Have you ever seen those videos of baby animals? Videos of lion cubs chasing around cat toys or pandas waddling around. They’re all adorable and all the comments say how people want one. Except, those videos don’t tell the struggles of owning these animals. Usually, professionals make those videos and the public then believes they’re entitled to the animals. Wild animals are not to be kept as pets, they’re called wild for a reason. Keeping these animals brings a higher risk for humans, brings a higher chance they’ll end up escaping, and most importantly is distressing for the animal. Now, you may be asking, how does this apply to you? I am glad you’ve asked! Keeping exotic animals could mean your life if animals are left unsupervised, and the harsh treatment of animals is inhumane. Condoning such behavior from humans is abuse in itself.
Keeping exotic animals harbors the chance of issues with humans. Animals are dangerous, holding natural, unpredictable instincts. Since wild animals are treated like domestic pets, they’re held in similar enclosures by most public. However, since these wild animals aren’t able to express their natural territorial instincts, they’re dams, waiting to break. Contributing to this explosive behavior, is that most animals are pack animals, those who require social interaction. Humans can not offer that type of communication. As animals grow, they begin to display unpredictable behavior. However, owners often are reluctant to tell officials of attacks and bites, worrying that their pet will be taken. A vast majority of exotic animals have the ability to transmit diseases to humans. Diseases such as Herpes B and Monkey pox can be transmitted via animals. Monkeys, popular pets, often carry Herpes B and Simian B. Herpes B and Simian B are harmless viruses to the monkeys, but Simian B can be fatal to humans. Viruses can come from saliva, and any other bodily fluids. Any person who is scratched, spit on, or sneezed on, has the risk of getting any virus from the primate. Salmonellosis is another popular disease carried by reptiles, turtles, iguanas, and lizards are popular carriers of the bacteria. It’s received by failure to wash hands after handling reptiles or feces. The
People who keep exotic animals as pets do not realize the danger they are putting on the animals or themselves. There have been around 2,000 incidents involving captive exotic pets that have been reported and 75 reported deaths between the years of 1990
Some people feel they should be allowed to keep exotic animals as they think they are capable of taking care for the animals.
Owning an exotic pet can go wrong in a lot of ways and it can seriously harm the animal you are keeping, other animals, and people; including the animal's owner. If someone would want to try to keep one of these animals they would have to put a lot of work, time, and money into it because you have to keep the animal healthy, happy, safe, and you also have to make sure you are keeping everyone else safe including yourself. Still, you could be putting yourself, the animal, and others in danger.
Owning exotic animals is both cruel to the animal its self and dangerous to those who care for the animals. Keeping exotic animals as pets is cruel. In the article Do You Really Want a Baby Tiger? by Mia Lewis the author states “The end result is that far too many of these exotic animals spend almost their entire lives in the ‘prison’ of a small cage.” Obviously, exotic animals are meant to be in environments that promote their natural behavior; forcing these animals to be locked up in a small pen
In most places owning a dog or cat is second nature, but what about a tiger, bear or maybe python? Exotic pet ownership is far from having a clear right or wrong answer but it is in need of a ban for both the protection of animal and owner.For exotic pet owners, owning a wild beast insures a sense of power and uniqueness. It is also their way of contributing to the conservation of a species by having a “backup population” once human population growth and habitat destruction has resulted in extinction (Slater 113). But in reality the ownership of wild animals as pets only helps to damage already fragile ecosystems, both the one from which they came from and the new one in which they find themselves. Animals in captivity are also stripped of a natural life in the wild, free of confinement and unsuitable care. Finally, the risk to humans is very large, injuries inflicted from exotic pets are dangerous and possibly deadly. Bans vary from state to state, ranging from no ban to partial ban to complete ban, but even in states with full bans, exotic pet ownership still occurs. Private ownership of an exotic animal as a pet should be banned in the US, due to disruptions in ecosystems, the dangers that wild animals are exposed too, and the risks to the owners of these pets.
Although it may be different and fun to own an exotic animal, they require special care that most people just cannot provide. Many supporters claim they are just like other pets, but they require care that is very difficult to provide. This includes, a special diet, housing, and maintenance. These standards cannot be met by an average person, so Instead of trying to meet these animals needs, owners use cruel methods to make them more “pet like,” and domesticated. These methods include bleak or lifeless enclosures, and even chaining and beating. It’s thought people can domesticate these animals but that’s not the case. This would take several years of breeding. The problems go even further after this. Animals also often have things like claw and tooth removal, which are extremely painful. If a person cannot take care of the animal they turn to zoos, however zoos cannot take care of all the exotic pets handed over to
It is said that in order to protect the wildlife, we need to be educated about the wildlife that inhabits our planet. As humans, and the superior species on Earth, we put exotic animals, aquatic and terrestrial, in zoos or aquariums where people can go to see them to learn more about them in order to protect them. It just so happens that by putting these animals into captivity, we are causing more damage to them, just as damage is occurring in the wild and more species are becoming extinct. Animals should not be held in captivity; it does not save them from going extinct, but helps kill them off.
Every child has asked their parents for a pet animal. The thing is though, is what type of animal they asked for. Such as a dog or cat and even the occasional hippopotamus for Christmas, right? Lots of people buy exotic animals not knowing how much work it really takes to take care of them. For example, many people have bought pythons and when they get to a size where they can’t keep care of them they let them go into the wild. Exotic animals are very costly and time consuming, they grow up and get bigger and all in all they are very dangerous.
To begin with, I want to say that it is not because exotic animals are allowed that they are not regulated. Indeed, a lot of people seem to think that if we make exotic animals legal, there are going to be dangerous tigers running through the streets looking for prays. Unlike this common fear, if exotic animals would be allowed as pets, they would need a certain following. Zoologists could evaluate if the animal
Many people mistake domesticated animals with exotic animals and are okay with owning exotic pets. These wild animals are easy to deal with when they are small, but when they turn into adults they are more aggressive and harder to care for. Not all animals are trying to harm others, they are born to be in the wild and trained to fend for themselves (Lewis). Statistics show that more people die in car accidents every year than being killed by exotic animals, causing some to believe that it is okay to own exotic pets (“REXANO Proves That Politicians…”). This thought contradicts itself when the statistics of the amount of people being killed by animals were added. People think it is different and exciting to be able to go to a neighbor's house and see exotic pets, but in reality it is causing deaths. Owners are not aware of the precautions that need to have taken place to keep
The U.S. is a patchwork of varying levels of exotic pet regulation. Some states take the problem seriously and have outright bans on owning dangerous wildlife. Other states, like Florida, ban some dangerous animals but not others. In some states, owning any dangerous wildlife is allowed but requires a permit. And in a handful of states—Ohio, Wisconsin, Nevada, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Alabama—all exotic pet ownership is permitted, completely unrestricted and unregulated. Incidents of escape and intentional release abound, as demonstrated by an excellent documentary called The Elephant In The Living
Exotic animals belong in the wild because the reason they are exotic is because they cannot be tamed like any other pet, and if they can’t be tamed, they can become a harm to the owner and to others that the animal feel threatened by. Injury and possibly death is likely to happen under such circumstances of the animals being neglected. Another reason why I believe that exotic animals do not belong under human captivity as pets is because it is harmful to the pets and the nature of them. Some animals need their families to survive and they also need to learn to hunt in order for them to survive. Once an exotic animal becomes the pet of someone, it becomes dependent which is unhealthy for the animal, especially if they are brought under captivity at such an early age. Owning exotic animals as keeping them as pets should be illegal is what I believe is right.
Many people are attracted to keeping wild animals as pets. They believe the wild animals to be interesting and exciting. At a young age, the animals may seem easier to tame, but the older these animals get, the more aggressive they tend to become. Many problems can develop from keeping a wild animal as a pet. Wild animals have specific needs that have to be met, in order for them to prosper. “Only the most exceptional zoos and wildlife centers provide a living area that somewhat resembles the natural habitat of these animals, but it is virtually impossible to provide sufficient space for larger species”(CFHS). In captivity animals do not lose their wild instincts. They can be extremely unpredictable, and if provoked they can cause severe harm to people. Some wild animals, such as reptiles and hedgehogs can actually carry bacteria called salmonella, which is very easily transmitted to humans. Exotic animals can be very social, and need to have a companion of the same species living with them. If the animal is kept isolated from its kind, then it can suffer psychologically (CFHS). Many wild animals that are kept as pets often get abandoned because the owner was not able to meet of its needs. Others try to
The question of humanity arises every couple of years, on the topic - should exotic animals be allowed to be kept as pets. Is it humane for the beings who feel pain, give birth, take care of their young like human beings do to be behind bars? According to the National Geographic 66 percent of wild animals are owned privately while the 28 percent of the animals reside in the zoo. Some of the exotic animals can be found as pets rather than in the wild. The estimated number of Tigers kept as pets are between 5,000 and 7,000, which is more than the ones that exist in the wild. Interested buyers can purchase a tiger cheaper than some of the purebred dogs, for the price as shocking as 300 dollars. Though some states in the United States do allow wild animals as pets, it is still illegal in most states or require a license for it. Most of the animals as pets are through illegal routes like underground auctions and smuggling.
Exotic animals should be banned from being purchased, hunted, and or traded from their natural habitat. People can look at an exotic animal for a couple minutes, but captivity affects their whole life. Exotic animals caged in non-natural habitats can experience many physical, and mental issues.