there’s no need to panic, since you can easily track your pet’s location using the smart collar’s GPS capabilities. Pete Scott, president and CEO of the American Pet Products Association, notes that today’s smart collars offer much more than GPS, including features like geo-fencing—the smart collar’s answer to the electric fence—that can be helpful for dog owners. If you’re spending time at a friend’s house or going to the park, you can now create your own automatic fence for the dog that sends a pulse vibration to the dog’s collar—and alert you—any time they go outside the area you’ve approved.

Don’t forget: Confirm that the pet tracker you choose is compatible with your wireless network.

Check on your pet. While previous camera models were primarily designed to detect human intruders, more recent models can detect the difference between a person, a pet or a car. The camera has built-in night vision, too, so you can check on your pet at night. You can even grant older kids access to the camera view so they never have to wonder what the cat is up to when you’re away.

Try this: Find out if your pet day care or boarding service has pet cameras, in-app messaging and other tech-forward options. That’s a capability Scott says he and his wife prioritize when seeking out care for their dog, Tucker. “We’ve even made decisions away from specific pet boarders because they didn’t offer a tech-enabled connection,” he says.