Tell us your stories about choosing a pet for a chance to win a £100 voucher for a pet shop of your choice

I chose our boxer puppy whilst the children were at school...then when they returned, our little bundle of joy was curled up on a cushion on the sofa.

Squeals and squeals of delight

I didn't get to choose my pet, the girls at work got it into their heads that I'd like a chicken and when my birthday rolled around, suprise...3 chickens!

We rescued some guinea pigs that were up for adoption at Pets at Home. They were brothers and one had had an infection, and by the time it was cleared, they were too 'old' for the shop floor. Our kids are madly in love with them, and got to name one each. Which is why we have a 'Carrot' and a 'Steve Rodgers' lol

When we lost our dog to old age the house felt so empty. When we felt enough time had past we started to look around. I knew another puppy to grow with the children would be right for us. We went to view some puppy spoodles ( springer x poodle) and I fell for a lovely cutie who fell asleep on my lap and thought this is the one.... with that in bounced a ball of fluff who immediately pounced on my 5 year old twin boys, full of confidence and mischief ...... 4 years and many shoes later he still is a fluffy, confident and mischievous boy and we wouldn't have it any other way :)

I picked our dog from a litter of 7. He was the only boy, was the youngest & all the other pups kept biting his ears. All very endearing to me so I picked him.

My rescue dog was cowering at the back of a pen. She gradually inched towards me and let me stroke her.

We were interested in getting a dog but wanted something medium sized. However my husband heard of someone who had Labrdoodle puppies. One had his paws up on the small pen watching us and he was the only one who hadn't been sold as someone else had backed out. Fatal ... He has been with us for 6 and a half years and is very strong and BIG but he keeps us fit with 3 walks a day and we love him.

When we sadly lost one of our cats the Christmas before last (she was semi- feral, but was dd's favourite!) we told dd she could pick the next cat, and the name! She picked the name straight away (it is a very unusual name, which us actually neither a name nor a real word), and then looked round all the rescues we went to hoping to find a cat who already had this (made up) name.
Of course we didn't. But we did find a lovely, tiny little black cat, who should have been fluffy except that she had licked much of her fur off due to stress - she looked like a poodle with a lion cut!
Now, a year on, she is back to full fluff, and the most lovely, friendly little cat you could ever meet - and dd loves her!

Our cat chose us, she was a neglected cat belonging to a neighbour and lived outdoors. She pinched food from our BBQ! She was in such a bad state that in the end we catnapped her and contacted him and asked if we could keep her and take her to the vets and get her patched up. He agreed. She was very very lovely but needed vet care for the rest of her life!

we have had lots of pets over the years, we have 2 dogs and a cat at the moment. choosing the right pet is vital, unless you can give 100% commitment do not get any pet. The best places are rescue centres, they have many many animals that will have been health checked and temperament checked etc. if you are going to a breeder ALWAYS insist on visiting them and seeing both parents of the animal and do your checks on the breeder. do not on any account deal with someone who agrees to meet you somewhere with a pet or will not let you visit them. as for the selection of a pet, they usually pick you!

we went down to Yorkshire to choose our pup - she was the first pup that ran up to us so she chose us!

We could never have any cats or dogs because my mum was allergic to them but I would have loved to have had a dog.

Our little dog Barney chose us, rather than us choosing him.

We went to see a litter of Yorkie/Pomeranians, and the little fella just followed us everywhere.

He definitely knew he was on to a good thing and rules the roost!

We have two cats and a guinea pig and my son is really good with all of them, he had learnt to be gentle and not chase them, he is only two. We have had other kids here who have chased them around the house and scared them. Having a pet helps teach children how to respect animals.

We decided to get a dog when my sons were 4 & 5. We saw two puppies, mini labradoodles, who were both lovely, but one wouldn't leave us alone so we chose him. We collected him on my youngest son's 5th birthday and the boys named him Buddy after Buddy the Elf. He spent the first few months believing the boys were puppies too and has well & truly become part of our family. The boys love nothing more than a long, muddy walk with him

When I was 3 I went to the zoo and had a huge tantrum because my parents wouldn't let me bring a giraffe home ! - I have been obsessed ever since . I then had an imaginary wolf for a while .
Eventually we had some lovely cats , our last one was picked by my dad who said she was beautiful- in reality she was scrawny with a rat type tail as long as her body and a piercing part Siamese crybut he was right she was beautiful until she died at 17 .

Our three daughters had pestered us for a dog for ages and we finally took the decision to get one. We researched the breeds and came up with a Japanese Spitz as the best match for our busy family. We travelled 3.5 hours to see his mum before he was born, when he was 5 weeks old and finally to collect him at 9 weeks old. He is a wonderful dog and loved by everyone he meets. The biggest surprise was how he changed the opinion of my mother and father in law who were adamant that they wanted nothing to do with 'our dog'. He has now totally won them round and he spends 3 days a week with them whilst I am at work. He is a credit to our family and is our treasure.

We always said we didn't have time for a dog, although having both grown up with dogs, we would have loved one. I had the opportunity to give up work after my second child and once she turned two we decided that maybe we had capacity for a new baby of the furry canine variety. Someone my DH knew from work had a litter of 6 labradors and we went to see them. Despite their best efforts at steering us towards one of the more lively puppies we all fell for the prettiest, quietest, cutest, runt of the litter. Much family deliberation followed as we decided on a name. Tilly came to live with us nearly 5 years ago now - she really has been the sweetest natured dog and loves everyone in her family. Her favourite game is the kids playing hide and seek and her being let off the lead to go and find them, when we're out on family walks. Pets are so good for children!

My daughter has just turned 9 from being quite small she has loved all animals, in particular dogs! Although in laws have dogs, Isla has been desperate for us to have our own! A puppy has been on her Christmas list for the past few years. Her birthday is February. This year she didn't seem too bothered when Santa didn't bring a pup but once her birthday drew to a close with no pup her face crumpled and her heart broke.
Little notes on my bed side table from her begging for a dog, any dog! I have finally given in and we have reserved a pup from a friends Bedlington Terrier litter (currently 2 weeks old) we have to wait another 6/8 weeks which seems like a lifetime to Isla but I know this little puppy will be well loved and can't wait to welcome her into our home x

Well my story is not so much about us choosing a pet, but a pet choosing us. My Granny had a little white kitten with a black mohawk and she called him Barney. He was a little terror, jumping in the windowsill and clawing up her net curtains (which were ruined in no time). Sadly Granny had a massive heart attack and passed away and at the wake, it suddenly dawned on everyone "what will we do with Barney?". As soon as it was out of someone's mouth he ran over to me - decision made!! OK, I gave in so easily. My husband was not keen on the idea at all, knowing the terror Barney was, but in my grief I had agreed and wanted to keep him, so my husband went along with it! Two children later and Barney is still a big part of our family. He is a placid big cat now and the children love him! My husband keeps joking that he wishes Barney would run away, but I know he'll miss him if anything happens him. As will I cos it feels like a wee part of Granny is still here in Barney too :)

I never got the chance to choose a pet due to allergies in my family but I always dreamed of having more exotic animals like a white baby tiger or a baby monkey! :) When I got older I kept seeing a man with two grey great danes and they were so beautiful they made me want them too and I'm really scared of dogs!

I dreamt of having a pet as a child, but my dad always said no! My mum wouldn't let him have a dag so there was no way he would let us have anything else, not even a fish! So imagine our surprise when he came home with a cat!
I was about 10 years old, and I loved her from first sight, as far as I was concerned she was mine, not my brothers and loved me the best. She was a beautiful and loyal friend till she passed away aged 16, and had a great and happy life with us. Now we have cats, fish and even a pet hedgehog in the garden. Animals are my sons friends now too.

A goldfish is the best option when going for the easy choice, definitely. And it teaches kids how even something supposedly so easy to look after can prove to be a challenge (never forgetting to feed them, having to regularly clean out the fish-tank, etc.). At least that was the case for us. We've moved up to a little black-and-white kitten since - a gorgeous bundle of fur-covered joy. (We'll work our way up to an alligator eventually, I expect)

We don't have any pets, but we are very friendly with our neighbour's cats. She is getting quite elderly, so she might appreciate some extra treats for her feline companions and DD age 3 would be so happy to give sandy cat and sooty cat some presents.

Last year we lost our gorgeous dog at nearly 19 years. Whilst we're desperate for another furry pal - the jury is currently out as the children weigh up the pros and cons of all pets. There's not much that they haven't mentioned and we're open to all suggestions! Maybe you could help us decide?