Childs first pet?

[Disneyfan754321]

What was your childs first pet to take care of solo?
And how old were they?

 

[Disneyfan754321]

My 10 year old wants his own pet, we are thinking hamster. He has had a betta fish for awhile ... pretty boring pet he told me lol.

 

[laughinplace199]

DS was 10 or 11 when he got a hamster. He cleaned the cage every week, changed the food and water, etc. daily. He did a great job taking care of "Paul." Sadly Paul passed away last year, but by then we had gotten a puppy, so the sadness didn't last long.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

DS was 10 or 11 when he got a hamster. He cleaned the cage every week, changed the food and water, etc. daily. He did a great job taking care of "Paul." Sadly Paul passed away last year, but by then we had gotten a puppy, so the sadness didn't last long.

Was he a teddy bear hamster or a robo dwarf hamster... we went to look there were diffrent kinds.

 

[mjkacmom]

Rats, I think my oldest was 11. Very clean, very smart, very friendly, and they are bigger than hamsters (we had hamsters first, rats are like dogs, but a little smarter).

 

[Kitty 34]

cats

 

[stout]

Hedgehog for our family. The kids adore her.

 

[OneOftheB's]

I adopted a stray cat that showed up at our house when I was 8. I wanted a cat for years and I did everything for her that was within my power to accomplish (feed, water, brush). My parents did pay for food & vet care once they realized that (a) we were eating an unusually large amount of lunch meat each week-she loved it and (b) I was serious about her being with me forever.

My kids take care of our chickens, each started at about 8. They assist with taking care of the family pets (2 cats, 2 dogs) but neither is solely responsible for any of them.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Our family has always had rabbits, but they're family pets. They need a level of attention and specialized care that needs to be handled by an adult. The kids helped with some of the feeding and cleaning tasks, but I've always been the one to closely monitor their health and behavior. Now that the kids are in their 20s, we still have one rabbit. He's all mine!

 

[BLAZEY]

DD11 feeds the cats and cleans the litter boxes. I buy all food and litter and pay vet fees.

 

[wildride]

We did fish and if they live for six months we moved on to a hamster and a gerbil. After that a cat now he’s a massive dog lover has three of his own in his own house thank you

 

[donaldbuzz&minnie]

You're kidding, right? Take care of it solo? Without constant reminders? Promises, sure. Reality - nag, nag, nag.

(They're happy adults now, and good, responsible dog owners themselves with kids of their own to nag.)

 

[xlsm]

My oldest (will be 17 in a few weeks) got a leopard gecko two years ago and inherited his grandma's bearded dragon about a year ago (she's a teacher, the lizard was a former class pet). They live in his room and he is solely responsible for them, and takes good care of them. Probably b/c they require very little, LOL.

My youngest (15) got a parakeet a year and a half ago that he took care of by himself for a couple weeks, LOL!! Now I think he glances at it occasionally. It has a big rolling cage in the living room and I am the one who takes care of it and talks to it all day (they need a lot of social interaction) And wouldn't you know, that bird still likes him better than me??

We have four dogs, so adding in the parakeet wasn't a big deal in my morning animal routine

 

[katie01]

Our first family pet was a dog when my kids were around 13, 11, and 8. But they didn’t take care of her solo, I was the one who actually wanted the dog so I wasn’t expecting them to take care of it. They do all help though with feeding and walking

 

[dhardawa]

Definitely look into rats. Get a pair because they’re very social. They’re the best rodent pet. If you’re stuck on a hamster, we’ve had great luck with robo dwarves. Syrian hamsters can bite and it hurts and bleeds something awful.

 

[LSUmiss]

DS is 2 & already “helps” as much as he can. He loves his dog brothers . He loves cats too, but our last cat passed away last year . When DS is old enough to help more we will get another cat.

 

[Nox]

I don't have children, but my first solo pet was a mouse. Just a plain little white mouse. I was 7, and was responsible for cleaning the cage, feeding, watering, keeping her food dish/water dispenser clean. (Brief backstory: she was a "fuzzy" - a baby mouse with the start of fur, but eyes still closed - intended as food for my dad's snake. I cried because she was so little, and insisted on saving her. My parents thought for sure there was no way this little baby mouse would survive, but bought me kitten milk so I could try. I fed it to her off my fingertip because she wouldn't take a syringe and was too little for a bottle. She was weaned using plain Cheerios mushed up in kitten milk. She lived to just over two years old, and I still get emotional about her, she was very, very special to me.)

I think at age 10, some sweet little rodent like a mouse, hamster, or rat(s) is a great idea. Small enough he can handle all the responsibilities of cleaning and feeding, but definitely still interactive enough to form a bond with. Mine left a permanent little footprint on my heart.

 

[disneychrista]

Take care of 100% on her own ? A feral kitten only a few weeks old I found in a stack of pallets at work. My daughter was 17 at the time.

She had a hampster & a dog also. but those she didn't really take care of 100% on her own.

 

[laughinplace199]

Was he a teddy bear hamster or a robo dwarf hamster... we went to look there were diffrent kinds.

It was a teddy bear hamster. He was very cute. The only drawback was they're nocturnal, so they're kind of boring during the day. Paul used to start spinning his wheel at 2:00 AM and the noise would wake me up - of course everyone else in the family slept right through it!

 

[ZephyrHawk]

If you're set on a cage animal, Guinea pigs or rats. They have the capacity to respond to humans with affection and will actually seek them out. However, do not get 2 of anything unless (1) you want oops babies or (2) you actually buy from a breeder (not a pet store) who will give you a written guarantee that you're getting 2 of the same gender.