First Pet for children?

Question

I want to get my three boys their first pet. My boys are 4, 3, and 1. I want something that can teach them responsibility but not really be too expensive incase it dies. I was think somewhere along the lines of a fish. What kind of fish would be good and do they take a lot of time to care for?

hamsters have a tendancy to smell and i would be afraid of my kids holding him too tight and squashing him... maybe for a second pet though...

more info on hermit crabs... how much do they run and i want to be able to get creative with the pet so my kids can really get involved.

i also live in an apartment with no pet policy but the landlord said somehting like a fish or crab that doesn't get the house stinky or dirty would be okay.

Answer 1

unless you get a betta, fish require alot of care (more than children can provide), and the expenses add up quickly. Water conditioners, chemicals, filters, food, medications, air stones, these are just some of the continually recurring expenses. Weekly water changes, test kits, gravel vacuuming, appropriate feedings, this is a level of responsibility children as young as yours would have hard time keeping up with and understanding completely.

A betta would be perfect.

Answer 2

You'll want to start with freshwater fish. You probably don't want a filter system so in that case, you would want to get a goldfish bowl. Since a bowl does not have running water, you need fish that can live in still water. Goldfish are the traditional bowlfish, but there is also a beta/siamese fighting fish (they have fancy fins and are very colorful). DO NOT put two siamese fighting fish together because they will fight to the death. You could also throw in a snail or two, they help keep the algae under control. So, for the setup you will need: a fishbowl (can be bought at a pet store), fish, gravel (choose whatever color you like), a plant or two, fish food, stress coat (this is mixed in with the water that you use to fill the bowl with, it kills fish-harming chemicals in normal tap water), and a non-acrylic pad (to scrape the algae off of the sides of the bowl). You should do a waterchange about every week. This includes: transfering the fish into another bowl (use the old water), emptying the old water out of the fish bowl, scrubbing the sides of the now-empty fish bowl with the algae pad, rinsing it out, putting new tap water in (room temperature), add the stress coat, and finally add the fish. This sounds like a lot but once you do the first couple waterchanges, you'll develop a system and it should take about 10 minutes a week. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Get one that you can easily replace if it does die, like one that isn't unique in a common color. We had a fan tail when I was younger and it lived forever (i think??.. maybe my mom switched it). Don't get a big tank, just a small bowl that isnt too complicated (the more complicated, the harder to clean) with a few items in it. All you have to do is clean the tank once a week and remember to feed it everyday.

Do NOT get a hamster for kids that small. Hamsters can get stressed and die easily if they are not happy. They are also nocturnal animals and sleep during the day. Being woken up all the time and bothered will irritate them. They will bite or get sick if they are stressed out. If you've never been bitten by a hamster.. it hurts like hell. They have the longest teeth that can pierce right through your skin.
I've had a lot of hamsters and I don't understand why people get them for small children. They are very fragile animals and do not do well around small children. I think the earliest I'd get a child a hamster is 12, when they are more responsible to understand and take care of it properly.

Answer 4

Poor pets.
I know they're just animals, but how many hamsters have met their end by a well-meaning mom that gets one for her kids and then gets squeezed in a 4 year olds fist 10 seconds after it gets home?
What a sad existence.
More than once I had people return a clownfish (Nemo) to me when I worked at a petstore, expecting a refund. After a minute of questioning I learned that they had taken the fish home, put it in a goldfish bowl with some table salt and expected it to live just fine, cause their brats wanted a Nemo.
Poor animals.
To answer your question, get a plant. I know it sounds stupid, but get something that grows fast and hopefully bears fruit. Like a tomatoe plant or maybe some bamboo, since they grow so fast.
Take care of it yourself, but show your kids what to do. Once they get old enough to take care of a plant themselves, let them do so. If they can get it to not only survive, but grow, for a months time, then they are ready for a real pet. If they can't even get a plant to survive, then you know they can't handle a mammal.
Maybe you should do the test yourself, see if you want to waste the money on the setup for a hamster.

Answer 5

I've had good luck with tetra's and there are lots of different types (striped, tiger, neon, etc). I have striped tetras right now. You do have to keep the tank clean (goldfish are very dirty). It really helps to have a snail in the tank, and the boys will probably like that. The snail will climb the walls of the tank eating algae. I've had fish that lived quite a while but lots of times I've brought fish home and they died within a few days, so be prepared for that. And don't get a Betta unless you are only planning to get one fish. They fight and will kill each other.A dog or cat is very unlikely to die in the first few days, but they are more work than fish. Good luck, I hope the boys have fun with it.

Answer 6

That depends on your kids. If your kids like a lot of fish, get them a lot of goldfish, which are about $0.30 each, and your kids wont be as sad when one dies. But a lot of goldfish takes a lot of room, so you'll have to get a big tank. You can get a good sized tank kit at Walmart for about $30. They take a lot of food, but not a lot of care.
Or, get one or two Betta Fish. Bettas averagely live 2-3 years, so your kids will have them for a long time. Bettas take a little bit of food, but a lot of care. Plus, Bettas can live in very little room, making them very cheap to care for, but they are still very hard to care for. For a Betta, I might suggest the double Betta tank sold in Walmart for $5. It has two separate rooms for holding 2 Bettas.
Make sure to never put two Male Bettas together, for they will fight each other to the death, so make sure to tell your kids that. For best safety, I'd buy a male and a female just so they're might not be any accidents. But still keep them apart, unless you want any Jr. Betas! lol

Hope I was any help with your decision,

Ashgfu321

Answer 7

Tetra are inexpensive and easy to care for. They some in a varity of colors and types, painted, red eye all types have fun. You don't have to clean the tank all that ofen if you get a snail or alge eater fish, (I can't spell it but phentically it is placoscimus). and/or a filter. Betas are nice but you can only have one. Tetras allow you to have multiple fish. Say one for each kid. For tetra they say 1 fish per gallon. I think that is a bit much so I would go with 1 ever 2 at the most.

Hermit crabs smell. They require a lot of small details, when they "shed" you have to change their "bedding" to sand then back again once they have finnished. check out wikipedia.org and take to a pet store. They can give you the details. They do require alot of work that a small child cannot do. Unless you are willing to do everything I don't reccommend one.

I have had many hampsters, when they die I get upset, little kids like to squeeze them nd that can kill the hampster or frighten it so it will bite you kid. you don't want that. It will scare them away from small animals. I would wait until they are older to get one.

Don't get me wrong I love my fish but I am less upset when one of them dies instead of a hampster. Becaus you can touch the hampster and you can feel his little heart beating it makes it worse when they die. Fish you can't touch only look at.

Answer 8

a Beta fish would be a good choice, colorful inexpensive, not much necessary as far as tank equipment they can live well in a moderate size bowl & no air pump is required, they are a durable fish that doesn't require much the only thing you have to do is feed him daily but be careful not to over feed and change the water a few times a month, they're fun to watch too, my grand daughter loves hers. I have had several beta live 2 years.

Answer 9

a male rat ould be perfect, there hardy and strong and can be handled fairly rough. theyre very cute and only smell if u let the cage get too dirty. They are very intelligent ad loving if you raise them well.
Good Luck

From experience, Fish bore children, they are beautiful but useless to a child. your children may even try and "play with it" while your not around. Its an easy pet for you (of course) becausethey do nothing. If you want your children to love pets (iF you do) then you should get them an animal they can get attached to and love. With a rat your children can train it to do tricks, feed it easily, give it table scraps as a treat, walk it on a leash, let it sit on their shoulder and more. To me rats are like a small cat (that relys on you more and would wrather be with you then without)

Answer 10

I think that you should get a turtle ( red eared slider) or a goldfish. Turtles are great pets although you cannot hold them or pet them. They also carry a disease called samonella, but they can be wonderful pets. Goldfish are easy to care for,but they do not last that long.