Daycare Pets and Other Science Concepts

[permanentvacation]

Thank you all for your suggestions. You guys have a good variety of pets. I went to some stores after posting my original post and after getting some prices and learning about the needs of the different pets I had in mind, here's what I came up with that is very affordable and as little maintenance as possible.

Indoor plants
Planter pots for outdoor plants - I tried planting plants in the ground outside, but my dog kept running over them and completely destroyed them. I think if I buy a couple of bigger planter pots and put them in the corners on my porch, my dog won't be able to trample on them.

Bird feeder for the outdoor birds
Beta Fish
Possibly Hermit Crabs - I know they're boring, but when my daughter had them before and let the daycare kids see them every once in a while, the kids did like them. It taught them patience. They would sit really still and quiet waiting for the hermit crab would come out. But they are the most expensive of my list. So, I will wait on getting them, if I do decide to get them later.

My ex and I used to have a fish tank. I loved it. We had shark, neon tetra, angel fish, snails, frogs, a ****er fish, and a variety of little freshwater fish. It was very relaxing to watch. I would love to have another tank of fish like that, but it does cost a bit more than I really want to pay.

I know that turtles can give you salmonella poison. So I knew not to even consider turtles.

I've seen the butterfly thing in a couple of catalogs. But I've never bought them. But maybe this year, I will get them. I LOVE butterflies. When we went to Key West once - years ago, we went to the butterfly and nature conservatory. They have an indoor butterfly garden with tons of butterflies living there. My older daughter stood still and after a minute or so, she must have had 50 butterflies all over her! It was the neatest thing to see.

I have also seen the see-through planters that DaycareDiva mentioned. I just never bought them either. I think I will plan to buy them this year too.

[permanentvacation]

I never knew you could hang a Beta fish tank on the wall! That looks really neat!

I also like the idea of having the kids draw pictures of the class pets, reading books about them, doing activities related to them, and learning more about the class pets instead of just feeding them. And like Heidi said, pictures of those activities would be great to put on the daycare Facebook page.

[DaveA]

The best room pet we ever had was a pair of dumbo rats. When I opened I took the group to the pet store & let them pick the room pet- that was their choice. Smart, active, easy to take care of, LOVED attention from the kids, and the kids thought they were cool. We had a small cage for cleaning times but we built a large (3 feet tall/ 3 feet wide/ 1 foot deep) out of closet wire shelving, cable ties, a underbed storage box, and some scrap wood for ladders. It was great till I relicensed and didn't have my normal rep. The lady I had FREAKED & kept coming up with BS issues till she admitted she wouldn't relicense me till I got rid of them. So much more interesting than a hamster or fish.

[Second Home]

For the fish tank check craigslist , people give them away all the time .

I got a 55g tank for our bearded dragon for free , it would have been over $100 if new from the store.

[permanentvacation]

Dave,

She wouldn't even let you keep them in a room that the daycare kids didn't go in? I'm sorry that you had to get rid of the pets you had grown to love. I don't believe in 'getting rid' of pets. They are part of your family, they get to know your house as their HOME and the family members as their family. I can't get over her not allowing you to just keep them in another room.

I have 2 cats. I don't think I could have a hamster, mice (honestly, I couldn't handle having mice or rats, just not my thing... nope, couldn't do it - snakes neither!), lizards, or anything that a cat would eat that would at some point need to come out of it's tank. I know cats would eat fish, but if I got fish, I'd make sure they had a lid on their tank. When I was married and had fish, we had two cats also and the cats LOVED watching the fish! Kept them occupied for hours!

[permanentvacation]

Second Home,

You're right, I might find a good deal on a tank through Craigslist or yard sales.

[permanentvacation]

It just occurred to me, I now have 3 boys, ages 17 mos, 3, and 4. I need dinosaur stuff!! Science + Boys = Dinosaurs!!!

Oh, and an erupting volcano like we did in our elementary science fair projects! Yeah! I'm going to have fun with this!!

[permanentvacation]

And I have the shoe box from my new work shoes. I can use that to make a dinosaur diorama! Hot doggie! My little creative mind is coming alive!::

[Heidi]

And I have the shoe box from my new work shoes. I can use that to make a dinosaur diorama! Hot doggie! My little creative mind is coming alive!::

[Starburst]

I would think the only problem with fish is that they often don't live very long (underfeeding/overfeeding), unless you have a lot of fish in a tank that look similar or are willing to run out to get a replacement fish every time one dies to avoid frequent crying/awkward life and death conversations with daycare kids.

I remember in 3rd grade I had a really cool teacher, she knew us well because we lived across the street from the school and my older cousin's were in her class. She had 2 chinchillas and a tarantula that she brought them to school every day (though the Tarantula freaked me out a bit). She also used to let me bring my hamster a few times a week (we lived with my aunt across the street from the school, I even took a school picture with him).

I think small mammals (hamsters, guinea pigs, chinchillas, rabbits) are pretty good and you can get cool cages with tubes and attachments plus little balls they can run around the room in. Most are low maintenance, you just need to change their cage lining about once a week and make sure they have food and water everyday (also don't forget to give them love, some fresh air at least once a day). Though sometimes they may bite (my first and third hamsters didn't but my second one did) and if you have cats you may want to make sure they aren't in the room when you take them out.


The lady I used to work for had a dog and a bird but the dog was more of a part of her daycare then the birds. At a preschool I did student teaching at they had a rainbow gecko, but they do usually prefer to eat live crickets which can freak out some kids (boys usually think it's cool though). The special ed foster school I did service learning in had a bearded dragon, two geckos, and two bullfrogs that one student each week was responsible for feeding (though they were upper elementary to middle schoolers).

Some states also have guidelines on what animals you can have. The state I live in now says: (15) Reptiles (e.g. lizards, turtles, snakes, iguanas) frogs, monkeys, hooked beaked birds, baby chicks and ferrets are prohibited unless they are housed in and remain in a tank or other container which precludes any direct contact by children. And I heard there was a debate a few years ago in CA about turtles in daycares/schools (something about salmonella?).

But everything depends on what animals you are comfortable with.

[DaveA]

She wouldn't even let you keep them in a room that the daycare kids didn't go in?

Nope she wanted them gone. Guess she realized as soon as the license arrived in the mail they would go back into the classroom. Oh it was a frustrating experience, especially knowing she wasn't going to be my rep. The only reason I had her was my normal rep had a temporary transfer to another area to cover a leave or something. Luckily the local pet shop found someone for me who wanted them and their "home" cage both for their own kids.

[permanentvacation]

Dave,

I've been through God only knows how many reps in the past couple of years. Every one of them tell me something different and I have to argue with them that the previous rep told me or let me do/have this and that. It's really frustrating.

It's a shame that you had your inspection before your regular rep got there. He/She might have let you keep them. It's sad that you had to give your pets to someone. But I'm glad that you were able to find them a good home.

[permanentvacation]

I have 2 cats. I can't get anything like a hamster or lizard. My cats would think I brought home a nice dinner for them!:: It wouldn't be good for the hamster or lizard! Honestly, I've envisioned my younger cat pulling the lid off the fish tank. I'm not even sure if the fish would be safe around her!

[daycare]

I have 2 cats. I can't get anything like a hamster or lizard. My cats would think I brought home a nice dinner for them!:: It wouldn't be good for the hamster or lizard! Honestly, I've envisioned my younger cat pulling the lid off the fish tank. I'm not even sure if the fish would be safe around her!

wow you have my cats they cant get lots of things open. You can buy fish tank lids that lock. I had to get one due to that very reason. My cat served himself breakfast.

I came out ready to set up daycare and what do I see, it was like garfield......he was sitting there with a fish in his mouth, lid on the floor. He took off running the second he saw me. This was a 50 gallon tank too.

I went to petco and got a locking lid.

[permanentvacation]

Daycare,

:::::: Yep, that would be my younger cat; fish in mouth, and running as fast as she can while I'm yelling, "Dagbalstit cat!!"

I didn't know they have locking lids for fish tanks. That's a great idea! If I decide to get a fish tank, I'll have to look for one with a locking lid. Thanks!