Ear Piercing a 3 Year Old!

I'm holding off until my dd hits a milestone bd When she is 10 we will go and make a girl day of it. sort of a preteen intro into adulthood.

I've seen lots of preschooler with them, I think the biggest challenge is careing for them. probably any kiosk in the mall or any reputable jewler could do it.

There are a lot of youtube videos out there of girls of all ages getting pierced. I had my 8 year old watch them to know the good and the bad. And she had both done at once. I would recommend both those steps. That being said, I'm glad I waited -- it requires a lot of care and cleaning that can be uncomfortable for the child over the months to come. It's not just one painful moment.

I allowed my daughters to get their ears pierced when they graduated high school. Then they were old enough and mature enough to make and adult decision about driving a metal spike through their bodies.

Good luck to you and yours.

Why inflict pain on such a young child? I never got the concept of piercing a small childs ear... especially a baby. Just seems cruel and unnecessary.
Make sure you are honest with your child and tell them it will be painful and they will probably cry. My daughter got hers done at 9, she is now 10. I made sure she knew they would hurt so she could make that decision for herself. At 3, they have no choice in the matter. It is really totally your decision. I would still prewarn her.

I was 11 or so when I had mine done and they got infected a few times, even though I took care of them. It hurts when you get it done, and it can hurt a lot if they get infected. Something to think about.

A lot of girls in the 8-11 yr old range get their ears pierced and then dont take good care of them. So I know from experience that's not a good time. So maybe at three just like a newborn it would be totally mom's job which is good. Do you think she will be cooperative about you cleaning them regularly? Are you in a position to deal with it daily right now? (not too stressed with everything in life like I am right now) Make sure it will work for you!

getting ears pierced at any age.. its going to hurt! no way around that!!

If your daughter wants them done and you are willing to let her, than that is all that matters. You know that you are going to be the one who cleans them and help her take care of them, if your up to it.. then let her do it.

The only difference now between a younger girl/ older girl and one your daughters age is she is going to want to mess with them more.. so you will need to remind her more often not touch them until they are healed.

This is a personal choice you have to make about your daughter and you are the only one who can decide wether its a good idea for your daughter or not.. you know her best.

Good luck to you and your daughter on your choice! :)

Yes, my younger daughter made the same decision at 3 or 4, can't remember which. I had her ears pierced as a newborn, but one got infected so I took them out. When she was 3 or 4, she decided, and was very adamant, that she wanted her ears pierced. I told her, it was going to hurt a little, I let her think about it some more, I told her again, and she still wanted to do it. She marched right up there, sat in the chair, and never flinched. Never shed a tear. She loved her earrings, and still does!

My husband has this rule that, we do not pierce ears until the child is fully aware that it is going to hurt her, and still wants to do it.
I, personally think a little bald baby with earrings looks ridiculous. Like Mr. T or something.
But anyways, my daughter was 5 when she had to kahunas to go through with it. It was mentioned when she was 3 & 4, but when I told her it was going to hurt, she wanted to wait.
She did great at age 5!! Didnt even flinch. But, they are not real responsible at that age, so there will be lots of lost earrings!
She is 7 now and is finally getting better at keeping track of them.

If you decide to do it, I would suggest that you either have her pediatrician do it (some will) or find a reputable piercing salon to do it. The piercing guns used by places like Claire's can't be fully disinfected. Even though the parts of it that come in direct contact with the ear are new for every client, the remainder can not be autoclaved or submersed in disinfectant. Also, piercing guns don't really pierce. If you look at tissue around a piercing gun stud, it shows crush damage at the microscopic level. A piercing salon uses very sharp, special purpose needles, which will inflict much less damage around the hole (meaning quicker healing, and less chance of infection/scarring) and are sterile. Plus, professional piercers do this for a living, not as an add-on to selling . . . Well, the stuff that Claire's sells. :-)

(Not a professional piercer, just someone who read up on it. . .)

My oldest and my youngest got their ears pierced at the age of 3. I made sure that I did the cleanings twice daily and turned the earrings at that time. Neither one of my girls ever got infections. I kept their original earrings in their ears until they are able to change them by themself. My middle daughter is 6 1/2 and has decided that she wants to get hers done. We will see if she wants to or not when we get there. I will not force it if she changes her mind once we are there. We went to Piercing Pagoda in the mall here.

I'm kinda with 8kidsdad-- it's nice for them to have something 'big girl' to look forward to when they really are 'big'. I had my ears pierced when I was four--my mom said I 'wanted' them too...I still remember how much it hurt, and how they got infected... etc. etc. I'm also really uncomfortable with the idea of letting a young child choose to modify their body in this way. There is no way that they can truly be informed of how much it hurts, during the piercing and during the first few weeks of turning and cleaning. They just can't understand hypothetical situations at this age.

I would have no trouble with crazy hairdos or nail polish or temp tattoos... but piercing is permanent. Once she's had her ears pierced, what will be left for her to look forward to when she's 10 or so? I'd personally have my child wait until 13 or so-- old enough for them to take care of the cleaning and understand that it really does hurt. (I have a little boy-- my husband has one pierced ear and it looks nice on him. If my son wants his ear/s pierced, he'll have to wait until he's 13.)

You might consider those cute glittery stickers meant to be earrings.

I did it when my daughter was four, at her request. She did fine.

I took my daughter to Claire's when she was turned 5. They had a girl on each side and did it simultaneously. You should insist on that. I had mine done when I was 7, at a lady's house. She did one, then I had to be held down for the other. It's much better to get them both done at once.

I didnt get my oldest daughters ears pierced when she was a baby because she had an ear infection for the longest and I didnt want to bother her ears. I got them pierced around age4. We taped it and everything because we thought that she was gonna freak. (We record evything)It was really quick and she did fine.

My GD has hers done right about this age. We just went to the mall. It was no big deal. They had one gal on each side and they did both ears at the same time. It was over in the blink of an eye.

I am a germaphobe and was freaked out about hepatits c at the mall etc so I bought one of those sterile do-it-yourself ear piercing kits and did my daughter's myself when she was almost 3. She did great and they never once got infected/ripped out etc and she is now 4.

I am letting it up to them, if they want it at 3 then I will do it at 3. ear piercing is nothing more than a shot. If they don't want it later it can heal up and close. No biggie, I don't compare it to body piercings, tatoos, or cosmetic surgery. So far none of my girls want it done yet.

My girls get to have their ears pierced on their 10th birthdays. My first two did it that way, now my 3rd daughter will be 10 this month and can't wait to have her ears pierced:)

My daughter asked to have her ears pierced when she turned 5. This is a child who freaks out and has to be restrained to get shots at the doctor's office. We told her it hurts just like a shot. I mentioned this a lot to her because I did not think she would be able to handle it and I wanted her to know there would be pain involved. She stubbornly insisted she wanted it done. We were going to get it done at the pediatricians following her well visit. She needed a shot and the usual freaking out was involved so after that drama we decided against doing the ear piercing too. We went to breakfast. She insisted she still wanted her ears pierced and was adamant about it. We ended up going to a Piercing Pagoda in the mall where the same child who an hour and a half earlier was flailing around and crying over a shot sat like a perfect angel as they pierced one ear after another. I am still in shock that she went through with it. I guess she will suffer for beauty and not for health. Anyway, I did all the cleaning and turning of the earrings and we never had any problems. She's had them for a year and a half now.

I plan on letting my daughter do it when she asks about it - after telling her what it involves. She has started noticing earrings on other girls as well as in the store. But so far, hasn't asked for them for herself.

My only suggestion is to find someplace that will do both ears at the same time. I had mine done at 12 and it took them an hour to convince me to sit back down and have the other ear done. I so wish they had done it at the same time.

Neither of my daughters have them pierced and they can decide after 10 if they want it or not. My oldest is adamant that she does not want them.

We had both our girls done at Piercing Pagoda at Arizona Mills Mall. They do both at once. We didnt have any problems with either of them.

I decided to wait until my daughter ASKED to have them done...it took 12 years! LOL! Then my spec needs step dtr wanted hers done, so we took her the next weekend we had her (she's 16). So I can't really comment on the age issue. Good luck!