My sister's goldfish just died. Should I go out and buy her a new one and not tell her or just tell her?

Question

She's rather young so she definitely wont notice the new one but perhaps it would be kinder to just tell the truth. I'm just afraid she'll get really sad.

Answer 1

If she is young...it is easy for her to accept death. It is best not to hide the issue of dying because then it does become a frightening issue to them when they get older. If you are honest she may be sad for a moment and then she will probably run off to play with something else. She'll be fine. Sorry to hear about your fish...we had our goldfish for 13 years and it was sad when he died.

Answer 2

I would tell her the truth. You don't mention the age of your sister, but most children can accept the death of a fish. However, before going out and picking out another, you need to figure out why the fish died. Sometimes, if it is a fish that was won at a carnival, it is a weak fish to begin with. But, if it is a fish that you have had for some time, were you doing frequent enough water changes? Was the tank or bowl large enough for the fish? Do some research on the fish first to be sure you are giving it the best possible living conditions so it doesn't happen again.Do check out several articles at the goldfishconnection.

Answer 3

I think you should tell her the truth. Part of the reason for having a young one own a pet is to see the natural progression of life. If she learns now about death slowly, when something major happens she will have something to relate to, some way to understand.

Answer 4

i dont think you should lie
anyway goldfish are boring and she probably has lost interest in it
tell her the truth and then buy her an even better pet for instance an elephant
elephants are very friendly pets and offer a free mode of transport for you. once you have your new friend, you can have such fun and elephant poo is great fertiliser for your garden but watchout for those nasty poachers

Answer 5

its better in the long run to just tell her. Then if she's still sad you can offer to buy a new one. There's always the chance that if she notices the different one she might feel cheated.

Answer 6

Get her used to the concept of death so she'll be able to deal with it better if someone close to her dies in the future.
You shouldn't lie to kids in that way, even if it's to protect their emotions - sheltering only makes us weak. Tell her the truth.

Answer 7

tell her that the fish died.
its been proven that children that learn about things like death with pets handle similar situtations better than others when older. She might not quite understand but as she grows she will.

also, the fish died for a reason - you will need to clean the tank out thoroughly (no chemicals) in case it had a bacterial, parasite or fungal infection.
.

Answer 8

well you no its the right thing to do but it is best to tell her in a carm way something like'now you no or fishy was verry old and a bit porly well he told me to tell you his gone to fishy heven and he is verry happy there'something along those lines also you could say after 'but if you would want we could get a new fishy'so its something to be happy about and i bet they will be relly exited to choose a new fish or even two as they like the company.

Answer 9

does she actually know that it died? well i think she will appreciate that you get her another fish. i think she'll like going with you and pick out her own and naming it. not telling her may make her upset. i think she'll enjoy getting another one. if she doesnt understand death, you should explain it to her and make sure she understands. ask her if she wants a new one.hope this helps!sry bout ur loss<

Answer 10

You must tell her the truth, in the best possible soft words. You can promise her another one . Kids (assume she is young) growing up in the imaginary world or dream world cannot stand in front of realities when they have to face one in their own.