Are pets always 'for the children'?

[OrmIrian]

Speaking as a family that had only one cat before the children arrived, and she was only really here because SIL needed a home for her. Since the DC were born we've aquired fish and rats and a replacement kitten for our old mog. I don't think any of that would have happened if the DC weren't here. We've lost some pet rats recently and I want to replace them. DC don't reallyb .

Do you subscribe to the view that pets are for the children?

That is true haggis. DH gets cross with me. He beleives I should wait for DS to clean his rats out/feed them/check their water. But if I did that the poor little things would be shoulder deep in sht and starving. So they were* mine after all!

I now get up 15 minutes earlier to look after the dc's rats. I also take them in the shower room with me when the kids are in bed so they can run around. They have become my pets.

Might get myself a dat. They sound interesting.

Wannabe - plenty more space for an addition or two to your menagerie, I reckon.

Rhubarb - you're all talk. Come back & tell me when you've got your kitten, pit bull and the boa constrictor, okay?

My personal wish list is:

a beagle
any type of dog really
maybe another cat
a pony for dd
a pony for me
hmmm....and
an Irish Wolfhound.

Ooops, nearly forgot:

a pig too.

Not worried about space as by that point dh will have left anyway

Now if I was to have a dog I'd want an irish wolfhound too, or maybe a lurcher for the more downmarket days . I like to think that I am similar, tall and thin(ish), scruffy and a bit grizzled.

I too pretend that animals are for the DC, but in reality...

We have a cat, 3 rabbits, 2 ponies, (my childhood) tortoise - he's been mine for 30 years! and 9 chickens.

We recently lost my beloved ginger cat and the best rabbit (the 3 are to replace her, big mistake they are not so nice )ever plus my two horses from my teenage years (who were in their early 30's).

We are planning a dog for next year...