no exotics if you're under 5... your thoughts?

[protiemama]

Well I do have kids and I live "in the country". This means my kids are exposed to everything. I found a dead rat snake on my kitchen counter the other day. Did I scream about germs? No, I just hollered out for someont to "take this thing back outside and wash your hands when you're done!" Same as I said"Yes that is a nice piglet dear. Now give it back and tell them we don't have room and don't forget to wash your Hands." "Put the mouse back in the barn and then wash your hands." "Let the frog go back to his family at the pond and pleaser wash your hands!" Well you get the idea. They handle all kinds of animals, very gently I might add. They have wonderfully strong imune systems and are seldom sick. As a rule rural kids are healthier than their urban counterparts. Why? They are exposed to all kinds of stuff all the time. They do not live in a sanitary world, and I wouldn't want them to. They also play with all the safety nets city kids have. They climb trees and wade in the creek. These will be the future explorers, inventers and scientists. Not the ones who live in the steral(sp) bubble. Some people!

Sandy H

 

[vickson420]

Exactly we need a bubble to live in or I have another great idea...how about we just wash our hands.
Isnt it a brilliant idea :idea: I mean I know its going way overboard but lets just give it a shot shall we? :wink:

Are you trying to kill my plastic-bubbles-for-children business? :laughhard:

No not at all I love bubbles :lol:

 

[K9KidsLove]

Hi...I agree with teaching children, not denying them the great learning experience of having exotics.
I had my dragons & geckos before my grand daughter was born. At 2 years, she started asking to pet them. So...my answer was, "as long as you wash your hands before you touch & after you are finished petting." And, she was & still is not allowed to pick anyone up without asking me first. She is now 6. Now she says, "Mawmaw, I washed my hands. Can you give me a dragon to hold? And I will wash my hands after." It is our routine with the dragons as well as the tortoises. And when I was breeding puppies, it was also the same rules.
So, I say, teach parents the right way to do it. Don't punish everyone if 11% of parents are too stupid to care for their animals & children properly.
Patsy

 

[Epic]

"Mawmaw, I washed my hands. Can you give me a dragon to hold?

this has to be the cutest thing!

 

[Lunabellasdragon]

I have 5 siblings, also in the house are 5 hermit crabs, 1 indoor and outdoor cat and 1 baby beardie. They know to wash their hands (mom doesn't care less but I do!) The can't touch the hermit or my beardie until they scrub their hands, even more so when they get home from school. God a bunch of preschoolers touching everything is not a very healthy world.

 

[puffmum]

Introducing children to germs is what helps build their immune system. How is their body suppose to defend itself if it has never came into contact with anything other then hospital sanitation?

That is so true! I really think that is a big problem in our overly sanitized world.

This article is a bunch of balony. I would never get rid of any of my pets "just in case". I have a 4.5 year old, a 3 year old and a 8 month old. They are learning about different animals and how to care for them and how to properly handle them. I would never allow them near the exotics without me being right there.

 

[Combichristina]

I think that article was just another piece of alarmist junk. Yes , all animals carry bacteria....even humans. I have a three year old son who loves all the exotics in the house. I think it's given him an appreciation for "other" animals. He loves to watch our tree frogs and our geckos. And he already knows how to be gentle with Daytona. He's not allowed to handle any of the "biters" at all. The most he ever handles any of them is to very softly pet Daytona on top of her head with his finger. With proper supervision he's in no danger. I'm surprised the articles failed to mention the "danger" of conventional pets i.e. the number of ER visits from dog and cat bites/scratches.

 

[NegativeCreep]

I agree with what you guys are saying, if this article makes people do some research first..

But even 'typical pets' are dangerous. I live near Tulsa, OK and not very long ago, a family PUPPY mauled a baby.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20080730_11_A1_hDetec457625

Really any pets can be dangerous. There is always something to be said about parental guidance.
(I googled dog kills puppy to find this, and I found several other stories, btw How many Beardies do you think have killed kids?)

 

[utahraptr]

I think all pets can cause problems for children under 5, not just exotics. How about people who have a cat with young kids in the house? Cat roams the house, does its business in the litter box. And then walks all over the kitchen counter, kitchen table, even on the floor. Little baby crawls across the floor, sticks his hand in his mouth... No one who writes articles about this, saying how bad cats are for children. Same with dogs - dog goes outside, digs around and rolls in who knows what, comes back inside, kids pet the dog, stick their fingers in their mouth... So it's not just exotics that can transmit disease or cause illness in kids. I think exotics are just singled out because of what they are: exotics.

 

[Lunamatron]

I have two children ages 2 years and nearly 5. I don't know what I would do without the help of my children in regards to our bearded dragons. My daughter (4 y/o) helps me prep their breakfasts, helps me bathe them, and most of all spend lots of time loving on them all. My son is just now learning how to gently handle our BDs and he loves sitting in the window with our male BD and stroking him on his back.

Here's the deal, reptiles (especially water loving creatures) have the potentional to pass samonella to anyone who doesn't wash their hands after handling them. I make sure that my children are diligent about washing their hands and that I keep tabs on cleaning their enclosures. Our BDs get bathed every day and never sit in their own feces, so the chances of infection or very low.

My best memories as a child was caring for our family pets. Even at 3 years old, I had pets that I was learning to be responsible for. The pros HIGHLY outweigh the cons. Parents just need to be responsible and make sure that their young children are never alone with any animal exotic or not.

 

[Lunamatron]

Introducing children to germs is what helps build their immune system. How is their body suppose to defend itself if it has never came into contact with anything other then hospital sanitation?

I completely agree. I am currently in a microbiology class and guess what? Hospitals and super sterile environments carry the worst kinds of bacterias because the bacterias learn to evolve. Scary huh? I could go on for hours about microbiology..., but you may avoid dinner.

I hate to go back to my children, but they are who I have the most experience with. We allow them to be kids. My son has eater just about everything, including sand and my daughter is just now learning to NOT pick her nose. Strangely enough, my kids are probably the healthiest I have ever met. Yes, they get colds every now and then, but I account their good health to their strong immune systems developed over the years.

People are just freaking out NOW because more and more children are having problems with their immune systems from living in environments that prohibit the introduction of microbes to their children. I read an article that stated that hand santitizers actually cause more problems then good when used daily on children. Children shouldn't be quarentiened like sickly animals.

 

[hayl55]

I personally was one of those tom boy girls who was into EVERYTHING dirty, slimy, and gross.. I loved fishing catchign bugs, playign with the cows, gotas, farm dogs and other farm animals, I was always muckin around the barn and out in teh river.. adn you know what..Im better for it. I dont get sick very often adn it takes one heck of a germ to keep me in bed. Where as my best friend was teh opposite..she grew up in the city, playign on cememt or tarviac, constantly exposed to hand sanitizer adn every flu, cold, meezles or booster shot available..and she...she is ALWAYS sick..contantly home in bed and alwasy weak adn tired...
This also brings up imunizations for children..I agree with a few of the more "deadly to cildren" prevention vacines, but I refuse to agree with teh anual flu vacine, cancer vacine, and so on... Just my opinion but I think Mother nature does her best WITHOUT or assistance ( most of teh time)

 

[ghr15]

I do not think young kids should have any pets for the sake of the animal. Also since when is a hamster an exotic animal?

 

[Lunamatron]

I do not think young kids should have any pets for the sake of the animal. Also since when is a hamster an exotic animal?

No offense, but I believe this is an ignorant statement. The reason children grow up being rough and incompassionate with animals is because they were never properly exposed to animals at a young age and taught how to properly handle them.

My children are not in the minority. So long as parents adequately supervise their children during the handling of animals both children and the animals benefit. My BDs get handles 2x as much since I have children. My cats adore my children and seek them out for attention. Not all children are monsters when it comes to handling animals.

FYI, hamsters are considered an exotic animal in the veterinary medical field. Anything beyond domesticated dogs and cats is in that category.

 

[ghr15]

I do not think young kids should have any pets for the sake of the animal. Also since when is a hamster an exotic animal?

No offense, but I believe this is an ignorant statement. The reason children grow up being rough and incompassionate with animals is because they were never properly exposed to animals at a young age and taught how to properly handle them.

My children are not in the minority. So long as parents adequately supervise their children during the handling of animals both children and the animals benefit. My BDs get handles 2x as much since I have children. My cats adore my children and seek them out for attention. Not all children are monsters when it comes to handling animals.

FYI, hamsters are considered an exotic animal in the veterinary medical field. Anything beyond domesticated dogs and cats is in that category.

We are talking about 5 year olds they are not gentle at that age. If you see any thing made for 5 year olds it is made durable. I am not talking about all kids I am talking about young kids.