Post by mrsjuleshs on Jul 23, 2013 15:29:48 GMT -5
DD's grammy bought her birds when she was like 4. WORST THING EVER!!!! We've had pets pretty much her entire life. We got Felix (brother brought him home cause his friends couldn't keep him) when DD was about 4. Dogs are a TON of work. Fish die fast, hamsters and other rodents can be fun but they too require a lot of work and you have to give them a lot of attention so they are used to you but they can bite. A frog would be fun.
I was 7 when my parents FINALLY agreed to get a cat. Then a year later they agreed to a second cat only because it was trapped in the trellis under the porch and it's momma had abandoned her. Those cats were around for - I shit you not - 25 years!
I had was responsible for scooping the cat box & feeding the cat - but when I went off to college that responsibility fell on my parents. Keep that in mind.
We - as a family - have pets (2 dogs, 2 cats). After the dogs pass on, there will be no more dogs for a while. After the cats pass on ... I'm unsure ... there MIGHT be another cat MAYBE 2 but not 3 again.
25 YEARS?! Holy shit...
seriously. By the end they had zero quality of life.
Post by simplyinpenguin on Jul 23, 2013 15:30:13 GMT -5
Hence why I ask if she feels her girls have the maturity of caring for a pet at their age. Obviously I didn't at 4, but some are around animals since birth.
Post by RoxMonster on Jul 23, 2013 15:36:02 GMT -5
H and I had two dwarf frogs when we lived in an apartment and couldn't have any other pets.
They were super low maintenance. They did not need a special tank with filtration like fish do (we did clean it out about once a month or so), but it came with a certain kind of rock/pebble that also self-cleaned the tank. We bought food that looked like fish food and fed twice daily. They were so cute and just hung out together in their little bowl. They also lived 3+ years, so they don't die as quickly as fish.
Post by speckledfrog on Jul 23, 2013 15:36:31 GMT -5
emsumm, don't get a pet. You don't really want one and there really is no such thing as an easy pet. You kids will be in college before a cat dies and HS before a dog dies.
Kids want all sorts of shit that is a PITA, none more so than a live animal.
H has been bugging me for years (since we started dating) for us to get a puppy. Puppy came home three weeks ago. H tells the dog at least once a day that he's going to drop him off on a doorstep somewhere. H grew up with dogs (and puppies) his entire life, but was not prepared as his parents did all of the pet care. The dog is pretty laid back though (lab) and H hopes that once he's a little older that he can go running with H.
Not sure how far you are from me, but I'd offer to let your girls play with him if we knew each other IRL. MIL runs a daycare and we've had him over there four times in the past 3 weeks. It's great- both the kids and the puppy wear themselves out playing and running around the yard. He's slept through the entire night those nights!
What about a hermit crab or a turtle? They tend to be relatively low maintenance.
Ugh, my brother had a turtle who caught pneumonia. We had to go to an exotic animal vet. My mom had to give him penicillin every day. And they carry salmonella so you have to wash your hands after handling them. Not totally low maintenance.
Moral of the story? Any pet you get your "kid" is your responsibility, full stop. So really, really think about it. Like, I wouldn't get a pet for any kid under age 18. Hell, I personally wouldn't adopt a pet while in college because I was too unstable (schedule, housing). My brother got a cat in college and SURPRISE he lives with my mom now.
Hence why I ask if she feels her girls have the maturity of caring for a pet at their age. Obviously I didn't at 4, but some are around animals since birth.
I've been around cats and dogs (and guinea pigs, fish, newts, turtles, hermit crabs and rabbits) since birth, but I would never leave a child alone with an animal. Not until school age AT LEAST. Depending on the kid and/or animal.
So it's like twice as much work to have a pet and a child as just a child.