Exotic Pets for Children

Some of the top pets for children are dog, cats, and bunnies, but if your child wants an exotic pet, then you’ll need to be the one that decides. This can’t be stressed enough, that you’ll be the one to decide what exotic pet type they can handle, if they need one at all. Of course, this depends on your child’s age and how responsible they are, and the willingness to direct them on how to care for them, and making sure they regularly do it. Exotic pets are wonderful creatures to have, but they need specialized attention for their needs.

A list of popular pets for children always include guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, geckos, and coming in toward the end, Madagascar hissing roaches. The popularity of the type of animal fluctuates at times, but generally stays the same.

Guinea pigs are good pets, and they top a lot of lists as the most popular pet for children. Guinea pigs are very docile and will love to play inside their cages at all hours. This might be one drawback to owning one, but if the cage is in your children’s room, and it calms them, it is a great animal to have around. On the other hand, guineas will work around your schedule too; they know when the kids are home and love the attention. If you think the guinea is a pet that your child needs, you’ll need to understand that the must be handled gently, and they’re social animals. In other words, you’ll need to buy two of the same sex, so they’ll stay emotionally content. It’s preferable that you buy two females, as males tend to get aggressive. Supplemental foods for vitamin C are part of their food requirements, and they need a big cage.

Topping the list next is the ever-famous hamster. There are two popular types that are the Syrian and golden hamster. Mini varieties are becoming popular, but they can be hard to handle because of their size. Both types of hamsters don’t require much room, but you’ll need to place some toys inside their cages because their fun to watch playing inside. If a child or you have the patience you can get a hamster very tame. Hamsters don’t interact a lot, as least as much as the gerbil does, with people. A hamster is a nighttime, or nocturnal animal, so they’ll be up and about when the family is sleeping. If your child insists on playing with a hamster during the day when their hamster is resting, they could be bit.

Gerbils are part of the rodent family too, and these pet are another popular pet with children. As with the guinea pig, you’ll have to buy two for them to be happy. They love to play and socialize with other gerbils, and you can tame them. It will take some work on your or your child’s part, but it can be done. Depending on how you look at it, gerbils sleep habits are frustrating or enjoyable because they alternate between awake, and then will go to sleep after rousing play. Young children in your household might want to play at times when their gerbils are asleep, so that’s a drawback. Gerbils need to be handled easily, and don’t like to have their tails grabbed either. Your gerbil will bite if grabbed by the tail, so make sure to teach your child how to handle one correctly.

Geckos bring up the tail end of the list. Before buying your child just any gecko, check into the ones that are easy to care for like the bearded dragon, or the leopard lizard. They are very docile in their temperament, but feeding them is quite another issue. Supplement vitamins and a rotation of leafy greens and fruits along with crickets, which will keep the gecko healthy. A lot of geckos need special UV light requirements, and have respiratory issues. The gecko though is good-natured, and they don’t grow big, so you can have several of them.

Finally, the Madagascar roach is a nice pet, but not cuddly. They’re docile and don’t need any attention, plus they’re easy to care for. If you children love the creepy crawly things, then a roach is the perfect buddy, just make sure that you can handle it. Take a few minutes and talk with your children about the responsibility of owning an exotic, you won’t regret that you did.