Fish Kids

(by Jennifer Carroll June 11, 2001)

I have this recurring daydream: My daughter will be in elementary school and her teacher will hold up a picture to be identified by the class. "It’s a peacock!" my daughter will eagerly respond. That’s a nice try, the teacher will say, but this is a fish.

It’s a proven fact that kids who grow up with fish in the home are more knowledgeable than their peers (about fish at least). These lucky kids can easily tell the difference between a goldfish, a platy, a red zebra, and a red devil. They will probably also know that guppy is a type of fish, not just a cute name for a baby fish. Their friends and teachers will be truly impressed.

Really though, fish are great pets, and they can be great pets for kids too, if you do it right. There are hazards so you need a clear set of rules and some basic precautions when you mix fish and kids. If you do it right though, they can learn all the responsibility that comes with pet ownership without all the shedding, noise, shots, operations, licensing, biting, and scooping that come with four-legged critters. One of my husband’s first "jobs" as a child was breeding and selling guppies to the neighborhood kids.

Don’t make it hard for your poor child by getting a bowl (which should be cleaned every couple of days). Unfiltered systems are really not for beginners. Purchase as big a tank as seems reasonable—bigger tanks are easier to care for and are less likely to have problems. A 20-gallon is a great starter size. Just don’t fall in the trap of getting a little one to see how it works with the plan to get a big one later. Small tanks are much harder to keep. Oh, and I would stay away from goldfish. They are harder to keep than tropicals because they create more waste, need more room, and the fancy varieties are somewhat delicate. Get a heated, filtered tank with lights and you’re off to a good start. Get hardy fish and have the storekeeper give your child instructions on how to feed and care for them.

Fish are quite tolerant of common childhood pet-keeping problems, like forgetting that they are there for two or three days—they won’t starve or even complain (not too loudly anyway) so you don’t have to worry about their health (as long as they are normally fed a couple of times a day) and you can allow your child to feel all the guilt that he misses out on when you feed the dog for him.

Basic rules for keeping fish and young children under the same roof:

• A child should never do anything to the tank unless mom or dad is present
• An adult should measure out the right amount of food
• Allow feeding when an adult is helping
• NOTHING but food goes in the tank
• No banging on the tank
• No touching anything on or around the tank without supervision

Older children should understand pretty quickly what should and should not be done with fish. Younger children sometimes have a little more trouble. My oldest daughter is two, but already she understands the rules. We let her participate as much as possible, but only if she does it the right way. The first and most important rule is that nothing must be done with the fish unless mom or dad is helping.

Feeding is what we let her help with most. It is very important not to overfeed fish, but it is a common problem, even among adults. I have found that it is easiest to let her feet pellets. Larger ones are easy for little fingers to grasp, and if you give your child the correct amount then the fish won’t be overfed. Pellets are also a lot cleaner than flakes, which invariably get stuck to damp little fingers. The important points with feeding are to have the adult measure out the right amount of food and to only allow feeding when an adult is helping.

Another important rule is that NOTHING but food goes in the tank. We created this rule after finding cereal spoons in the tank a couple of times soon after she started walking. We put a baby gate up in front of the tanks for a while till she caught on. Toddlers are also notorious for banging on tanks; literally throwing their full twenty-something pounds at the tank. Scientists still don’t know why they do this, but it is probably for the same reason that every young child must put dirt and rocks on the bottoms of slides. However, because fish tanks are typically made of glass, which can break, and because it scares the fish to death, this is a practice which must be corrected at a very early age. Remove them from the tank as soon as they start to bang and remind them briefly that we don’t bang on fish tanks. Even a 1-year-old will catch on.

At one point she adopted a tank of fry which she eagerly showed to every visitor to our home. It was so cute to watch, until she started inviting her little friends to see them unattended. For some reason, when there is company her own age around, she forgets the rules and problems can happen, so when they have friends over, show them the fish yourself, then explain the rules and keep a good eye on them.

Fish make great pets for older children and are nice to have around even when your kids are very young. They are great for teaching responsibility and try not to annoy other family members. They don’t smell or have bad breath and they won’t bite the little hand that feeds them. Teach your children the how to respect and care for the fish and everyone should live happily ever after (really, some fish can live longer than you).

Why fish are easier to keep than puppies:

1. Changing 25% of the water in a fish tank a couple of times a month is so much more pleasant and less time consuming than pooper-scooping the yard or changing the litter box every day.
2. Fish don’t bark, and bark, and bark
3. You don’t have to do obedience training
4. Don’t tell your kids this, but most fish can survive a couple of weeks without food so if your child forgets to feed them some day, he/she can feel the guilt of neglecting his/her pets without doing the animal any real harm.
5. Wet fish smell so much better than wet dogs, at least with proper filtration
6. You don’t have to give them a bath
7. or treat them for fleas and ticks
8. You won’t get pet hair all over the house and they don’t cause allergies.
9. They don’t eat too much (most of them) and will never steal the dinner off your plate
10. They won’t wake you up early on those rare days when you get to sleep in

There can be trouble in paradise though, if you’re not careful:

When choosing a pet to keep around children, remember: a fish won’t jump in your lap (not if he is healthy anyway) or lick your face like a puppy would—but you can probably live without that. 

For basic information on choosing fish and tanks, tank maintenance, fish health, and other important topics check out the 101 series on keeping fish.

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