Would you allow your child or teenager to get a tattoo?

Oh my, that is way too young. I sure hope it was not real or else she is going to be real mad when she gets older. My 19 year old niece recently got a tattoo, but she did it for attention. She had been wanting one for a long time and my sister had made it clear that the Bible speaks against it. So when my niece came home and announced to my sister that she got one, my sister told her, well, I hope you prayed about it. Then that young woman puts a piture of the tattoo on Myspace to show it off. I was surprise when me sister asked me where it was and what it was. She was so upset, she had not wanted to see it. It was a butterfly behind her ear.

Hi there magnet, how are you? I wouldn't let my child get a tattoo. I am grown and I don't have one! I think that tattoo's are fine for adults who have thought it out. It is something that is pretty permanent and hard to get rid of. I think that an adult can make those decisions. I also have seen children with tattoo's but they were the wash off kind. I agree with you, wait until you are grown to make that decision...Good discussion, take care...

You are meaning a temporary tattoo that the 7 year old child had, right? Because I don't think any tattoo artist would want to tattoo a child that young even with the parent's consent. Would I allow any of my children to have a tattoo before they were of legal age? Nope! If they want a tattoo...they can wait until they are 18 years old. But if you are talking about temporary tattoos....yes, I have and will allow them. Children often draw on themselves and the temp tattoos would be no different.

Not sure where you are from, but the parents would be charged with mayhem on a child or abuse here in Massachusetts. My partner is a tattoo artist and occasionally he'll fix a tattoo for kids who are older teens who had homemade crap tattoos done by their friends. He won't even do that on a kid under 16 and only with their parents present- but even that is not really legal & he's taking his chances doing that. My oldest got into my partner's tattoo gear & gave himself a couple of awful tattoos when he was about 15- I made him wait until he was 18 to have my partner fix them.

I got my first tattoo at the age of 14. I ended up getting it covered once I turned 18. My mom bought the original tattoo for me as a Christmas present. I was so surprised she said yes when I asked for one. I don't regret getting it, it's not a big deal to me, but I wouldn't allow my child to get one until he/she was 18, for sure.

Well my X let my oldest daughter get one at the age of thirteen. Of course I was extremely upset to say the least but wasnt much I could do since the damage was already done. But on the other hand she wouldnt allow her to get a her nose pierced, I was like go figure a tattoo is permanent but a nose ring you can always take out how smart is that. Of course I would prefer she had neither but if you look at the lesser of two evils so to speak a nose ring would have definately been the way to go.

Children can't make big decisions like that. Their minds are just not ready for it. I would never let my child get a tattoo. It is a permanent thing. They must live with it forever. Many people get them early in life and later decide they hate them. No way, I wouldn't let my kid get a tattoo.

Yeah, that is what I would say too. I mean if you are a child and I still have to make decisions for you then my answer will be no off course.

ABSOLUTELY NOT! I am not a fan of tattoos and personally they are ugly. I don't understand why someone would want to do that to themselves. My son has several, he knows how I feel about them, but he did not get one until he was over 18. Not that he didn't try, but he talked about getting one since he was 4 or 5, I hoped he would forget it, but no such luck.

I have seen this too.I have two small kids and I have one that is a teenager that I will not allow then to get a tattoo.I t seem that they are ghetting younger and younger tthat get them.

I'm 25 and I have 7 tattoos. I got my first tattoo when I was 16. The reasoning was that my mom had a tattoo so my parents said they didn't feel they could say no. There is an age limit in my state. It used to be (when I was 16) that you had to be 18 or have parental permission. However, it's since changed and you now have to be at least 18 years of age no matter what. Most good tattoo places won't let you get tattoos if they don't think you're ready. I mean...you can't be under the influence when you get a tattoo. If you ask their opinions...good tattoo artists won't give it to you. It's permanent and on your body...you should be the one to make all decisions. no one else. 7 years old with a tattoo is just absolutely ridiculous... but I'd say by 16 it'd be ok..though legally you have to be 18.

my cousin was 15 when she got her tattoo, it was a heart and a sunflower and it said "RIP mom and dad". A tattoo is a permanant thing and I would have to make my sons wait until they were old enough and hope that it was in good taste.

It really depends on the age of the child and what tattoo they want. My daughter is 17, and if she wanted to get something she just picked out off the wall, or out of a book, I'd say NO WAY!, but the tattoo she wants is very personal to her. Her father is in prison and has been since she was born for something he was involuntarily involved in but didn't actually do. She wants to get an armband of razor wire and roses with his name in a heart in the middle. That is something she has put a lot of thought into, and that has deep meaning to her. I don't think it will be one of those that she ends up regretting after a couple of years, so I told her when she graduates in December (a semester early :) ) that I will let her get it. I do see a lot of kids getting them way too early and without much thought though. My tattoo artist once had a lady bring in her 12 year old daughter wanting to get her a tat of eyore. He turned her down, but you know there are other artists who would do it just for the money. Do you really think that girl is going to be 40 and happy to have a Winnie the Pooh character tattooed on her belly???

i have a step daughter i cant really have say in her having a tattoo but me as an adult have three i got my first when i was 18 years old. i think that is the age i would allow my step daughter to get one or my own child if i had one...

i dont think anything is wrong with one but sometimes wrong tattoos can be trashy and for your kid to only for 16(example) their to young

i doubt very highly that it was a real tattoo. It was probably a tem or henna. They now have very realistic looking temps and hennas are very popular. You can get them done down by the beach even. i know a few tattoo artists and they would never work on a child that young. Most tattoo artists never would. They have morals and standards. Some tattoo artists will work on people as young as 16 with their parents' permission. The legal age for someone to get a tattoo is 18 in most states, 21 in some. As open as i am and with how much i LOVE tattoos, i think it is good that there is an age limit. Too many people (even if they wait until they are of legal age) get ridiculously stupid tattoos. A tattoo is a piece of art that will be on your body forever. You need to make sure you get something that has deep, special meaning to you that you will want to look at for the rest of your life. A good idea before you get a tattoo is to decide on an image. Then make many copies of that image. Keep one in your wallet, put one on your bedroom door, put one on the door leading out of your house, put one in the bathroom across from the toilet, put one on the refridgerator...and anywhere else you can think of where you will constantly see it. If in 3 months you still love that image and still want it on your body, then you are probably making hte right choice.

Tattoos are fine but if my child is too young or I still think he/ she doesn't really know what he/ she wants, I don't think I would let him / her to have a tattoo. I think getting something stuck with you for a long time takes a better brain and long time to decide. Like I want a tattoo but I haven't got any yet, because I know somehow I am not sure if I really want it that bad and what if I don't love the pattern anymore after I get it. I guess I know myself too well that I change my minds to often and I want to make sure I really want one before I get one.

It's possible that it was a temporary tattoo or airbrushed body art (which often looks like a tattoo). I've seen many temps and airbrushed tats that looked VERY real. Actually I have a knack for applying temp tattoos so that they look very real, I even fooled a tattoo artist with one and he was looking at it close up. Now, as far as the age at which someone gets a tattoo, I think that under 18 is too young in most cases. But I also knew someone in high school who had been diagnosed with cancer in elementary school. After beating the cancer and being given a clean bill of health at 15, her parents allowed her to get a tattoo for her 16th birthday -- commemorating her battle and her victory. I also knew someone in high school who had 6 tattoos by senior year, and had one covered during senior year. I thought that was a bit much/ridiculous. The only reason she had them is because a relative was an artist.

They have to wait for the right age to be tattoed. I don't want to see them to be proud having one.

I did allow my daughter to get a tattoo when she was 17. It was a compromise of sorts as she had been hounding me for all sorts of piercings etc. There was much else going on with this girl and a small, tasteful tatoo on her lower back was the least of my concerns at the time. I went with her and let her crush my hand while it was being done. It was a bonding experience that we very much needed at the time. 7 years old? now that it a bit much. could it have been one of those temporary tatoos that washes off? Those can look pretty darn real these days.