Posts Tagged ‘children’

Children love animals, they think that they are cute. Most children like furry animals - like dogs, cats, rabbits, hamsters, tarantulas.... Tarantulas? That's what our 3 year old wants for his birthday! His revelation got me to thinking. What makes the BEST pet for a child?

Our son loves spiders - small, large, garden, bedroom, bath....he wants to pet them and stroke them. A friend of ours has a son fascinated by snails and slugs - he comes home from school with pocket fulls of them! Children are great aren't they?

Personally, I'm a big fan of spiders too - I kept a tarantula for 10 years, and she was fascinating. I saw her eat, I saw her shed her skin (those things in your shed or garage that look like dead spiders are actually spider skins), I saw her spinning webs. As they are so large, you can see everything they do clearly - they are extremely easy to keep, relatively cheap to purchase, fascinating to watch and can live for up to 20 years! Amazing. I obviously, therefore, encouraged our child's enthusiasm to have a spider for his birthday! I think I'm more excited than him, although every day he asks if it's his birthday yet!

This came in a week where we have received 6 new additions to our extended pet family - 4 guinea pigs and two rough green snakes. The reptiles are mine and the mammals my wife's. We already had 17 fish (all in one tank), 2 cats, a dog, a hamster, 2 rabbits, a western hognose snake and a bearded dragon! With the new additions, that makes 31 pets...good job none of them are too much trouble!

I love reptiles and spiders - they absolutely fascinate me. I have wanted a rough green snake ever since I first saw them in a book about 22 years ago! So when I went into my favourite reptile stockists and saw two for sale, I couldn't resist asking to handle them. I fell in love - I didn't mean to come away with them, but I did! After 22 years, it was impossible not to - when the proprietor first handed me one, I was overcome with emotion, holding back the tears I let this beautiful and fascinating creature slide across my hands. Wow!

My wife has always kept guinea pigs. Ever since she was a child - personally I could not see the attraction, and 4? Okay so it started as one, as a companion for our male rabbit, which then needed one of its own with it, thus one became two. Then our second rabbit needed a companion (!) - along came number three - but the rabbit did not see eye to eye with the guinea pig (she's grumpy!), and therefore they were separated. "Can't leave him on his own," said my wife, "they MUST have company!" and so number four arrived. Two males and two females.

I have always had rabbits and think they are lovely, but never had guinea pigs. I now see the attraction! How cute are they? None aggressive, small, easily handled, and very tame, not to mention easy and cheap to purchase and care for! Perfect. They are my wife's but one by one as they came to our home, our children claimed them. The oldest had a hamster and therefore was not bothered. The middle child named the first guinea pig "Sparkles", but then said she wanted one of her own - number two was called "Wriggles" and our younger daughter has taken ownership. Number three came along and our youngest and I took ownership - I named him "G for the P-I-G" (or G Dude for short). So when number four came along my wife took ownership before she got it home! "Jazz" is "G Dude's" brother and they are living happily together.

Now I am converted, I see exactly what is good about guinea pigs. On top of everything already mentioned, they live a decent amount of time - 6-8 years - compared to say a hamster or mouse (around 2 years). They are beautiful pets, and because they are so easy to handle and have great longevity, they make the perfect pet for your young child. Your child will find them easy to love, to feed, to fuss, to handle, to melt over! For a first pet, you could not choose anything better than a guinea pig - and when your child talks to them, they will chatter back, and that's guaranteed!!

With furry best wishes

Dale Preece-Kelly

More from this author at http://www.selfhope.co.uk

Getting a pet for a child is a great idea because it gives them responsibility and a buddy. Hamsters are a popular choice, but are they a good choice?

Hamsters are a type of rodent that belongs to the order Cricetinae which consists of about eighteen species. They come from the Middle East and Southeastern Europe and have become very popular as pets and lab animals because it is very easy to breed them in captivity. The most popular type in the pet store is known as the Syrian or Golden Hamster. They are smaller than Guinea Pigs which make them more suited for smaller homes, but they are equally as sociable.

There are several advantages of a hamster as a pet. The hamster is inexpensive, and does not cost much to feed or maintain. They do not require the care nor can they cause the problems of larger pets such as cats and dogs. It is quite possible to turn the complete responsibility of the hamster over to your little one. The pet can be kept in the child's room and is not likely to roam the house, bark at night, or chew the furniture. If it barks, you certainly don't have a hamster!

Although the hamster does not require much maintenance, it does need some. Like any living thing, it needs water and food. Its living area needs to be cleaned on a regular schedule. This is being mentioned as an advantage because one of the best things about pets and children is the opportunity to teach responsibility to the child by making them the pets care giver. It is a good idea to oversee this responsibility carefully though. The lesson you want to teach is not necessarily how to deal with grief and loss.

There are some disadvantages to the hamster as a pet. They are cute and they can be funny to watch when they are active, but they are also nocturnal. They are going to be on a totally different time schedule than your child. They are going to be running around their home late at night, playing and being cute while the child is sleeping. When the child is awake and wants to play with his hamster, the hamster will be curled up under his bedding and not much in a playing mood.

Although the hamster is somewhat social, it is not usually going to be up to the standards that the child was hoping for in a pet. Instead of playing, or even sitting still the hamster is going to run for cover most of the time, and once they get loose and hide they are not easy to find. The bottom line is that they are not dogs and cats, and with their shorter life spans and nocturnal habits they will never be that kind of long term pet. However, they are not expensive, can teach responsibility, and kids do love them. On a final note, keep them out of hot areas. They can die if it gets to hot, which is not going to make your little one very happy at all.

Hal Storm is with www.PetStoreYeti.com - your free resource for pet tips and advice.

Many parents want their kids to have a pet of some kind. It makes us feel like we are providing a joy for our kids, while at the same time teaching them some responsibility about caring for another living thing. Dogs and cats are the most popular pets but not everyone wants to keep their entire house pet safe and sometimes in can be too costly to own the dog or cat that you would like. One way to allow your child to have a pet and not have to ready your whole home is to get a small animal.

Any pet you choose will take responsibility on your child's part and you will probably still have to remind him or her to feed the pet or get the cage cleaned but sometimes a smaller animal is easier for a child to bond with. They relate to them better than a large dog. We will go over some good pets for children here but do some more research or check out some books from the local library before making a commitment.

Hamsters

Hamsters are a common small animal pet. They don't take up much space and are very inexpensive to take care of. They are quite small though and can be easily injured by rough play, being dropped, or squeezed too hard. Their small size also makes them easy to loose track of when they are out of their cage. Hamsters take some time to get used to their owner and can be defensive until they are comfortable being handled by your child. They are also nocturnal, making their time of activity late at night or early in the morning.

Guinea Pigs

Guinea Pigs are not quite as common as hamsters but still a good choice for children. They are larger than hamsters so they are a little easier to handle and play with without getting injured. They are still small so rough play should be avoided. These pets will need a slightly bigger cage than a hamster but nothing overwhelming and a good small animal cage is easy to clean. Guinea pigs socialize with their owners more quickly than hamsters, as well. They will need Vitamin C supplements in their diet or water to remain healthy but these supplements aren't very expensive and once the routine is set it's not hard to remember.

Rats

Rats aren't often thought of as a good pet for children. The fact of the matter is that rats make great pets for children of all ages. They socialize with their owner quickly and are quite docile animals. Rats are easier to care for if they have a medium sized cage and they do enjoy having a playmate in their cage so consider getting two if you decide on a rat. Two rats in one cage doesn't take much more effort than one rat. Rats are more durable than hamsters and guinea pigs and aren't known to bite as much as the other small animals. Pet rats create a good bond with their human owners, as well. Just make sure you get a rat bred for being a pet and not just pick one up out of the gutter.

There are several small animals that make good pets for children. As always, the parents know what is best and know which animal would be a good match for their child. Do your research and help your child know the joy and responsibility of being a pet owner.

Derrick is an avid pet owner and an expert in pet cages. Visit Derrick's website to find deals on pets cages.

Hamsters are often considered to be ideal first pets for children. This is because their small size can seem less intimidating to children than larger pets like dogs. Syrian hamsters, the largest of the pet breeds, are used as class pets in some schools because they tolerate handling fairly well and are relatively easy to care for.

The smaller breeds of pet hamsters (like Campbell's dwarf, winter white Russian dwarf and Roborovski) are not recommended as pets for young children for several reasons. Because they are so small, they are more timid, nervous and active than the larger Syrian hamsters. So they are harder to handle and more likely to fall or jump out of a child's hand and get injured. Even worse, they are very fast, so if they escape, they can be attacked by a larger pet (like a cat or dog), be stepped on or get lost in the house and start gnawing on furniture or electrical wiring (which is dangerous for them and for everyone else in the family).

Dwarf hamsters have such small and delicate bones that they can be easily broken or fractured if handled too roughly, or if they fall from heights more than a few inches. And if they are held too tightly, their bones can break, and nerves and internal organs can be damaged. Young children under the age of about 5 years do not have fully developed fine motor skills or reflexes, so they do not have good control of how hard they squeeze or the ability to quickly catch a falling object. So hamster experts advise against letting young children handle the small dwarf hamster breeds without adult supervision.

When a hamster is introduced into the home as a pet, it is important for the parents to teach the children about its proper care and handling. Children need to be taught to relate to the hamster as a living creature with needs and feelings. Children often want to pet and handle the hamster long beyond the point where the hamster is comfortable. So the parents should supervise their children's interaction with the hamster for a few weeks, to teach the children how to handle the hamster safely and to make sure they do not stress the hamster to the point where it starts to bite.

If the kids are supposed to be in charge of feeding the pet and maintaining its cage, parents need to ensure that this is being done on a regular basis. If the children are not holding up their end of the chores, parents need to step in and make sure that the pet is cared for. Sometimes children are still too young for this kind of responsibility, so parents need to be prepared to care for the pet until the kids are old enough to be consistent and reliable with their chores.

Emily Brock is a hamster enthusiast. For more great tips and advice on how to buy a hamster visit http://hamsterlifeanswers.com

There comes a moment in time for most families to add a four-legged companion to the household. This decision is not one to be taken lightly. Choosing the correct breed of dog can be the difference between complete happiness and absolute terror in your home. I have outlined the steps I walk through prior to bringing a dog into my home and I advise these steps to my friends and family.

A good topic to discuss first is how much hair you are willing to put up with. You are going to have to deal with your dog’s hair in some fashion. He will either shed or require grooming. It’s a Time vs. Money question. You can always take the middle ground, though, and find a dog that sheds minimally a couple times of year.

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