CLOSED:What animal makes the best pet and why? Win a bundle of kids books.

Tigger the Ginger Tom, a lazy prince among cats!

Congratulations Silversand12. We had guinea pigs at the primary school where I worked, and they increased in number!!! Enjoy all these lovely books.

Your dog will love you and never judge you so they will sit beside you and listen quietly while you read them a story. They will not make you feel nervous and you can stroke or pat them, which helps you to feel calm and happy. They never interrupt, point out your mistakes, put their paw under the words and tell you to try again or ask you about full stops and commas. Your dog is a wonderful reading friend.

The Animals that live at other ppls homes, and just visit! They will be the ones we will have once the dog and the cat leave home..

I would say guinea pigs They are that little bit bigger and more robust than other rodents, and they are not nocturnal. They are also delightfully engaging, and very responsive - they will talk to you and are very interactive.

Slugs - I can send as many as you want. (only joking of course, it is illegal to send live animals by post)

I think a dog or a cat make the best pets for a child. However parents must realise it is likely to be a ten to twenty year commitment. Children learn so much from caring for a pet.

I think any breed of dog that has been raised properly will be a loving and caring companion, which little ones can learn a lot from

Dogs! They are loving and protective, and teach goods emotional intelligence

Staffie. They have a bad name but are so gentle loving and faithful. We had ours from the dogs home 7 years ago. She loves the kids and they love her. She jumps into our bed everymorning is always there to look after you when you are low or poorly. Mad as a box of frogs but will never find another as wonderful as her xx

It's cats for me always. Our first cat came home in mum's shopping bag on my brother's bike handlebars - a lovely ginger female - in 1952. Since then we have had many of these lovely furry creatures. There when we were sad - lovely to stroke and cuddle. Cats seem to respect young children - we had no incidents of biting/scratching the little ones. One of my cats slept in the shopping tray at the bottom of the pram!
Cats need feeding and sometimes grooming, and so children can learn the responsibility of looking after an animal quite easily. They also work as hot water bottles when sitting on your lap in the winter, or lying on your bed just before you go up!

They make the purrfect pet I think.

Hamsters are the best for small children, they are easily tamed and can be left to their own devices all day as long as they are fed and have fresh water and clean sawdust on the floor. Dogs are lovely but need so much looking after and I have seen many a family take on a dog and the children become tired of it, its chewing their toys, barking etc and usually the mother ends up looking after it. The same with cats (I have 2), although they don't need as much walking they need to be looked after and cleaned up after, (I have one who regularly vomits under furniture).

A hamster in a cage can be left with friends for holidays too. This was always my choice of pet when my daughter was small.

So I don't have a 'proper home'? How rude.

Although we had an assortment of pets, including dogs, mice and stick insects, I have to say Guinea pigs. Yes, someone has to clean the cage, but if you have them out of it from the start, they become very used to humans and love your company. My last Guinea pig (bought by my teenage son and inherited by me when he left home!) even had his obituary in the Guardian - link to feature (he's about halfway though) hopefully attached!
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/jul/11/readers-pet-obituaries-here-lies-fluffy-rip

We have had:
a dog
a cat (and eventually) her five kittens
a bearded dragon
a Rankin's dragon
goldfish
outdoor pond fish (Koi and others)
rabbits
guinea pigs
hamsters
gerbils
stick insects
a 'bug farm' (mostly ants)
and now, a corn snake

I can't tell you which of these made the best pet because each, in their own way, was loved and cared for and special. Each was the best pet at the time it was bought, for the child who wanted it.

The best pet we had was a beautiful red setter. Ah, my beautiful Amber. My puppy child substitute, but s superb family pet when the children were born

Dogs are the best. There is no better welcome than the one you get from your dog when you arrive home. They give unconditional love, can be trained to do various tasks and seem able to connect to children with autism, the elderly with dementia and can sniff out different diseases. They help teach children how to look after someone other than themselves, teach them compassion and can be used as a sounding board for children with problems. All in all, they are probably the most versatile pets you could have!

I would have said guinea pigs but my daughter [on my advice] bought two for her sons and they need an awful lot of cleaning and don't seem very sociable. I'm sure the ones I had were friendlier, but they were 'only' guinea pigs. Whatever the pet it has to be something you want yourself as you'll probably end up looking after it [and, lets face it, we usually get a pet for a child because we want one]. This was my daughters reasoning when I ended up looking after her pony for several years after she left home. But, if it's going to be a pet that you remember with fondness for the rest of your life, I think it has to be a cat or a dog.

Dogs definitely as they are so in tune with us. Having a dog teaches a child so much..they will love unconditionally, will not judge, and will be loyal. They teach children important life skills...how to be caring, kind, committed etc. I think they help children to be more robust health wise (excepting allergies)...they develop stronger resistNce to germs, are more active around dogs and are more likely to be outside more.
I would not recommend hamsters as they are nocturnal, but if a dog is not a possibility then Guinea pigs are gentle creatures and comparitively easy to care for.

We've had some lovely cats over the years who, contrary to some of their bad press, made lovely and loving pets for our DC. One in particular was such a little eccentric. He would sit up next to them while they watched television like a little man, front paws crossed. Two brothers used to let the DC dress them up in dolls' clothes and parade them round in a dolls' pram. It did nothing for the street cred of the tougher one when he escaped through the cat flap in hot pursuit of a rival, with a frilly bonnet flapping about on his head. Sadly the only cat we now have to delight the DGS is Angel, the grumpiest cat on the planet. She revels in tempting them close, then hissing and spitting at them. At least she makes them laugh.

Dogs most definately. Not called man's best friend for nothing. GS1, recently diagnosed with ASD, has no friends except his beloved new puppy. He loves his dog and his dog loves him.

I am very fond of dogs but I am not able to care for them as they should be with a good couple of walks each day. I do like cats, they are easy to care for, one can go out for the day and the cat will not mind and they are also very good company.

Dogs, specifically Labrador dogs. They have the nicest temperament.

I agree Alea, guinea pigs are lovely little animals. We have had three. First one broke a leg when he jumped out of DS1 arms. The vet was fantastic and pinned it with a hypodermic needle, and only charged us for the bits and pieces he used, as he said he was learning, but 'that Oscar' did have a very thick skin, and blunted his injection needles. Our next pair, 'Hale and Pace', belonging to DS2, were allowed to roam the garden, and sometimes we only knew where they were by the rustling in the bushes. They are sociable souls and do talk to you. I loved them, the dog wasn't too keen though.