Home Pets for Kids

[elrohwen]

Something I''ve been thinking about lately - would you get a pet for your kids? What age do you think kids can be responsible? What kind of pet would you let them get?

I was thinking about this because of all the rabbits who get purchased around Easter as pets for kids, but the parents find out they''re more work than they bargained for and give them up. However, I had gerbils from the age of 8 and I always did well with them, but maybe I was more responsible and animal loving than most kids (or my parents badgering me about cage cleaning more than most). I think the key is for the parents to be on board and willing to take care of the animal (or force the kid to take care of it) if necessary.

So just curious, what are you opinions on getting your kids a pet? I plan to continue having rabbits and have dogs, but if my kids wanted a pet of their own I''d be ok with a fish or something small like gerbils. Possibly a guinea pig if I felt the kid was really responsible.

 

[packrat]

We already have a couple cats and the dog, and I don''t think we would allow them one of their own. JD calls little animals like hamsters etc, disposable pets b/c they don''t live very long. We just had a talk about this a couple days ago b/c one of our friends has a daughter w/a hamster and it had some sort of tumor or growth that was slowly killing it, the daughter was understandably upset, and he couldn''t put the hamster out of its misery so JD did it. *If* we were to get the kids a pet it would be something a little more hardy, like a kitten or puppy. If.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

We already have four children of the non human variety so our child will have pets from birth. We''re big pet people though. I couldn''t imagine NOT having pets.

 

[Shoopy]

I''m not a pet person. I like animals but have no desire to take care of one everyday. I thought about it at one point because DD loves dogs (goes crazy when she sees one) but not for me.

 

[E B]

My husband and I were just talking about this the other day, and we decided we'll probably only have dogs. I had so many small animals as a child (fish, birds, and mice) and don't want to deal with the responsibility again as an adult- too much maintenance, too little reward. Any dog we adopt when the children are older will be the family pet, and they'll share the responsibility.

ETA: Elrohwen, the rabbit in your avatar is adorable. S/he looks so soft. Are rabbits affectionate?

 

[brazen_irish_hussy]

I don''t know to be honest. When I was born, my parents had old pets who died when I was quite young. A few years later we got a kitten that I wanted, but it wasn''t really a I want it and will take care of it as my parents missed have pets and I wanted a kitty.

I can''t imagine not having cats, so any pets I have would be for me, not to appease them. I have no interest in disposable pets, I love big dogs and I won''t even own them because they don''t live long enough. It is hard enough to lose them, but doing it often is out of the question. So far so good, that cat my parents got me is 20 now and still running their household

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I have two cats who are 4 years old, so I expect them to still be around when I have kids. Of course, I don''t expect the kids to be responsible for them, they are my cats.

I might consider a dog when later when the children are older. My FI has always wanted to have a dog so I am sure we will have one at some point. As someone else said, it would be a family pet and we would all be responsible.

Developmentally, I would not expect a child to be responsible enough to manage the chores (and even then with supervision) until about 6-7 years of age.

 

[somethingshiny]

JT''s (4 yrs old) first pets were/are fish. He''s had the one that''s left for over a year. He got them for his 3rd birthday. For the first 6 months I was basically solely responsible for their care but by the time he was around 3.5 he was feeding them every day. Obviously he can''t clean the tank so that''s the extent of his responsibilities.

We were in the process of getting a puppy when I found out I was preggo. So, that''s on hold for a while. I''m not sure exactly when we''ll introduce a puppy because I don''t want to have an infant baby and an infant puppy at the same time.

As far as when kids are responsible, it all depends on the child. When I was a kid we always had lots of animals (including livestock). By the time I was 4 I was bottle feeding calves on my own. By 8 I was training dogs on my own. I think it has a lot to do with being TAUGHT how to take care of animals.

The only animal I wouldn''t want for a pet is a cat. Just not a cat lover.

 

[elrohwen]

Thanks for the responses, ladies!

Part of my reason for posting this question is a situation I see again and again on rabbit forums. Sadly, I run into a lot of teens whose rabbits are having a medical problem but the parents don't believe in taking rabbits to the vet and the kids are too young to get a job and pay for it themselves. It always breaks my heart

I think if you're going to let your kids get a pet, you need to be ready for the responsibility of taking it to the vet if it's sick (at the very least to put it down). It strikes me as very irresponsible that the parents' let the kids get the pet then feel they have no remaining responsibility for it - if it's under your roof and you pay the bills, that animal is ultimately your responsibility.

Ok, end rant! Lol. Like most of you we plan to have family dogs (and family rabbits!). I also think it can be a great experience for kids to have their "own" pet in order to learn responsibility, under supervision of course. I had gerbils for 15 years and would love to have some again for the kids, but of course I would love them as well

E B, don't even get me started on my bunnies

Yes, they are pretty affectionate, actually. The boy in my avatar, Otto, likes pets on his own terms, but he can be quite the snuggle bun when he's in the mood and he gives my husband kisses on the nose too. I can lay on the floor with him giving him kisses and pets for 20 minutes straight. Our new bunny and Otto's companion, Hannah, is very affectionate and loves nothing more than to be petted. She's so sweet! But like cats, they're individuals and some are much more affectionate than others, though most do enjoy some scitches on the head.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I have actually been giving this a little bit of thought lately.

When D and I first met, I lived in an apartment. I always said that I couldn''t wait to graduate from college and move to a house so I could get a dog, but at that time it was many years away. When D moved in with me, we decided to get a hampster. His name was Gauss. I can''t tell you how much I loved that hampster. I know people generally don''t think much about small animals, but I have a real soft spot in my heart for them.

D and I will always have dogs. Huge, furry, drooly dogs. In multiples. However, I would love to get our future kids a small pet when they are old enough to be responsible for it. A hampster or a guinea pig would be ideal, though I am so smitten with Otto and Hannah that I''ve begun to wonder if a bunny could work in our household. I worry about small animals with our big dogs--newfs have virtually zero prey instinct, but I would fear I could never trust them around a small animal.

 

[ladypirate]

I would get a pet with kids, but I would not expect them to do most of the caretaking of it. I would just assume that it would be FI''s (well, DH at that point) and my responsibility. We already have kitties though and have decided that we will probably get a dog once we have kids and they are old enough to want one.

 

[yssie]

FI and I both love animals so our kids will grow up with them. We'll probably get new ones and the kids can help choose, do some chores, etc. but they won't be primary caretakers until I'm absolutely sure they're able to handle it - even the not-fun parts.


I'm not willing to put the welfare of another living being in the hands of a child who doesn't know how to deal with the responsibility or a teen who is too self-absorbed to accept the responsibility.

 

[Pandora II]

Snakes are great - they don't eat or poope that often, they're silent, they don't smell, they don't need a lot of cleaning out. They also live 40 years or so...

Also reptiles are great if you have allergies. Snakes do have individual personalities and are suprisingly cuddly - or at least my two pythons are.

Ferrets are great fun and rats are way nicer than most rodents.

An absolute no no are African Pygmy Hedgehogs - smell terrible, bite and don't wake up till midnight!

Fish have a nasty habit of dying which could be very upsetting for a child - especially if it was no fault of theirs.

On the things about people not spending money on vets bills, I've always thought that animals should cost more. If you've spent $10 on a pet then a $200 vet bill can strike many people as crazy - I know people who have put animals to sleep because it was cheaper. If you've spent $200 on the animal people tend to see them in a different light.

DH has terrible allergies so anything fluffy or furry is out for us (very sad as we both love cats) so the most likely pet we would get Daisy is possibly a tortoise or similar.

 

[elrohwen]

NEL, I owned various gerbils for over 15 years, so I understand your love of your hammie! I would absolutely get my kids gerbils. I think they have fabulous personalities and a kid can easily care for them (with some help on the cage cleaning).

Bunnies aren''t really good for young children, but could be awesome for a kid 12+. I would''ve loved a bunny as a kid. They don''t smell, are usually at least reasonably affectionate, but they do tend to take a lot of time and patience - most won''t just run up to you for snuggles the first day they''re home. They don''t get along with small kids who are constantly trying to pick them up. They do need a lot of space though - they''re not cage pets - though I think they would get along great with your newfs (under supervision, of course). Bunnies often stand up to much larger pets and I think a super calm dog like a newf would be ideal. Especially if you got a larger bunny that they were less likely to accidentally squish

I think they have way more personality than guinea pigs and are easily litter trained.

 

[Puppmom]

elrohwen, My parents bought DD a bunny for Easter when she was 4. I could have killed them! The bunny stayed at their house where DD was almost every day because they transported her to and from daycare. Anyway, I believe that any pet is a HUGE committment not to be taken lightly. A 4 year old, even one like DD who had been exposed to animals of all sorts since birth, was obviously not prepared to care for a pet. In fact, they often do things to accidentally hurt them. DD and her bunny, Pumpkin ended up being best buds - at least DD thought so. The problem was that we didn''t really know how to take care of a bunny. My experience in that department was limited to dogs. Bunnies don''t give the same signals etc when they''re sick as a dog would. Needless to say, our bunny friend didn''t live for nearly as long as he should have.

Here''s what I see as the main issues with pets other than cats and dogs:

- People don''t take their care seriously - some owners think that only larger pets like cats and dogs need to go to the vet. They let their guinea pigs, hamsters, bunnies and birds go and are surprised they don''t live to their life expectancy. I''ve actually had a friend say "I think my guinea pig is dying." and just let it happen- now, you bet your butt, if that were their dog or cat, it would be a different story.

- Some people who are good with other types of pets treat smaller animals as disposable - not cool!

- Often times children are expected to be the primary caregiver for these smaller animals because parents think they just need food, water and a clean cage.

 

[elrohwen]

Puppmom, thank you for your post!

I see so many bunnies in the shelter who started life like Pumpkin. It''s true that people just see them as disposable. A well cared for bunny (that is spayed or neutered) can live 10-12 years! That''s as long as a dog. I think they certainly deserve the same consideration. They also require a specialized diet that is foreign to people with dogs and cats and get different illnesses.

With all that said, I still think pets can be a wonderful learning experience for the kids, but only if the parents are fully on board and ready to take the responsibility for that pet. Then again, I don''t think any of the ladies here would be irresponsible enough to get a pet for their kids that they weren''t fully on board with either.

 

[Puppmom]

Date: 4/27/2010 10:25:45 AM
Author: elrohwen
Puppmom, thank you for your post!

I see so many bunnies in the shelter who started life like Pumpkin. It''s true that people just see them as disposable. A well cared for bunny (that is spayed or neutered) can live 10-12 years! That''s as long as a dog. I think they certainly deserve the same consideration. They also require a specialized diet that is foreign to people with dogs and cats and get different illnesses.

With all that said, I still think pets can be a wonderful learning experience for the kids, but only if the parents are fully on board and ready to take the responsibility for that pet. Then again, I don''t think any of the ladies here would be irresponsible enough to get a pet for their kids that they weren''t fully on board with either.

Agreed! Parents think because these are small pets, children can take care of them are their own. What a bad idea! They need to be coached along the way or you''re setting them up to fail and giving your pets a stinky existence.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

My boys each have a 5.5 gallon fish tank. IMO, it wasn''t a good idea. My younger son and I decided to have guppies for his tank and they CONSTANTLY died no matter how often I changed their water, etc., and finally I got him a betta and that fish is more hardy and doing great. My other son has a betta, as well. The problem is that there is a lot more time involved in fish keeping than most realize and my kids simply are not into helping with their tanks, so I do everything for two fish that swim around in tanks in their rooms all day while the kids ignore them. It would have made more sense to have a "family" tank in the living room (which we do have a 10-gallon) and we should have only done that!

My thought is to have a pet (or pets) that are a part of the family. Right now, we have three fish tanks and one cat. As the fish pass on, we''ll not replace all of them and just keep the 10-gallon with a single betta and also have a cat for the family.

I think a pet should be a part of the family not "owned" by one person.

 

[swingirl]

Life without a pet is like a day without sunshine.

 

[MustangGal]

We currently have 3 cats, 1 dog and a 14 month old human

. We firgure about the time the dog will be getting old/passing away, Kyle will probably be ready for a dog of his own. The dog is 6 years old now, so hopefully Kyle will be 8 or so and old enough to pick up poop, do walks, etc. We went through the hamsters and all when I was a kid, and I didn''t really care for them. I think we''ll stick to cats/dogs and maybe a small fish tank for DS.