Four Low-Maintenance Pets for Children

It's no secret—kids love animals, and nearly every kid wants a pet. But keeping pets is also a lot of work, and many parents have the not-unreasonable worry that most of that work is going to be passed off to them. As wonderful as keeping chickens may be, any parent who sets up a chicken coop in the backyard is going to end up sinking a lot of time into caring for the birds. And of course, there’s the classic example of the parent who somehow always gets stuck walking the dog their child swore they were going to take out twice every day.

Pet ownership is good for kids

Pet ownership has a myriad of benefits for kids of all ages. Most obviously, caring for a pet teaches children about responsibility and the importance of caring for others. Kids with pets learn firsthand lessons about empathy and respect, in addition to more challenging lessons about time management and the importance of following through on their obligations. Pet ownership and the unconditional love animals show toward their owners can also be a huge boost to a child's emotional health and self-esteem.

Fortunately, not every pet is as needy as a puppy or a flock of hens, and there are plenty of animal options out there for families that want to reap the benefits of pet ownership without taking on as much responsibility.

4 small animals that make excellent first pets for kids

Bearded Dragons

Reptiles, in general, aren’t a bad option for low-maintenance pets, and bearded dragons are one of the best starter reptiles out there.

Besides being adorable (not to mention having an evocative name that’s sure to get young Tolkien fans hooked) caring for beardies is significantly less complicated than for some of their flashier lizard brethren.

Of course, that doesn’t mean beardie owners can just buy a tank, set it, and forget it. Beardies need to be fed frequently—vegetables every day, and insects every other day. Their tanks should be cleaned on a weekly basis.

But these responsibilities are easily regimented—feeding time should always be in the morning, for example—which is great for kids who crave structure and routine. Beardies are also one of the few reptiles who give as good as they get in terms of demonstrable affection; they’re active during the day and love being handled by their owners as long as it’s done safely and hygienically.

Best of all,...

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