Easy Pets for Kids

“Can I have a pet? Please! I promise to take care of it.” -said every child at some point in their life. Most of the time it’s something that will inevitably fall back on the parent even if it’s just partially which I think is what makes us dread it when we hear that question.

At the end of the school year, my daughter’s teacher asked if someone would like to take the class Betta fish. My daughter begged, “please!! I know how to take care of it!” as she proceeded to explain to me the process of feeding and cleaning the bowl. It was a fish, that came with the tank and all, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to say yes. Apparently, other people felt that way also so there way a drawing for it, which we didn’t win. This led us to the next inevitable question… “Can we buy one?” which makes my 5-year-old pipe in too “I want one!” Great. Now I need two? Initially, I explained they could just share one, there wasn’t a point to two. Besides, you can only have one Betta in a tank.

Proven Wrong By Amazon

In order to look for cheap tank options, we decided to look on Amazon. We needed something more than just a plain bowl that didn’t have a lid. We found this Betta Falls Kit by Aqueon.

It’s three separate containers that are part of one tank. It’s pretty cool and it allowed for each kid to pick out a Betta fish which was a bonus.

The tank setup was super easy!

We also got these Betta Bed Leaf Hammock which apparently Betta’s like to lay on?

Interesting Tidbits about Betta Fish

They are jumpers- so you need a lid
They are Carnivores- You can supplement the fish’s diet with frozen or freeze-dried brine shrimp or tubifex worms.
They can live up to 3 years
They grow up to 3 inches long
They gulp air from the surface of their tank so they don’t need aerated aquariums

Bettas don’t need a lot of room or a filter in their habitat. However, having a bigger habitat and filter helps with maintenance so that’s the route we went with the Aqueon Betta Falls Kit. The setup process and cost for a Betta fish is much more affordable than a full-on aquarium (especially a saltwater one). The nice thing is they are beautiful and colorful, which you don’t get a lot of in a freshwater tank.

You feed them a very small amount 1-2 times a day, and their maintenance is very little. This makes them a great pet for kids.

The Betta Bed Hammock

I’m not going to lie about this, I laughed at my husband when he purchased these. I mean… really?? A Betta bed hammock? Then, after about two weeks, the fist started laying on it. This was one of the funniest things I had seen. It was like a dog trying to get comfortable on it’s dog bed so it walks around in a circle before sitting. The fish did nearly the same thing.

Is It Really An Easy Pet for Kids

Overall, this is an easy pet for the kids. They like to watch it and talk to their fish. It also helps with encouraging responsibility as they remember to feed their fish every day. Fun fact, you can train your Betta to play with it- Playing With Your Betta Fish. This was funny because when my son went to pick out his fish he looked, and looked, then looked some more before saying “I want to see which one comes to me” meaning when he stuck his finger on the outside of the container which one came over.

If you’re looking for something very low maintenance that will allow your child to have a pet but not drive you crazy, I think a Betta fish is a great option to check out!