We are considering getting Charlie setup with tropical fish for his 10th birthday this month. Any aquarium experts out there? Are huge amounts of time required? How long can they be left without a house sitter? Should we consider other aquarium things? (Hermit Crabs, Lizards? Turtles? – no rodents. I don’t do rodents).
We had one really sorry experience with aquatic creatures – we tried to raise tadpoles into frogs – and shortly after the tail started showing and little leg stumps appeared “Swim” & “Dive” died. I’m fairly certain they were over fed by a very attentive (at the time) 6 year old boy that culminated in a incredibly painful memorial ceremony. Charlie and I took Dive out to the backyard to bury him and he looked up at me with tear filled eyes and asked if I would sing the Babe the Pig theme (we’re a fairly secular family, I think this was the best he could come up with and it was a familiar lullaby I had sang to him every night since he was an infant ). I got through the first few lines…
If I had words to make a day for you
I sing you a morning golden and new
I would make this day last for all time
Give you a night deep in moon shine
…and then completely lost it. My husband saw Charlie and I come in from outside, both crying and asked us what in the world had happened???
After choking out “We just buried Dive.” I made a silent vow we were done with pets. (Swim died a few weeks later and was flushed when Charlie was sleeping, sans ceremony).
Four years later, however, we have a wonderful dog who we have kept happily alive for two years now. Since I don’t want to get Charlie another video game for his birthday, I find myself contemplating tropical fish. I’d love your insight.
We had one really sorry experience with aquatic creatures – we tried to raise tadpoles into frogs – and shortly after the tail started showing and little leg stumps appeared “Swim” & “Dive” died. I’m fairly certain they were over fed by a very attentive (at the time) 6 year old boy that culminated in a incredibly painful memorial ceremony. Charlie and I took Dive out to the backyard to bury him and he looked up at me with tear filled eyes and asked if I would sing the Babe the Pig theme (we’re a fairly secular family, I think this was the best he could come up with and it was a familiar lullaby I had sang to him every night since he was an infant ). I got through the first few lines…
If I had words to make a day for you
I sing you a morning golden and new
I would make this day last for all time
Give you a night deep in moon shine
…and then completely lost it. My husband saw Charlie and I come in from outside, both crying and asked us what in the world had happened???
After choking out “We just buried Dive.” I made a silent vow we were done with pets. (Swim died a few weeks later and was flushed when Charlie was sleeping, sans ceremony).
Four years later, however, we have a wonderful dog who we have kept happily alive for two years now. Since I don’t want to get Charlie another video game for his birthday, I find myself contemplating tropical fish. I’d love your insight.
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