Recently, my four year old cousin’s betta fish died. He was very sad and insisted on calling me. Well, that set me thinking: aren’t fish the perfect pet for younger kids?
Fish hold many advantages over other pets:
- First of all, fish can be very low maintenance pets. If you get a tank with a filtration system, the fish will need only occasional water changes. Other pets will need to have cages, litterboxes, or yards scooped. Also, fish only need a few food flakes thrown in for food. Many pets need water and food bowls filled many times a day.
- Fish can be far, far more cost effective. I found live, freshwater fish online for as little as $1.29. See if you can find dogs or cats that cheap!
- Fish are also hypo-allergenic, meaning you can’t be allergic to them, like reptiles. Almost all other pets can set off alergies!
- Fish take very little time to care for, so if you’re a parent with a busy lifestyle, your younger child can still have a pet.
Fish do have some downsides, though, they aren’t perfect pets. These include:
- Fish can’t cuddled, hugged, walked, or played with. They will die if any of this is attempted. That is why many kids want a dog or some small, furry animal like a hamster.
- Fish can have very, very short life spans.
I have known many kids with fish, such as siblings, friend, and my cousin. Fish have worked well for them, being low maintenance and cheap. The only problem for them was life span. My siblings’ fish passed away in a four day long power outage due to cold water, my cousins due to natural causes, and my friend’s due to a variety of reasons.
Although your time with your pet fish could be short, if you have a young child wanting a pet, I would suggest you get a fish.
