This study analyzed situations in which a child shares part of the caretaking tasks required by a brother or sister with special needs. Mothers and child caretakers of 10 low-income families, in Salvador-Bahia, with a cerebral palsy child, were interviewed. Caretaking behaviors indicated by mothers and child caretakers, children's participation in domestic tasks, and their leisure activities are detailed. The caretakers' satisfaction/dissatisfaction and difficulties with their role, and their mother's and their own expectations for the future are described. The degree of responsibility attributed to the children is discussed. Limitations of the study and some possible directions of intervention for health professionals attending families in similar situations are pointed out.
sibling caretaking behavior; children with cerebral palsy
