Good pet for a 6 year old girl

maybe a hermit crab or some sea monkeys? or maybe a lil mouse.

 

Any pet for a child this age will need it's care supervised by an adult. Even mature 6 year old cannot be expected to be completely responsible for an animal. That animal has a life, that, when you aquire it, you agree to do the best for.

We have had dogs, rabbits, mice, hamsters, Iguanas (not a begninner pet, they are harder to take care of than dogs or even cats) lizards and frogs and fish. Every one needed adult supervision until the child was 12 or older. My older kids even need help being reminded about the animals sometimes. (and they are pretty responsible kids, sometimes between their freinds, school, a job, boyreinds and girl friends, TV, the computer ect, there is a lot to remember.)

We've had hamsters and some are adorable and some bite. Ours were handles frequently, (four kids, they didn't have a choice) and, still, younger kids can't handle the cage cleaning, which needs to be done really frequently.

Sage (our 6 year old) is very good with fish. She helps with the dogs, rabbits and hamsters, but I wouldn't leave her as the sole caretaker on any of them.

Is there someone home for a dog.? Your dd could help, with a lot of adult supervision. Dogs are GREAT freinds for small children. I'd suggest a Laborador type, Golden Retreiver ect. They are great with kids. Dogs that are too little tend to be more irrtatble. We have a black lab and a Malamute and Sage is just great with them, as were my older kids,with Malamutes and Lab type dogs. I wouldn't suggest a Malamute unless you have a lot of time, a strong pack heirarchy sense, a HUGE yard and a lot of time for training, though. They are not beginner dogs. Labs are great, though. for just about anyone willing to give some time and love.

 

The thing about any caged animal is the cleaning. Rats and especially mice can stink if they aren't kept really clean in thier cage. Also, they have personalities, some do bite. They don't need a lot of care, aside from feeding and clean water, but mice don't really tend to bond all that much, imo. I think with help, if you can manage it, and someone is home all day, Dogs are the BEST pet for young children.

 

Right on with the hermit crab (as a little boy I loved them, really turned me on to pets)
They aren't too messy and are fascinating to put a nice shell and watch them "appear" in them. They're cute.
That dried shrimp they like gets a bit funky but I was 7 and handled it all right.
a guinea pig is very nice and girls tend to like them. they are gentle and really respond to care.

If you are going all out a pekinese is super mellow and ours was a good pet with me as a baby onwards, almost like a guinea pig but so much nicer.

 

How about a turtle. We had the cutest turtles in the back yard last week mating. Our silly dog chased them off though. But they were adorable. I imagine pet turtles would be fairly easy to take care of. And they don't move too quickly so if it gets out around the house you would be able to catch it.

What ever pet you choose make sure you and your daughter read up on it first to make sure you are doing everything properly.

 

Turtles are easy to take care of, but there is the samonella risk. Nearly all turtles can carry it, and it can make children and adults very very sick. We had an Iguana, and had hand sanitizer right next to her tank. But, we always had to remind the kids to wash. Also, we had her around the time our last baby was born, the vet said not to let her get near the baby, and for me not to feed or pet the animal, or clean her cage while Sage was under 18 months.

Turtles are adorable, but too many carry this illness. It does the animal no harm, but can be very dangerous for children, who not only don't wash as well as adults, but have less mature immune systems. Of course, this holds true for just about any reptile or amphibian.

 

Oh yeah I never thought of that Maggie. Good thing you thought of it.

 

Sure, but like a land turtle that's not all wet probably is all right. I had some box turtles, eastern box I think. Beautiful and they're really low maintenence, just let them walk around the house, ours would come eat where the dog ate, drank etc.

 

My choice is best summed up by this: The Guinea Pig Way

I can't remember an age where I didn't have a GP. I'd actually reccomend getting a pair so that there's company if there's a chance of extended periods of where attention isn't happening.

Live your life the guinea pig way!

 

Rats are amazing little creatures. Don't get one from a pet store though. They are not healthy or tempermentally sound enough for a small child. If you adopt a rat from a rescue or reputable breeder they will come pre-socalized, free from health issues, and with a known temperment. Some people even let their rats free roam their homes or rooms in their homes and have them litter box trained like a cat. I know a girl who even sleeps with them in her bed like a dog or cat. Free roaming ratties aren't good unless you can rat proof your home and block them access to places or things that might be harmful. They have have a nice size wire cage....not an aquarium. Aquariums don't offer proper ventilation and could cause respratory illness......most wood shavings also cause severe respratory illness and a young death. Yesterdays news and care fresh are great safe bedding that can be bought in large/bulk bags at most pet stores.

 

A pair of rats. Easiest pets to look after.No rats don't bite unless they are really scared. I had rats, scared it one time to do a test, put finger near its mouth and it didn't bite. I realised rats are the most affectionate and loving pets a girl could ever have. Goldfish are boring. They swim around a fish bowl all day.


Rats terminate after three years. rats should go as pairs, quads or masses. Never buy a single rat. It will get lonely, no matter how much you play with him, he will miss his own kind. Infact it is inhumane to keep only one rat. Rats are highly sociable rodents.

 

Total BS! I got my rattie from PetSmart and he's awesome. Totally cool and he doesn't bite my children who are 5 and 4. Also, I have had NO problems with his health.

Not all rats from pet stores are bad eggs.

Some people don't have access to a rat rescue.

 

what the hell is a rat rescue. if i see a rat, it is dead, end of discussion. but you all have fun.

 

chinchillas like to sleep in the day.
The Hotot is a fabulous dwarf rabbit, I had one that I gave to a friend for his daughter and she would carry it around and it wouldn't scratch her or run away., but it's still not an ideal pet. my exgirlfriend had guinea pigs as a girl and then I got her one and she really got into it, so did I, neat pet and low maintenence (alfalfa blocks aren't that expensive and can be found in bulk some places.) Ours would prop her head on one like a pillow and stretch out on her side, guess she was comfortable.

 

Well we ended up getting her and her sister both rats. We also got them a very large cage that my wife calls the Rat Palace. They are both females. We actually did get them from a pet rescue(couldn't beleive the amount that are out there). They are so little right now. We have had them for about 15 days now and the girls love them. They are always on their shoulders any time they are home. They have not bitten them or anything else so far. The rats run to the front of the cage when they get home from school. They seem like the perfect pets for them. Our cat has made a habit of sitting and watching them for hours at a time. So far she has not tried to get at them though but that is the only concern at this point. We are using the care fresh bedding as well and I like it. Anyways, thanks for everyones help.

 

I also agree that a cat or small dog would be a wise choice. Especially if she's wanting something she can handle. Cats tend to be a little more independent than dogs. So I think a kitty would be a good choice. Especially if you chose to use a litter box.

**Just saw that you went with the rats Glad you figured out something for her. I'm sure she's really happy The kiddos sure love getting pets**