Ideal Age to Pierce Ears

The ideal age is when she is old enough to chose for herself and take care of them herself. She's a baby, buy her a cute hat if you want to adorn her head.
When she gets older (like elementary school age), she will have to take them out to play most sports. In middle and high school sports jewelry is not allowed (ear taping doesn't fly anymore). Helmets for skiing can push the earlobe against the head, so again they come out.
I would bet she's beautiful as is and really doesn't need jewelry at all.

When she can take care of them herself to prevent infection I would say at least 10

I was told to wait until they could adequately take care of the piercings themselves.
What if your child grows up and doesn't want piercings? It is a lifetime alteration. My cousin was a baby and now, a teen, I never see her with earrings.

I plan to follow my daughter's lead, and allow it around 12/13 years old.

Why not wait until you and her can do it together as a mother-daugher bonding experience? She is so young and it will hurt her without her understanding what is happening. If you wait until she has the desire to do it, she can help to take responsibility in their care as well. I was 5 when I had them done and I remember it as an exciting experience that was a special time with my mom.
Just something to consider.

I had my daughter's ears pierced at 6mos. Our ped did not do it but I called around and found one in the area and it was a good experience. The Dr. put on a cream to numb the ear and covered it with a band-aid...we waited about 20 minutes for the numbness and then he did it. She did not even know it was happening!

I don't know if there is an ideal age for piercing but my granddaughters had them done between 3 months and 1 year. it seems the younger they are the less trouble she had as far as pain(getting them done with piercing gun) and no infection because they do not play with earrings.She had them done at Wal Mart jewelry counter

Clearly it's a personal choice and everyone has an opinion. I have a 19 month old and when she asks to get them pierced is when I will consider it. I want her to be old enough that it's her decision. I had mine pierced when I was 6 years old after I asked my Mom and she agreed, and I was just so thrilled, I can still remember it. I do agree that by piercing her ears for her you are deciding to permanently alter her body, and was surprised to hear how many posts on this thread regretted that their ears were pierced, so it seems you should give some serious thought before making the decision. Good luck!

I had my daughter's ears pierced at 3 months... which is the youngest anyone will do it. They were done at the mall at Claire's boutique. They may ask to verify she is 3 months old and has had her vaccinations up to date.. take your "blue" vaccination book with you.

good luck.

Maybe I am old fashioned but mine weren't done until I was sixteen. I also have not done this to my daughter who is only 6. I feel this is a permanent mark on her body and she should be old enough to make the decision for herself if she wants this. So I will not allow her to pierce her ears until I feel she is mature enough to understand the decision she is making.

Hi D., I had my daughters ears pierced when she was 9 months old, I think that that was the earliest that they would do it at the time (3 years ago). My pediatrician didn't pierce ears but he recommended one that did. I didn't feel comfortable going to a mall to have her ears done, but it obviuosly is something that you need to feel comfortable with. I think that it is best to do it when they are that small so that they aren't even aware that there is something there. I never had problems with her pulling or tugging at her ears. I hope that this helps and good luck!

doctors won't do it anymore. you have to go to a place in the mall. I think the min age is 4 mos. my daughter was about 4.5 mos when I had hers pierced. I think some people forget that ear piercing is customary in some cultures ;0)

Hello D.
whats the rush with getting your daughters ears pierced at this age and why would you want her to be in pain after the fact they go through enough with growing up and getting in to differnt stages??
I agree with the other moms on here who say that at this young of an age you may not want to get your daugthers ears pierced untill she is older when she can be responsible for cleaning & taking care of them plus it will be her decision if she wants them pierced or not.
If you do decide to get them pierced now she may not like having the done when she is older and never wear earings in them & that would just be a waste of money plus the holes never really close up all the way you can still see the piercing hole and its ugly if you dont wear any earings in them
my parents did that to me got my ears pierced when I was a baby and I dont like them done I dont like wearing anything in my ears and you can see my holes and I can still put earings in them but dont cause they always get infected and its ugly because my holes are still present.
plus alot of my friends kids have them done and they get infected or earings get lost and thats a choking health hazard if you dont keep the clean or keep and eye on the earings in her ears do you want that one on your plate??
so that is a big debatable decison that you and your husband have contorl of and have to make that choice the one that is right for your daugher right now weigh the pros and cons if there are more cons then pros then its a no go on ear piercing at this time but think hard and make a wise decison
good luck....

Hi D.,
The ideal age to have your daughter's ears pierced is whenever you and your husband want!

As you may be aware, in Latin American countries and Spain, girls' ears are pierced when they are practically newborns. One or two months old. At this age, the nerve endings in their earlobes are not yet formed and they feel no pain at all. It's a distinction between boys and girls and conveys femininity (the way people here may love to dress a girl all in pink or put a bow on her head even if she doesn't have hair!).

In the U.S. some people have a different attitude about ear piercing, and consider it a sign of growing up, a kind of rite of passage.

You might want to consider what your feelings about girls wearing earrings are and decide accordingly. Of course, the KIND of earrings she wears makes a big difference too. (Babies usually wear studs only.)

If, when your daugther grows up she decides she doesn't want earrings, the holes will close and she will be none the worse. This is not the kind of thing that is irreversible.

I think one person wrote in that MDs offices do not pierce anymore. I know of at least one that still does - ours. Community Pediatrics in Milford. I'm not sure that they do it for anyone who is not a patient, though. I think it's probably fine to do it anywhere else that promises sterile conditions, like somewhere in a mall.

Personal opinion: Little girls are so adorable with little gold earrings!!! :-)

My daughter is seven months and I am about to get hers done a well, friends of mine just had it done at wal-mart but I will be going to claires in the mall, some dr's do it but none that I know of.

I say wait until she is old enough to decide for herself. Maybe she won't ever want to have her ears pierced. Don't you think it should be up to her. I think babies are cuter without earrings.

I wanted to pierce my daughter's ears as an infant and my husband was STRONGLY opposed. I deferred to his wishes that we wait until she asks to have it done. I wish I hadn't. She got them done when she was about eight and she had many infections for a couple years after. Even though we were extremely conscientious about care and cleaning. I believe if she had them done as an infant they would have healed nicely before she was playing outside, wrestling with her brothers, etc. I say have them done as early as the place will do it.

Hi D. - Why not wait for your daughter to be old enough to make the decision for herself when, and if, she would like to have her ears pierced?

S.

I truly think that the best age to have a childs ears pierced is whatever age they are both old enough to request the procedure and to be trusted to take care of the ears with minimal help/supervision. Although it's unlikely, you're daughter may decide she does not want her ears pierced. Since it's a personal asthetic decision I think you should just leave it up to her.

I saw a baby get her ears done in the mall a few months ago. I'm not sure who told you about only doctors doing it but I don't think that's true.

I agree that infancy/toddlerhood is a perfectly acceptable age to get ears pierced. I had mine done at 10 months andmy daughter at 5 months. It has worked out great. If your pedi doesn't do it, you could ask them if they can refer you to one that does. Or just call around to other pedis and ask.

Hi D.~
Both my daughters were 3 months old and that was the minimum age required b.c they would have had their first round of shots. I asked my pediatrician to do it and told me the fr.'s offices don't provide this anymore. I only know of one in Newton but you need to be a patient there. I ended up going to the earring pagoda in the mall as there were older people working not young teens. I have had no problems with either of my girls ears who are now 4 and 3.
Good Luck
Kristina

We did my dauhters at 3 months. So she would not play with them. Our pedi Dr did it. We live in Temple. But every Dr is different.

D., it was not popular to do it with infants when I was a kid. All my friends parents had strict rules, but mine had never really thought about it. When I was in third grade, I asked to have my ears pierced. My parents decided that was an okay time. I've never had any problems with them other than the fact that the malls didn't have piercing at the time so we went to the Ear, Nose and Throad doctor and he pierced them crooked!

At any rate, why not just wait until she asks to have it done?

I also pierced my daughter's ears at 6 months. It was done by her pediatrician during her 6-month visit. I am not sure what the minimum age is for piercing at the stores. I just felt more comfortable having my pediatrician do it. Sometimes the sales people at the stores are so young and inexperienced. I have referred friends to my pediatrician for ear piercing, but she is too far for you. So perhaps you should ask around locally to see if there is a pediatrician near you who will do it.

I had my daughter's done at 3 months. We just went to a place in the mall, but I made sure to find one with an older person, not a teen. It went very smoothly and was far from traumatic as some of the other mothers are suggesting. My daughter didn't even cry with the first hole and cried for maybe 15 seconds after the 2nd hole. Then she was right back to her happy, content self. I'm glad I did it then. She never played with them or gave them a second thought. She's now 9 and we've never had an issue.

I didn't let my oldest get her ears pierced until she was ten, my middle girl is also getting hers pierced for her tenth birthday. I had mine done when I was little (2) and got them infected all the time. I just wanted to wait until I could make sure my girls were old enough to take care of it themselves.

My mother had mine done at 9 mos, and I had my DD's done at 5 weeks (yes WEEKS). My dr office receptionist told me that "nobody does that around here (northern Idaho) before two years old", so I sought out a professional piercing/tattoo shop, and the woman was also a mother. The procedure was very clean, she was very explicit in her instructions, and my daughters ears are fine!

The only worry we had at that young of an age was a metal allergy, but your DD should be past that, so good luck! You could find another doctor, but you might also seek out a CLEAN PROFESSIONAL tattoo shop that does piercings (specifically ask if they do young children).

For us, it cost $25 I think, and that included the earrings that I requested - surgical steel, gold plated (they have little diamonds in them) and they are LOCK BACK - doesn't help the pulling, but it prevents them from coming out accidentally. My mom had me in lockback earrings until I was old enough to change my own - around 11 or 12 years old.

I would wait until she is old enough to want it done and old enough to care for them herself. How do you know she will want pierced ears? I did mine at 13 and wish I never had. I have not worn earrings in at least 15 years because they always hurt and I was allergic to many types of earrings. Why would you want to subject your daughter to unnecessary pain?

I've toyed with the idea since she was born about piercing my daughter's ears, but decided to wait until she's older and asks for it herself. I want it to be something special we go and do together, so she feels like a big girl and we can make a big deal of it and have fun with it. I also want her to be able to be responsible with them as well, but more than anything, I want it to be her idea and I want it to be fun & special. I envision a trip to the mall with getting her ears pierced and picking out a special outfit to match them and then having lunch or something to celebrate. Mine were pierced at birth and I had to have my ears re-pierced several times because I took out the posts & lost them or they got infected, etc. A real pain. So, doing it when my DD's older and feels like she's getting a big girl treat is going to be my plan. There's no harm in waiting.

I often wondered what other mothers thought about this subject too. I do not have a daughter, but hope to some day. In my opinion, i would have it done in the hospital when born. That way you can clean them without the fuss. I had mine done when i was 5 and fought like crazy every time my mother tried to clean them. I did have them done at the doc's by the way..I've had them re-pierced 3 times before i was 10 until i actually took care of them. I would say either wait until shes much much older and can handle the responsibility, or do it around now. I wouldn't worry about scars or any of that craziness. If they're done right, you wont even be able to see the holes if there are no earrings in. :-)

My husband and I discussed this while I was pregnant with our daughter(we had found out the baby was a girl). We decided that even though it's cute it means more work for us and mostly having her ears pierced should be something she can choose. We decided to wait until she gets older if it's something she wants to have done and can take care of them (with help) then we will have it done.
This is just my personal opinion, I don't think badly of people who have their baby's ears pierced.
Happily married Mom of 13 yr old boy and 17 1/2 month old baby girl.

I had my daughters ears peirced when she was 4 months old at a jewelry store at a mall in Massachusetts. It cost less than $25 and I watched as the lady put on gloves, prepare the tray with an air powered earing gun, the sterile package of earings and alcohal wipes. It was very professionally done. She was too young to play with them and so easy to care for. We never had a problem with them. Be sure to purchase a non-allergenic metal like surgical steel.

I had my daughters ears pierced at 4 1/2 months. At that point she had her first 2 rounds of shots, but was still young enough not to pull at them. This worked out perfectly for us, now at 7 1/2 months they have healed completly. She does pull at them when she is cutting a tooth but because they are healed they arent sensitive or sore. My doctors office wouldnt do it either, so I did have to go to the mall to have it done. My advice would be to try to do it around teething if your daughter is an ear puller, and also make sure when you do have them done you clean them at least twice a day for the first 2 months and then once a day there after, and never fiddle with them with out clean hands. We avoided any infections by following this routine.

I had mine pierced when I was 6 months, so I understand why you are considering piercing her ears now. I waited for what I think was too long to get my oldest daughter's ears pierced -- she was 15 months old. But, in the end, she was great about it and never tugged at them. For my youngest, I did it when she was 10 months old. Again, she was great about it, and never tugged at them....until just this past week. She ended up pulling one earring out (which is not easy to do!). Fortunately, she did not hurt herself. But, the bad news is that her holes have now closed up. I think in her case, I will have to wait until she is older so she can decide if/when she wants them. In both cases, I had it done at Icing or Claire's at the mall. That was what my pedi suggested (pedi wasn't even comfortable doing it b/c they don't do it so often, but these mall stores do it all the time). I suggest you have 2 people do it at the same time if you do it while she is a baby. It will hurt, and she will cry, but it will literally only last a minute. When you talk to the associates, you will know if you are comfortable with them doing it or not. Good luck!

I would recommend waiting much older when your daughter can make up her own mind regarding getting her ears pierced. So many people wear such heavy earing and stretch their holes or rip their ears. I personally am glad I never got my ears pierced.

I had my daughter's ears pierced at 8 weeks. She was so young she didn't even know she had ears yet. She has never known her ears without earrings. I say the yonger the better. They never got infected and I had them done at the mall. There were 2 girls and they did both ears at the same time. My daughter is 4 now and beautiful with her earrings.

Good Luck.

Sam
Mother of 3

Hi D.,

I'd say never. I received it as a gift for my 19th birthday. I wish I never did it. I liked my ears the way they were. Now I have two holes that are allergic to all earrings.

I say, give your daughter a choice. Let her decide instead of making the decision for her. It's her body.

: ) Maureen

I have two girls. My hubby and I decided together to have their ears pierced when they were around 3months old. We had it done in the mall and the ladies did both ears at same time. Before there were tears or any noise it was over and done. They didn't even know there was anything there. My girls grew up with pierced ears and they love it. They go with me to Claire's and they love to pick out earrings they will wear. The girls are now 4 and 3 and they love for me to change the earrings they wear to ones they picked out for themselves. Good Luck!

i took my daughter, at 3 months, to the piercing pagoda at the rockingham mall. her doctor's office didn't do it and they did a great job. my cousin also took her daughter there. good luck!

ps. after reading some of the other responses i have to add some comments. my daughter had no pain. of course, the 10 seconds after she got pierced she cried but it literally last 10 seconds. and i do believe it is a cultural thing. i am part mexican. my mom had her ears done when she was 2 weeks, i was under a year. i knew when i had my daughter she was going to have her ears pierced. as long as you follow the instructions, clean the earings, clean her ears and use the appropriate backs for the earings all will be fine. again, good luck!

Do as you wish for she is your daughter, however, I don't agree with piercing a baby's ears. I feel that it is her body and I have no right to decide for her. To me the right age is when she can tell you that SHE wants them done. Whether it be 3, 4, 10, 16....its up to her to decide for her own body. I got my ears pierced when I was 11. I was old enough to care for them myself, and it was a special day for me and my mom to go and get them done. I want to share that experience with my daughter now. I want it to feel like its her entry into being a big girl. I have also heard opinions that the is less of a chance for an allergic reaction to the metals if you wait until they are older. Again, decide for yourself though, it is only my opinion.

I agree with most others: wait until shes old enough to decide for herself! 6 years old is probably a good age for that.

Hi D.,
I did both my girls ears at 8 weeks old. And I got them done at the Mall. For the first girl I got them done at Claire's and for my second daughter I got them done at the Piercing Pagoda. I did like them better then Claire's though because there was someone older working there. Just follow the instructions on cleaning them and you will be all set. Make sure you get the closed back earrings for her.

I guess I would ask what is the hurry? Shouldn't she decide if she wants her ears pierced when she is older? And why put her through that pain???