Why is it so hard for families to adopt older children?

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Love and hate	i think that people prefer babies and infants because you can mold them and teach them stuff . they don't know that their being adopted or anything at all. 5yr olds know things. they know more things and already have habits, majority have bad habits. Most probly know that thier adopted and all that stuff and are scared and such... you know.. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

LoveMyKids!	Many experts tell you that you should try to stick to "birth order" when adopting. In other words, if your youngest child is 5, you need to find a child younger than he or she. Otherwise, it can disrupt the balance or dynamic that each child has within your family. We did adopt slightly out of birth order and it has worked out fine but I do know of other families where it turned out to be a total mess. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

I Am The Walrus	because at that age, the kid already has somewhat of a developed mind. it's a lot of baggage to take on the kid's family, and they already have this idea into their minds that they were not wanted. thats why Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Smriti	Well...mostly parents who adopt are ones who want the child to be their own. Until one, child is still naive and may forget the memories of his or her previous experiences. THe child accepts new parents and new environment more readily and responds to their love sooner. After that, their resisting tendency increases rapidly and it becomes difficult to connect with them. Remember, even parents are looking for love from children and if they feel threatened by child's behavior or are afraid that despite all their love, child will be scarred forever and they will be the one who will be judged guilty for it, they might find it difficult to accept the child. The other fear is that child will never be able to forget the experiences with his birth parents or at the agency and will only look up to them as patrons, not as real parents. Smaller the children are, more are the chances for them to really bond with the adoptive parents. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Heather	I honestly believe that couples or parents who adopt they usually want a young baby infant newborn sized because they can raise it themselfse ( almost from the start of life. ) To me I would be willing to adopt any age child if I could. Heather Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

sizesmith	Movies try to glamorize things, so maybe people will see that 5+ year olds are more desirable to adopt. Many times in the movies, they're talking about big tragedies in the families, or of quite different circumstances than normal foster care adoption. We'd rather adopt a child out of foster care, but since we're in the process of moving, we've got a better chance of adopting privately, which only means babies from our experience. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

*♥luvmybaby♥*	Because everyone wants a baby.. they want to raise a newborn from birth up. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Debbie	For starters a lot of people don't think they have the emotional strength to deal with older children. Most older children available for adoption have been sexual, physical and/or emotionally abused. The courts usually don't like to break up families, so if they are up for adoption, they likely have not had a good family life. This doesn't mean that their bad kids or a lost cause, just that they will need a lot of attention and patience. Most potential adoptive parents just don't think they got the heart for the job. Also some don't feel like it should their job to fix someone else mistakes. I've heard more than one AP state that they adopted an infant because they weren't fixing someone else mess. The same goes for special needs infants, my son has fetal alcohol syndrome. Let's just say the people wanting to adopt him were not lining up around the block. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Pip	Because people prefer to adopt a newborn which they belief will be a clean slate or young child as they will have less issues. This isn't true and sadly the older the child the less adoptable they become as people don't want to deal with issues. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Honest & Sober	Older Child Adoption http://www.nrcadoption.org/resources/prac/OlderChildAdoption.pdf Adoption of Adolescents http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/downloads/information_packets/adoption-of-adolescents-pkt.pdf ..... http://www.aecf.org/upload/PublicationFiles/CFS3622H1216.pdf .... http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=110&dat=20041117&id=SF4KAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zEsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4107,1376278 Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

tish_part deux	because most 5 year olds don't fit into to "orbit strollers", funky nursing slings, and pottery barn cribs; nor want to feed on drug/hormone induced breast milk. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Kristie	Many people are afraid to adopt older kids because they automatically think they'll have too many problems. They also think that babies won't have those problems. Although I can understand the desire to have a baby, I also know how much you get from adopting older kids. I have one biological child and six adopted kids. My kids were adopted from foster care. Our first sibling group were ages 4, 7, and 8 when they moved in with us. Our second sibling group was ages 5, 7, and 9 when they moved in. Yes, there were many challenges, but they are part of our family and I'm very glad we have them in our family. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

nanny411	Do you mean why won't people adopt kids over 5? Or that it is difficult to adopt kids over 5? It's much easier for people to adopt older kids, ones with physical or mental limitations and sibling groups. As to WHY people don't want to adopt these kids, I think it's because they are afraid of issues that are ingrained and may be difficult to overcome, difficulties fitting into the existing family, and that the limitations may be too difficult for them to handle. I think they are valid concerns, but I also think it would be very rewarding giving a loving and stable home to these kids. There are resources available to people who DO undertake these kinds of adoptions. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

❤	I've thought about adopting older children. I like babies but I don't know if I could handle the screaming and crying. I know it's harder for older children to find homes. I have heard that babies form a strong bond with the people they spend time with during the first two years of life. I think a child can have a strong bond with a parent at any age if the parents are willing to give the time and attention needed. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No