Toddlers Love Pets

Having always wanted a pet when I was growing up, I decided that I would get my children a pet. Children themselves are a lot of work, so I had to work my way up to this whole pet thing. I started with two small frogs when my daughter was little. We got them from a consignment store. They were the kind of frogs who swam in a little aquarium, much like fish. After the first week, one of the frogs were dead, but the other lasted for a year.

A few years later we got some kittens. I do not want to go into detail about that heartbreaking story; let’s just say cats and country living do not go hand in hand. However, I still wanted my children to have a pet. I believe that having pets are beneficial for children. It helps them gain social skills, and develop empathy for another living creature. So you don’t think I am making this up, I found an article, “Are Pets Good for Kids?” to help support my theory. The answer is yes, pets are good for kids.

However, you have to determine which pets are good for your kids. Aside from having the frogs, I thought of pets as either cat or dog. Am I a cat person, or a dog person? I like dogs, but am also afraid of them, at least the big ones. Dogs are also a lot of work. And as a working mom of three, I really do not need more work. So then I thought maybe I was a cat person. Cats do not require quite as much attention or effort, but there is the possibility of them scratching you… Not to mention, pets can be rather expensive.

Well, it turns out I am neither a cat person, nor a dog person. I am a rodent person. I am the proud owner/parent of two small gerbils. If you do not know what a gerbil is, just think rat with a furry tail (See below).

Naruto

Kakashi

My kids are just as excited about our gerbils as they would be had we had a dog or cat, much to the dismay of the poor gerbils. Today my three year old climbed atop the table where we keep the gerbils, and I caught him with his hand stuffed in the cage (yes he can open it himself) trying to feed the gerbils some sunflower seeds.

We may not be able to pet and hold the gerbils the way we would a dog or cat (and trust me, that doesn’t stop my kids from trying) but at least they have a couple of furry critters to take care of.

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