class pets, your opinion

[king2005]

I think its a good idea, BUT only if the teacher knows how to care for it & willing to take the critter in if it doesn't work out in class.

Back in grade 7-8, the grade 4-5 teacher had a HUGE ginniepig pen in her classroom. She taught the students about animal care, respect & so on. Every year she breed one of the females & would let kids take them home as pets, BUT the kids parents HAD to show up to the parent teacher interview to claim the one their kid wanted & had to listen to care tips & so on about the animal.

In my grade 12A english class, we decided to get a goldfish. I supplied the bowl & airpump. I made sure they only got a little goldfish & said at the end of the year it had to go to a bigger home, like a pond. So as far as I know there was a new fish every year & it went to the bio teachers pond at teh end of the year.

[dab_20]

It's a good idea AS LONG AS this animal is treated with respect by your class mates. In 5th grade my class got a rabbit named Cocoa. The teacher ended up having to give it away because it became vicous and starting biting and lunging at the kids. It was because the kids did not treat Cocoa with respect when the teacher wasn't looking.

[lute]

i think a class pet is a good idea as long as it's being cared for properly and isn't being abused by the children/teacher. we always had hamsters,gerbils, guinnie pigs, parakeets, and snakes in our class rooms. on weekends and holidays we'd draw from a hat to see who got to take the pet home.

i like the idea of having pets in class rooms because if the kids don't have pets at home it teaches them about the responsablility and what it takes to own a pet.

[Chilli]

I agree with what everyone else said, and I'll say it again, its a great idea as long as everyone treats it with respect and knows the proper care.
Also, you must have a back-up plan incase the head of your school suddenly declares a "no-class room pet" rule (it happened at my cousin's school). You also need to make sure that the animal has a home to go to during the summer and such.
Our teachers at our school are too lame to have classroom pets. We had one in science last year. A goldfish. But everyone would shake the tank and poke at it and such. As a result, the fish died.
I wouldn't really suggest anything such as a rabbit or any other larger furry animal. I think you all you try something like a tarantula, lizard, scorpion, or other non-everyday-house-pet. In other words, something that no one in your class really has as a pet so that they can learn something from it.
I hope you all decide on a good choice!

[IRescue452]

As long as its taken care of properly and students are taught proper care. If I ever saw a goldfish in a bowl in a classroom I would go off on the teacher. Proper care cannot be taught if the animal isn't in a proper situation.

[CagneyDog]

Honestly, I'd prefer that nobody had classroom pets. It stresses the animal out to know end with all the loud children in the classroom. Most of the animals either get too much attention, or very little. I remember when I was in Grade five we had a rabbit. The rabbit was completely overwhelmed by all the kids trying to touch/hold/pet it. I also remember in grade seven when we got fish and everyone ignored them etc. Also, It must be really stressful to the animal when it is being moved around every weekend etc. I really just don't think it is a goodd idea. Kids should be taught how to care for pets, however, it's not like they are getting the full view on how to take care of one. I know for certain that most kids aren't asked to clean the cages/tank etc.

[Jessika]

I think it is a wonderful idea so long as the pet is age-appropriate for the class. For example, hamsters are not suitable for younger children in my opinion. Maybe if it were one or two children, but not an entire classroom. Guinea pigs are especially not suitable for younger children because if dropped even from a few feet they could break their back which will lead to paralysis or even death.

So as long as the teacher is RESPONSIBLE, the children understand the animal and is quiet and patient around them, and it is age-appropriate for the group, an animal in the classroom can be a WONDERFUL learning experience for children of any age

[Miss Z]

Honestly, I'd prefer that nobody had classroom pets. It stresses the animal out to know end with all the loud children in the classroom. Most of the animals either get too much attention, or very little.

I think you are very right there. Class pets isn't such a big thing over here, so i don't know too much on this subject. But i totally agree with you. I've seen programmes of schools with class pets and basically i think the animal (in this case a hamster) was scared out of his wits. The thing is with a lot of young kids is that they like to pet and admire and hold a pet for a while, but soon lose interest. If this is definitely not the case for a class, then there's not really a problem, but there will always be kids like that. Also, kids like to crowd around animals, bang on the cage to wake the animal up and shove a mass of hands towards the pet in an attempt to stroke it. And i've heard of kids taking home class pets during the holidays, well, unless that child can be FULLY trusted to care for the pet throughout the whole holiday without getting bored, that's a really bad idea. I'm sure many class pets die in the hands of those kids. Sorry to put a bad name on kids here, and of course there are kids who would put 110% into looking after the pet, but some just wouldn't. Animals don't float everyone's boat unfortunately.

But, icedtea, if your class is disgusted by animal cruelty, then it should be OK. And i was talking more about younger kids. In a high school then it wouldn't really be so much of an issue.