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Are rabbits good children's pets?

Jack_Bun said:
Im 13 (14 in two weeks YAYY)

But my mum still helps me with round about everything...
Like cleaning out, Litter, food, water, grooming, walking (leads)

She is great!:D
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Ooh lucky! My mum doesn't seem to want to have anything to do with Starsky, except to stroke the lil' bunny now and then. :oops:
 
People always assume the buns and pigs are my son's, because they are 'children's pets' - they take more work than a dog! :rolleyes:

When I rescued the piggies I had intended to rehome them all (I didn't know one end of a pig from another back then) - but I soon realised that under 18s living with parents were going to be more interested than adults with secure circumstances, home of their own, etc. - and that worried me because those 10yrs between the ages of 14 and 24 involve the greatest upheavals you will ever experience in life - and I couldn't rehome an animal to such an unsettled future :?

I'm not sure why children want to slave away looking after animals, but I realise some do. Sadly they often decide it would be fun to breed them too :roll: And of course parents don't care if it keeps kids busy and out of the house.

I think children in general (always there are exceptions) do tend to flit from one interest to another, as they are exploring the world and what it can offer them. A pre-pubescent child has vastly different interests to an 18yr old, and rabbits live around 10yrs. How many children sustain a hobby for 10yrs?
 
Me and my sister were about 11 and 14 when we had our first rabbits. My sisters friends dad bred them and we had a pair of sisters.

My dad, a carpenter by trade, built them a massive hutch. Looking back it must have been 6ft long and about 2.5 ft tall. He also made them a run.

Although me and my sister were fairly young, before we got the rabbits we went to the library and researched. We knew that they needed hay all the time and that exercise was very important. In bad weather we even brought them into the house for a run around which really wasn't the done thing back in the 70's!

We didn't know about spaying though and we were lucky as they never fought. One of the rabbits was found dead in the hutch one day aged about 3 but the other I took with me when I got married and she was 9 when she died.

We did a very good job of looking after them BUT we always had our parents behind us. They would clean them out and feed them if we were unable to.

I also therefore think it depends on the children and also whether the parents are also willing to help with the care of the rabbits. Me and my sister really enjoyed owning these rabbits and never found them to be too much trouble even as we got older.
 
I think it depends on the child and the adult. i honestly think its as simple as that. some people if they talk about getting a rabbit, i show then RR,RU, na dgives them care sheets and info. others, i just say 'i wouldnt think a rabbit would be good etc etc' i have been different with 2 families, and both had kids the same age.

because when i was a kd, i loved my pets. i neva 'forgot about them' or got bored of them. so i dont think its fair for me to now be a hypocrite.

but then, whenever i wanted a pet, my parents made me wait at least 3-6 months to make sure i wanted it. when i was 9 i got my first hammie, 'sherbet' and i asked for her from july to december, and i was so sad when i didnt get one for xmas! i had books n everything i was obsessed! then on my birthday in january, my mum got her and put her cage in my room so she was there when i woke up, and i was so happy!

i think parents shouldnt let kids have pets on a whim, i know i would never have got bored of her anyway, but because of the way my parents were by making me wait etc, it made me so grateful i had her, which made me love her even more :):):)
 
*lily* said:
Me and my sister were about 11 and 14 when we had our first rabbits. My sisters friends dad bred them and we had a pair of sisters.

My dad, a carpenter by trade, built them a massive hutch. Looking back it must have been 6ft long and about 2.5 ft tall. He also made them a run.

Although me and my sister were fairly young, before we got the rabbits we went to the library and researched. We knew that they needed hay all the time and that exercise was very important. In bad weather we even brought them into the house for a run around which really wasn't the done thing back in the 70's!

We didn't know about spaying though and we were lucky as they never fought. One of the rabbits was found dead in the hutch one day aged about 3 but the other I took with me when I got married and she was 9 when she died.

We did a very good job of looking after them BUT we always had our parents behind us. They would clean them out and feed them if we were unable to.

I also therefore think it depends on the children and also whether the parents are also willing to help with the care of the rabbits. Me and my sister really enjoyed owning these rabbits and never found them to be too much trouble even as we got older.
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I used to do that! Every library trip involved me coming home with at least one rabbit book! :wave::lol:
 
I think we read every book in the library about rabbits, some of them having a very old fashioned view!

I remember one of the books having a recipe for some type of mash that was good for rabbits! I can only remember cooked potato being involved somewhere along the line, can't remember what else was in it but me and my sister used to make it for OUR rabbits :shock:
 
I dont think any animals are good childrens pets, unless they are completely the adults responsibility :D I got my brother some pet rats, but his job is only to play with them and nothing else. I do all the cleaning, vet trips, feeding, and general care. He gets to do the fun part of playing :lol: And that was a decision I made, he wanted a dog but I said no and we settled on rats because I dont mind looking after rats, but I really dont have time to look after a dog. And I liked the idea of pet rats so its something I wanted too.

When people recommend pets for children its just too easy for them to end up neglected :( What if the parents dont want to take them to the vets when they are sick, and we have seen that happen on here where young rabbit owners are panicking because their buns are sick and their parents wont take them to the vets so we know it happens. Unless the parent would actually go and get a rabbit because they want to I dont think its right, lots of people just give in to children and buy them a rabbit when they start throwing a tantrum in a pet shop and im sure loads of us have seen that happen too :(

I didnt have any pets when I was a child so thats not really got anything to do with me having pets now, I got my rabbits because I wanted them now not because I liked animals when I was young.

My sister had a rabbit when she was young which I had no interest in or nothing to do with and she couldnt be bothered with pets now she is older, she has 2 rats and 2 cats but they are her boyfriends pets and it wasnt her choice to get them :D
 
*lily* said:
I remember one of the books having a recipe for some type of mash that was good for rabbits! I can only remember cooked potato being involved somewhere along the line, can't remember what else was in it but me and my sister used to make it for OUR rabbits :shock:
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We must have had that book too because I remember my sister making mashed potato for her rabbit, it recommended mixing seeds and stuff with the potato I think :shock:
 
I dont think any animal makes a good childrens pet, they make good adults pets and the kids can name them, help feed them and play with them, but the animal should be the responsibilty of an adult.
 
XMissySJx said:
I think it depends on the child and the adult. i honestly think its as simple as that. some people if they talk about getting a rabbit, i show then RR,RU, na dgives them care sheets and info. others, i just say 'i wouldnt think a rabbit would be good etc etc' i have been different with 2 families, and both had kids the same age.

because when i was a kd, i loved my pets. i neva 'forgot about them' or got bored of them. so i dont think its fair for me to now be a hypocrite.

but then, whenever i wanted a pet, my parents made me wait at least 3-6 months to make sure i wanted it. when i was 9 i got my first hammie, 'sherbet' and i asked for her from july to december, and i was so sad when i didnt get one for xmas! i had books n everything i was obsessed! then on my birthday in january, my mum got her and put her cage in my room so she was there when i woke up, and i was so happy!

i think parents shouldnt let kids have pets on a whim, i know i would never have got bored of her anyway, but because of the way my parents were by making me wait etc, it made me so grateful i had her, which made me love her even more :):):)
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This is what my mum does with me; When I wanted rats, I had to wait for about a year until I finally got them, but in that time I was able to prepare myself for caring them: I didn't get bored with them, but for reasons I shan't mention I had to rehome them.

Getting Starsky was very lucky. I really really loved rabbits and really wanted one, but I decided not to ask my Mum as I was confident she would say no. In any case, I love to learn about animals, so I looked up a lot of things about caring for them and eventually, on my birthday, my best friend asked my mum if she could give me a rabbit for my birthday; Miraculously, because it is so unlike my mother, she said yes. And Starsky's the best friend I've ever had. :)
 
isla said:
I dont think any animal makes a good childrens pet, they make good adults pets and the kids can name them, help feed them and play with them, but the animal should be the responsibilty of an adult.
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.................... :oops:
 
i think the issue is the age and temperament of the child and rabbit, and how much of the looking after is their resp[onsibility and how much is their parents.

children always want to pick up and cuddle a bunny, most bunnies prefer to be left alone or stroked in a specific way eg ive seen kids ruffling a bun up by strokeing it form tail to head, which mine hate. also kids shriek all the time and tend to give the rabbit loads of "treats" and unsuitable potentially dangerous items regardless of how many times you tell them not to.

i dont leave kkids alopne with my rabbits, but ive found that even just saying "don't give them a biscuit, theyre not allowed them" can spark a massive tantrum which is more trouble than its worth. i am talking about yound children though, i think for the right 10-12 yr old a rabbit could be a great pet.
 
Depends upon the child I think. I got my first guinea pig when I was 7. Although she was 'mine' my mum still helped out with everything, but I did feed her by myself and was very good with her. (I already had two rabbits by then and she did live with them at first)

However I've been an Auntie since I was 4 so I was used to how gentle you needed to be with small vulnerable things. We already had two cats so I was used to having animals. By the time I was 11 I had a few more and my Mum had more of a 'helper' position.

So it depends on the experience of the child concerned, how willing the parents are to help them I guess. As I think Tamsin said, they make good family pets.
 
I think you have to bee 100 percent sure your children are committed before even considering getting them a rabbit. You also have to make them fully aware of how fragile they are and how easy it would be to end up with a broken heart if they were very attached to the bun.
 
Many rabbit owners I know today has owned rabbit since they were kids:D
Also at other forums I'm at its not unusual to come across an 11-year old, or at least people who've owned rabbit since they were like 8 years old:D
As long as the child is responsible enough and the parents are ready to help and learn the child to take well care of it, I see no reason why a kid shouldn't have a rabbit. Of course not all children are fit to own one, you can't just give away a rabbit to your average 4-year old and expect him to look after the pet perfectly himself (but that goes for any pet really)
I guess I'm of the older owners among my friends really :lol: since I got my first rabbit when I was 16...and she's now 3 years old:lol: But I've always wanted pets since I was little:p Got a dog when I was 11 years old but mom's mostly been the one to care for him, I'm not fit to look after a dog by myself anyway...not even now, since I'm too lazy to go out and walk it when it's bad weather (which it is quite often...) Bunnies are so much easier that way...they won't leave the garden even if I TRY to take them out:lol:

I do admit I freak out whenever kids are around my rabbits though:shock:
If there's something I can't stand is children and small animals in the same room...particularly since I attend to an agriculture school, where we occasionally have kindergardeners visiting, some 20 small children all the way from 4 years old and up and just a couple of adults:shock: I stay clear of the animal room on those days:roll:
There was one time when my neighbors and family had a little "party" just outside our house, and some kids wanted to go in to the rabbit pens, at least they asked:p I let the eldest kids go in but not try to hold the rabbits, and kept a watchful eye on them all the time:p
 
I think it depends on the child but the bottom line should always be that ultimate responsibility lies with the parents. Parents shouldn't allow their child to get pets if they themselves wouldn't be prepared to care for it for the rest of its life just in case the child were to 'go off' the animal.

Regardless of whether the child looks after the animal, most kids go off to uni at 18 or so and I doubt there are any halls of residence that would allow you to have pets - mine certainly didn't.
 
I think rabbits make very good family pets, though not children's pets. In other words the adults take the responsibilty for the animal but the children can help out, watch and learn.
The only pet I think is suitable for as a child's pet where the child takes responsibilty is a fish, or possibly for older children rats as they're very tolerant creatures, don't mind being picked up and cuddled and also very affectionate. Whereas a child can easily frighten a rabbit and get a nasty bite in return. Plus being bigger animals, rabbits are harder for children to handle due to their size and weight.

In my experience I've grown up with rabbits, my parents had rabbits when I was born, and my mum still keeps rabbits. As a result I've always seen them as members of the family and something to be respected. Treat them with great care, look after them well because they can't go to the supermarket by themselves. I've also learnt the lessons of life as my parents used to breed rabbits (not to sell might I add), seen when things go wrong and the nastier sides of animal husbandry such as illness, death and cleaning out mountains of poo! Even though at the time I considered them my bunnies, in reality they were always my parents pets.
 
I had rabbits when I was about 5-7 years old but they weren't mine, just the "family's". Rabbits are fine to have as a "family" pet, as long as the parents have responsibility. I now have Milly and Molly, and I'm 16 and I take FULL responsibilty for them. I think once a child is responsible enough, they can have a pet. It's the parent's decision as to whether their child is responsible enough. There can be a reponsible 7 year old and an immature 15 year old. Depends on the character of the child.
 
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