Visiting a Pet Store

Posted on by forstm

The visit to the pet store yesterday went perfectly. Well, maybe not perfectly, but we all had fun, found some pets, and behaved ourselves.  We had a bit of a wrinkle when 12 hours before our trip we found out Seahorse, Inc. did not have anyone staffed to open the store for our visit.  Oops.

(Think quick, Marie.)

Who knew there was another pet shop right next door? What luck! So we changed our plans a bit and went to Burton’s Total Pet instead.  When life gives you lemons, right?

Total Pet had exactly what we wanted to see.  We inspected the fish tanks, ogled at bunnies,  and drooled over a huge, all-inclusive rat cage with two female rats, (Ok, that was just me, but they were cute!)  The children were drawn to the Black Lory as it traded very loud squawks with them in a constant chorus of cacophonous noise.

A consensus arose and we decided to purchase one beta fish and three fiddler crabs.  If you haven’t already stopped in to see our new pets, you are welcome to do so.

We will be voting on names for our new friends later today. Wonder what silliness we can come up with?

 

Pets Unlimited.

Posted on by forstm

Our study of pets could only end one way.  You knew it was coming.  Last week we piled into the vans and headed off to the Seahorse to check out how a real pet store works and peruse their wares.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by Heather, who had kindly opened the doors to us one hour before the store opened for the public.  As she took us on a viewing tour of the animals, she explained the jobs many of the workers were doing to prepare for the day.  Birds were being fed, cages cleaned, and puppy toenails were being clipped. We saw chinchillas and lizards, parakeets and leopard geckos.

The most beautiful  was certainly the saltwater aquarium portion.  The children spent many minutes peering into the tanks, searching for living treasures.  Although it was exciting to see the clown fish, everyone’s favorite movie fish, it was the lion fish that held their attention rapt.  We also found starfish, crabs, and an octopus.

The Lion Fish has spots and is poisonous.
Inspecting a sea urchin.

During our visit, at least one child was brave enough to hold a bearded dragon.  Many others felt its skin and then followed up with a generous amount of hand sanitizer.

The next stop was the freshwater fish, but we got a wee bit distracted on the way.  One of the workers was clipping a puppy’s toenails as we walked past.  Pandemonium reigned.

(In case you are wondering, we came home with five pets: two fish, two newts, and a millipede.  Creatures that hopefully I can handle.)

A Pre-K Pet?

Posted on by forstm

Below is a list of possible pets that the Pre-K students came up with today.  We announced the possibility of getting a pet this week and thought that it would be best if the children were invested in said creature.  As you can see, we have some discussions in front of us.  We would love to hear what you have to say about this question as well.  Please vote and let us know which animal YOU think is the best for our classroom.

[polldaddy poll=3761644]