small pet for a 3yr old?

[TLV]

was thinking of getting a gold fish for dd who is 3, not sure if it is a wise move but thought it may help by giving her some responsibility for looking after something, she does like being all grown up at times and thought something that she could call her own would be good. Obviously I would give dh the crap job of cleaning out bowl is it a good idea or not?? We do have a cat but he is old and doesn't come upstairs which is where I would put gold fish

we had guinea pigs as kids. loved them! Also mice are great pets, if you're looking for maybe a smaller enclosure option. Obv you'd have to clean the cage out, but they really don't smell bad.

Hooded rats are lovely for small children as they can handle them easily, they do lots of stuff, are normally v v placid and happy to be stuffed up sleeves etc and low maintenance.

Don't smell nearly as much as mice, and I think are easier for a three year old to handle than guinea pigs.

all sound good but a little worried that the cat will get them if they are downstairs, dd has a fairy tent in back garden and a bird got in cat killed it!! would love to get a guinea pig

i had lots of pets for my ds over the years, satrted off with goldfish- he tired of these quickly
hamster- he absoltuely loved (we've since had several)
rabbit- very nervous and scratchy, although he enjoyed walking it in garden on its lead
guinea-pigs- my absolute fAV. easy to look after, sociable- chat as soon as they heard us in the kitchen let alon eopen the back door! not as nervous as rabbits so ds could do most of caring
cat- very lovely cat very playful and good with children but a tendency to wander off for days at time- so big worry

my guinea pig was evil and bit me all the time!! It hated everyone so they are not always the ideal pet. I think at this age a gold fish is fine. Tbh, at 3, the novelty will wear off very quickly regardless of what pet you get her so best to make it something easy for you to look after when she gets bored of it!

i guess it depends whether you are wanting the pet to live in or out. A house rabbit is a fine idea, so long as it has access to the garden. I hate the idea of bunnies being stuck in a cage all day so unless you are going to house train it and let it have a good run, dont have a rabbit. Saying that, if you do go for a rabbit, avoid the dwarf breeds as they can be very skittish. A dwarf lop is the exception to this rule and they tend to be very friendly.

Not really a fan of guinea pigs as i think they are harder to handly for a three year old - visions of being squeezed around the tummy Again, they need quite a lot of space.

My absolute favourite choice of pet for a child is a rat, but the only thing i would be concerned about with a three year old is again, the handling. They are pretty tolerant to be honest, and very friendly and intelligent, but they have big teeth Ive never been bitten by my rats but if the child puts her hand through the bars she is likely to get bitten.

How about a tamagotchi?

so, weighing it all up - a bunny rabbit, although this is the most time consuming, expensive, space taking option, they can be very friendly and easier to handle.

I think you make a good point there riven. I think at three YOU have to be prepared to do all the hard work, and its not just a case of clleaning abowl