# help need tame pet for kids any ideas?



## ramageclan (Feb 28, 2011)

hi im looking for a pet for my 3 children aged 5 and 3 
we have no other pets in the house and are looking for something a bit different 

the kids all seem to love all reptiles but im looking for something that will be very tame and loves getting handled
also we are beginners for keeping any pet other than dog/cat fish so need something that will be easy for me to look after 

but most importantly it must like being handled and very very tame

any help advice will be very helpful 

located central scotland


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## Ophexis (Feb 19, 2010)

Reptile-wise I'd say bearded dragon, but I think it necessary to say that they are not instantly tame and handleable - you have to put the effort in to get them used to people and handling : victory:


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## morning-star (Jan 1, 2010)

Go for something like a corn snake --most are easy going and easy to tame. They are fairly cheep and simple to look after. They also don't get too large (4-5ft) and come in many pretty colours. --if you went for one that was at least a year old it should be out of the nippy stage and been reasonably tamed up (if you get it from a good breeder!) 

look in the snake section for care sheets.


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## ramageclan (Feb 28, 2011)

we have handled bearded dragons before the kids really enjoyed it but one we held ran out my daughters hands when there was some noise and thought maybe they scared easily 
are they hard to look after
what do they eat


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## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

I would say Corn snake too:2thumb: Very easy to look after and fairly robust, although adult supervision at all times goes without saying: victory:


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## Ophexis (Feb 19, 2010)

ramageclan said:


> we have handled bearded dragons before the kids really enjoyed it but one we held ran out my daughters hands when there was some noise and thought maybe they scared easily
> are they hard to look after
> what do they eat


Caring for a Bearded Dragon - Hades Dragons UK
That should give you all you need to know.
They are not difficult to look after : victory:
The one that your daughter held may not have been entirely used to handling and could have gotten a little spooked - but a lot of beardies are very calm and chilled out if acclimatised to people from a young age - we have to remember that they still have very much wild instincts and so have to learn that humans are good things that aren't going to make a meal out of them! :2thumb:


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## darren81 (Aug 13, 2009)

I Have two kids which are 3 a 5 i have a rottweiler puppy 13ft albino retic, baby burm and few others inc bearded dragon and demented best friend.


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## awh (Aug 20, 2008)

bearded dragons do make a ideal first reptile once settled and use to being handled (which you will need to work at) one of mine is so calm that i sometimes during the summer go up the road shopping with her on my shoulder 
the thing you will need to get use to is feeding liefood (crickets & locusts) 
can not comment on snakes as i am not into snakes i love lizards


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## darren81 (Aug 13, 2009)

Ok on a more serious note my 5 year old has claimed my sinaloan milk as his own.

Never bitten or shows any signs of it, he feeds the snake normally strikes but nothing enough to scare him just gets him excited as its fun.

Not as big as a corn either which helps and really bright colours bonus for the kids and there's a few about quite cheap at the moment.


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## Kperry1234 (Apr 19, 2010)

royal pythons are great and usually very very tame.:2thumb:


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

Kperry1234 said:


> royal pythons are great and usually very very tame.:2thumb:



Yes, but too much handling may stress it & we all know what happens when Royal's get stressed :whistling2:. So not a good idea as a first pet for young kids. I would say a yearling Corn snake would be ideal, they slow down considerably by then :2thumb:. So would be ideal for the kids to handle (under adult supervision obviously).


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## Kperry1234 (Apr 19, 2010)

corny girl said:


> Yes, but too much handling may stress it & we all know what happens when Royal's get stressed :whistling2:. So not a good idea as a first pet for young kids. I would say a yearling Corn snake would be ideal, they slow down considerably by then :2thumb:. So would be ideal for the kids to handle (under adult supervision obviously).


True , although excesive handling will be stressful to any reptile and ive always found corns never sit still making them awkward for young kids to handle.


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## _simon_ (Nov 27, 2007)

Kperry1234 said:


> royal pythons are great and usually very very tame.:2thumb:


Not very active though, I think kids would lose interest fast. Corn snakes are a lot more active.


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

How about a tortoise? They are not going to dart off quickly if they get spooked by a childs (occassionally) erratic handling and they are a little more robust. Obviously whatever pet you get you will have to supervise any interaction while your children are so young.


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## dudley.hoskison (Oct 18, 2008)

*Best Snake for children*

The best small snake I think is a Trinket Snake not to big and very inquisitive plus not to fast. And very easy to feed.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

dudley.hoskison said:


> The best small snake I think is a Trinket Snake not to big and very inquisitive plus not to fast. And very easy to feed.



Those you have are gorgeous, never held such a tiny snake before. What would a BRB be like for kids to handle?


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## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

Bearded dragons are great, temperament wise. They're also fairly robust in clumsy little hands. I wouldn't say that they are the easiest lizard to look after, though. Their vivs are expensive, need to be well controlled temp-wise and they need to be set up right, with UV. They will eat you out of house and home whilst growing, but can also be fussy feeders from time to time.

Leopard geckos are easier, but they're nocturnal and more delicate, so handling could be a problem.

I'd go with several others on here and suggest a snake of some description. Most of the common species kept as pets are fine, from what I've seen. Despite their eventual size, boas are probably one of the better species (by the time they get big, your kids will be older anyway).


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## stevemusson (Oct 16, 2010)

I'd suggest giving the kids a large retic.. :whistling2:


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## G.R/Trooper (Feb 20, 2011)

No reptile will be instantly tamed unless buying it as an adult and already tamed by the previous owner, which often takes the fun out of having a reptile in the first place (watching them grow, develop a personality etc). If anything i would suggest going with a Bearded Dragon or one of the more common (and cheaper) types of chameleon on the market. They will take work but not as much as others. A Beardy will be comical and allow you to take it out of the viv at any time (90% of the time) and let it run around the living room or garden (in hot weather). The bonus to having a small chameleon is it wouldnt require little space and are fairly tame anyway, not to mention they are not a very fast moving reptile.

On the other hand you could buy a baby Rhinoceros Iguana and tame that from birth. The end result will be the ability to let it roam around the house all the time and take it for walks like a dog in the summer.

Enjoy.


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## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

Good to see such good advice! The retic suggestion was funny, but what if the reptile novice took your advice and one of their kids got hurt? I know it's unlikely that this would happen, but you should keep the "smart" comments for the main forum, not this section.


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## Chrisuk33 (Oct 10, 2010)

ramageclan said:


> hi im looking for a pet for my 3 children aged 5 and 3
> we have no other pets in the house and are looking for something a bit different
> 
> the kids all seem to love all reptiles but im looking for something that will be very tame and loves getting handled
> ...


 bearded dragon?


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