best first pet?

richard plumb

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my daughter is animal mad. And 6. She's 7 in June and was thinking of getting a pet for her. Realistically, no matter what she says, she won't look after it. My wife refuses to, so it'd be down to me. I'm ok with that, but only as long as its not too much aggro.

In my childhood, we had rabbits and dogs, never cats. I think a dog is probably a little too much (maybe next time), and I don't think I could 'pooper scoop' - my own kids nappies were nearly enough to kill me.

So I was thinking rabbits. They seem fairly easy to clean out and look after.

any thoughts?
 
People will flame me for this, but a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Absolutely brilliant with children, and the poop don't stink too much :D; the farts on the other-hand are vicious.

I had Hamsters at 6, and they stank the house out, plus the cages, tubes and other Rotastak nonsense required an entire room.
 
Gerbils do bite, they just have smaller teeth. Me and my brothers had some as kids which rapidly became lots.
 
Budgies?
 
Probably say goldfish.
Or maybe a cat, they're are easier to look after than dogs.
 
Goldfish ,easy to replace and she would be non the wiser :thumbsup:
I suspect a 6 soon-to-be 7 year old likes the idea of a cute kitten or puppy to cuddle everywhere

Cat, rabbit, [-]vermin[/-] gerbil/hamster seems a reasonable call
 
Probably say goldfish.
Or maybe a cat, they're are easier to look after than dogs.

Lazy pet, ***** in everyone else's garden.

Anything other than a dog will be a half hearted attempt they'll soon get bored with, our goldfish are actually more of a PITA than the dog because the water gets really dirty, needs changing and the tank cleaning quite often even with a filter.

People spit at you if you try and buy a glass bowl and some fish so you have to spend £100, it's the law :rolleyes:

Get a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, ours is 4 now and very little trouble, she'll sleep 22 hours a day if you let her and play 22 hours a day if you don't, intelligent, she learns tricks in minutes if you wave cheese in front of her:D
 
I suspect a 6 soon-to-be 7 year old likes the idea of a cute kitten or puppy to cuddle everywhere

Cat, rabbit, [-]vermin[/-] gerbil/hamster seems a reasonable call

Imho the youth of today need to throw off these "shackles" of "cuddle " pets . what's wrong with walking round with a goldfish bowl under your arm ? i carry a motorcycle helmet !
 
Imho the youth of today need to throw off these "shackles" of "cuddle " pets . what's wrong with walking round with a goldfish bowl under your arm ? i carry a motorcycle helmet !

Or in your pocket? they are, after all, pretty small :smashin:
 
Id get a cat mate, really friendly and they dont get too big and they basically take care of themselves.
 
Im sorry but a cat is not going to be friendly to a 6 - 7 year old who will constantly be wanting to pick it up and fuss with it. kids are after all pretty heavy handed and in my experience every cat I have met hates kids.

A dog ? Probably the most wrong decision you could make. They can take a lot of looking after and its not wise to get one on a whim. Some serious thought should be taken before any pet really but a dog more so imo.

A hamster or gerbil sound fine. Gerbils normal smell less but are less likely to want to be held, although in my youth I had some lovely pet gerbils. My kids have a hamster now and its one of the big fluffy ones. Try and get one from a breeder out your local paper or something because they usual are :

1. cheaper
2. friendlier pets
3. just better !

Always supervise your child when she is with it and follow the handling instructions the breeder gives you and you'll have a great pet.
 
If you just want something that you can look at and doesn't take too much looking after then what about stick insects?

I had a load when I was younger and they were the perfect pet. Just needed replacing the privet branches every now and then and that was it.
 
Goldfish are cheap and easy to replace if you accidentally kill them by feeding them salt and vinegar crisps :rolleyes: (i didnt mean to do it). But the tank does stink and needs cleaned regularly which by the sound of it, it will be you who does it.

get her a Cat. Looks after itself, doesnt need groomed or bathed. Only have to set out some water and food each day and it will amuse itself all day long. Its like the lazy mans pet :D
 
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Remote Control Spider :) free to feed and endless fun
 
i would say cat, i am going to partly disagree with SyStemDeMoN and say most cats would like the affection of a 6-7 year old but it would depend on the cat and the child.

and cats are very easy to look after, you basically have to feed them and possibly worm and flea them every now and then.
 
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Has the op considered Rats, lots of fun easy to clean.

If you want just to sit in your lap get a boy if you want entertainment and bit of madness get girls.

If you get Dumbo's they have a better temperament and if you get them from a breeder rather than a pet shop they will have been handled more.
 
Tropical Fish, once you set up an aquarium properly it will give you just as much enjoyment as your daughter.:)
 

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