It's my son's 6th birthday soon, and we're wondering whether to get him a pet. Ideally he would love a dog (we all would!), but it's just impossible for us at the moment, so we're thinking of something smaller. Ideally we'd like something he's able to handle/which doesn't have to be in a cage all the time. Not keen on anything nocturnal either!

We visited our local (and very responsible) pet shop earlier today and they suggested guinea pigs and ferrets. I'm a bit put off by the idea of ferrets as it looks like their diet may be tricky to handle, but have no experience of them. My family had a guinea pig when I was very young (younger than 5), so I don't remember much of them either! We've also got a 2 1/2 year old daughter, so I don't want anything too nippy, although the plan is for her not to get too close!

Does anyone have any suggestions/advice on whether we should get him a pet, or what might be best for him?

And before anyone suggests rats, it's a definite no. I have a major phobia of rats, and would move out of the house before a rat moved in (and yes I know that pet rats are very different to manky rats. Makes no difference to me).

My first pet was a hamster, good pet for around that age.

I would suggest something like a hamster. I never had one, but a friend of mine did. It will teach him how to be responsible (cleaning the cage, feeding the hamster etc).

An easier pet would be a goldfish...that was my first pet. I still had to learn to clean the fish bowl and feed it daily etc.

Hope this helps.

Guinea pigs should not be a "child's" pet, if you get two (one will be very sad and lonely) make sure the cage is NOT in the child's room and that he never handles the piggies without supervision. A family pet he can share rather than HIS pet.

Better yet, do the handling yourself and let your son stroke the piggie on his lap. He can hand feed her and stroke her and handle her himself when he is older, but piggies are delicate and easily scared.

a rabbit is a nice pet for a child - gets them to play out side too.

I would agree with ferrets or guineas - as long as there will always be supervision and as long as you get a pair. With ferrets you are best of with a pair of cobs or a neuter jill and cob.

Guineas use their teeth a little less than ferrets - ferrets may 'taste' you - but ferrets are more interactive. Both need a lot of handling to keep 'tame'. Ferrets need more mental stimulation, guineas need more space.

I've owned Guineas and they are fantastic, I've handled ferrets and I desperately want a pair but I have to wait until after I get back from holiday in August as my parents won't babysit ferrets. And my son wants a kitten.

Thank you all so much for your advice - there's no way we would let him be alone with whatever pet we choose, it would always be a family pet, but we would encourage him to be responsible for it in various ways. We used to have a dog when he was very young, and he was great with her. TBH I wasn't really sure on what the advice was for ferrets & guineas re: one or two, so any advice on this is good.

with guinea pigs you want a pair as they're naturally herd animals

with females they are slightly more timid than males, but you'll have less of a chance of dominance squabbles as they grow, which is what you may see with a pair of boars

you could go down the route of getting a male/female pair and having the male neutered, however it's a bit of faffing about really.


ferrets, either sex really, females are smaller than males and have to HAVE to be spayed or injected to be taken out of season or it can lead to life threatening anaemia

both sexes smell. there is no two ways about that one.
females do smell less than males, but the smell is still there. if you neuter your males, they don;t tend to smell as strongly afterwards.

there are plenty of products on the market now though - ferret diets and such that feeding them isn;t as difficult as you may think.
you can also, obviously just feed them on cat food and they do fine on that.


they are a bit more "boring" in a way, but of the two i would suggest guineas, they don't smell as strongly and it's not really in their nature to bite, where as with ferrets, they test things with their teeth

hamster is lots of fun, and less work for you.

hamsters are also a lot more bitey and nocturnal

sometimes difficult to tame too

What about a house rabbit? Bunnies can be litter trained as easily as a cat as they're creatures of habit. I think it's a shame when people get pets like this and they end up at the bottom of the garden in a hutch when the child (and the bunny) would get more out of being a house rabbit.

RSPCA have guidelines for hutch sizes (many people customise a large dog crate for indoors buns).

I have a very unpleasant cat and my neighbour is the local mad cat lady - her cats would come in our house if they could - which is why my bunnies are in an outhouse, not the house. But they get stacks of attention and brought inside to play all the time as they're longhaired and need a lot of grooming.

Whatever you get, research research research, go online, find relevant forums and ask questions and as ever, something from a Rescue is probably preferable to the local large chain pet supplier (who seem to sell only breeders' runts round here - every pet my niece has got from them has been stunted and died quickly). Or a breeder if you want a specific breed.

Bunnies don;t conform to human stereotypes - the males tend to be gentler and less aggressive than the females.

All small pets need a lot of handling.

Ferrets are fun but they are very fast,nosy and thieving in their natures. They hoard things such as socks and can raid the refrigerator.

Hamsters have a tendency to escape.

A cat would be the best as they are about a lot, They teach children social responsibility and boundaries such as sleep time and play time and can be inclined to be chatty.

I'd vote for a piggie. I think they make fab pets. They're sociable and they have wonderful little personalities. Years ago now, my sis and I had one each at age 7 and they had babies which we loved! Not suggesting that for you tho LOL! But I have very happy memories of my piggies. I had another one when I was in my late 20s and she had a few health problems (misaligned jaw was but one of them) so would heartily recommend you get one from a good breeder to reduce risk of these kinds of health issues.

The same sis has recently got 2 pigs for her kids (who are 7 and 4 yrs old). She got two males but they fought so are now in separate cages so I'd suggest two females to pre-empt this. Also remember that they will need someone to look after them if you go away.

How about a rat my nephews have one each and they are quite wonderful, never bitten and awake when the kids are too. Not too smelly and very friendly so much so if we didn't have a terrier I would be tempted to have one too !

mice could be an interesting one - i hate rats, but love mice

they are very easily handled, cheap as chips, and so long as you get females and clean them out regularly, don;t smell too much


on the down side, they are rather short lived

And impossible to catch if they get out - had two living in our airing cupboard escapees who were quite determined to live free

Absolutely not-people tend to buy single rabbits as pets for kids, and inevitably the kid will get bored with it and the rabbit will have littlee company, get little attention and become depressed. Rabbits are very social animals which need a lot of mental stimulation, they are not at all suitable as a starter pet for a child.

another vote for rats for me male preferrably far better than hamsters and mice for pets imo

I also like rats. We've had rats, hamsters, gerbils, birds, cats and dogs in our house, and of the small rodents, I'd say the rats were most fun. They live for around 3 years, they're extremely intelligent and can be trained, they can bite, but generally only if annoyed, and they're a lot more interactive than hamsters. If you get a pair of rats, for goodness sake make sure they're sexed properly - we didn't, and ended up with a pack of them!!

no. goldfish need large filtered tanks and can reach more than a foot long. bowls are cruel. goldfish are hard work to keep properly.

i vote piggies but make sure they have loads of room and a good diet. they need around 4sq ft each, more room the better. they also need plenty of handling to remain tame but they are very unlikely to nip so would be good for handling for younger children.

That is YOUR opinion. A kid can get bored with any pet. But I know of several children who have had rabbits as their first pet and a delightful relationship has existed. Many people who have rabbits as children have them into adulthood.

Nothing easily squeezable at that age.

Also, something you are happy to take care of, and clean and feed when the novelty wears off. Hamsters can be vicious little swines, with a nasty bite. Don't get gerbils, they are quite fast and there's the problem of them shucking their tails if grabbed poorly, plus, you tend to need more than one and they can fight when they get older (I say can, it's not a given).

Guinea pig sounds like a plan.

I agree with this. I kept hamsters for 10 years and do not think they are suitable for young children.

Fancy rats are quite easy to handle and can take rough hands a little easier. I've never been bitten by one yet.

The OP says she has a rat phobia, so rats are out.

Have you thought about chickens? They are great characters (mine used to ride on the handle bars of my bike), not vicious, like attention, reasonably easy to keep and you get fresh eggs 5 out of seven days a week. Ours lived from 5 years to over 10!If I had a garden now I'd have some.

Obviously it would depend on whether you want an outdoor animal and if you have a garden or not. We got ours from a battery egg place. Poor things wouldn't move more than 6 inches in any direction and had no feathers on their tails or necks, but after 6 months they were plump lovely birds. If you don't want to go down that route there are usually loads of places offering point-of-lay pullets in the local papers.