Should People Be Allowed to Keep Exotic Animals

[Slashmaster]

The issue is, "exotic" is a catch all term for anything that isn't a dog, cat, mouse, gerbil, guinea pig, hamster, or rat. Birds, reptiles, amphibians, and most fish species all all considered exotic, yet are easily bought at pet stores. Hell, even rare breeds of cattle/sheep/goats are considered exotic.

This. I'm all for having permits for dangerous exotics, permits that require a significant amount of experience and a demonstration to a state body that the individual is capable of taking care of the dangerous animal. I'm also okay with the banning of dangerous exotic animals (like here in IL) so long as they DEFINE what they think is dangerous.

The issue is with Change.org and Fox throwing around crap about how all exotics should be banned. Unless they plan on defining "exotic" as something that's dangerous (and further define THAT) all they're doing is having a knee jerk reaction.

I don't know what kind of pens the animals in question had. He seemed to have a "private collection" which implies a level of good husbandry. There should be regulating bodies that check every year to those permitted with dangerous animals to ensure all safety measures are being properly adhered to. He himself seemed to be a bit of a piece of work though, what with those threats. Not sure why those threats couldn't lead to the confiscation of the animals, legal or not - he was threatening danger to the community.

Kind of like, guns may be legal, but if you threaten to shoot a bunch of people, better bet you'd be arrested for it. I wonder why he wasn't?

[Dragoon]

I hope usark can keep us informed, we will be up against a firestorm soon

[Brian Miller]

I voted but it does not allow you to leave a comment. I am still trying to get ahold of these people, it drives me crazy when they do these biased polls. The problem is that they do not put things into prospective. I want to seem them publish the data comparing FATAL dog attacks to FATAL reptile attacks. If they do they will see the following:
Dog Attacks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ported_in_2011

and i could only find this for fatal reptile attacks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of..._United_States

Because Fatalities needs to be the focus, when you talk about whether something is dangerous or not, i don't care about bites...

i have 5 kids, they all went through a biting phase (all kids do or atleast it is not that unusual) and bit me when they were toddlers, does that mean i can't keep them....because they are DANGEROUS?

[shawn388]

i voted yes as is it being dangerous i say no the family dog that everyone has can do the same thing if not more

[Toxic Tessa]

Voted as well.

It always irks me how naive some people can be in regards to exotic animals. Yes, they 'can' be dangerous, but most people who get injured by their exotic pets are individuals who 1.) don't properly know how to care and handle them, and 2.) do something really stupid. Of course there are exceptions to this rule.

I have been snapped at, bitten, stung, you name it by many of the exotics I have worked with -- and in no way do I blame the animal. All instances were my fault.

The fact that people fail to realize that 'normal' pets like dogs and cats can be just as dangerous as an exotic makes me want to gouge my eye out with a rusty spoon. In my line of work, I have been on more than my fair share of dog mauling calls - and they are always some of the nastiest things I see. I've seen parts of faces taken off for goodness sakes.

Any animal, I don't care if it's a bunny, has the potential of being dangerous.

[enchinoman]

Voted, yes of course! However there are idiots out there that have no business owning any animal. It is because of them that we are losing on the polls. The media has a field day every time there is an animal attack. I hate to say this but I wish there was some kind of method to weed out irresponsible owners.

This poll is worded in such a way that the majority will answer negatively!!!

[FireStorm]

I have to say I have mixed feelings about this. And of course it depends on how you define exotics. If you can't house it suitably and care for it, then you shouldn't own it. I'm generally anti more legislation (for anything, not just animal ownership). But, since people don't always have good judgement, someone has to enforce things.

My opinions changed dramatically a few years ago, when I started paragliding. Previously, I had always thought it would be awesome to own exotics (by exotics I do not mean reptiles, just to clarify). However, when I started paragliding I had the opportunity to fly wingtip to wingtip with wild birds of prey. I've had the pleasure of flying so close I could reach out and touch them if I let go of my brakes. These birds joined me in thermals on their own; I didn't pursue them. We hunted for lift together, and they stayed with me until I landed (I don't have the benefit of being able to flap my wings ). I've had experiences like this quite a few times at different flying sites and with different species...vultures, bald eagles, hawks...It really made my question why anyone feels like they have the right to take a bird, clip its wings and lock it in a cage. And no, I don't see any difference between parrots and birds of prey. It really seems like a selfish thing to do, and I can see how a similar argument could be made for other species.

[Brian Miller]

Here is the MAJOR problem as i see it. Both sides are highly polarized, we can't even agree on what "exotic" means. There have been several attempts, One groups sees exotic as non native.. well that was just too broad a catagorization...that would have to include ..gerbils, hamster and zebra mussels. Not much of a camera-op for politicians. Then there is the "dangerous and could result in injury or death...

According to the BornFree database there have been 75 deaths caused by "exotic" animals since 1990 and most of them occured in circus, zoo or sanctuary settings. (i put this link on "jungle jacks" public figure facebook page, somehow it got deleted, hmmm)
http://www.bornfreeusa.org/database/...r=2011&page=26

During that same time frame, according to the Centers for Disease Control there have been 210-420 deaths attributed to the family dog. WTF
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1058122/posts (This article was from 2004. I arrived at that number by using the 10-20 deaths per year cited in the article)

Political agendas really are the product of weak sense thinking aren't they.

The answer needs to be education and for some species regulation and licensing. (if you want to keep bengal tigers or similar species, you should have to show that you have XX amount of acres, housing and handling capabilites that meet some type of standard.)

This is reasonable and expected if you think about it, Zoos are subject to oversight and inspection. Its a free country and private property really do not exempt people from the same treatment. At the same time, the special interest groups and the government have to agree to support and provide guidance to people who meet these criteria. This "animals should not be kept in captivity", unless i'm the one doing it, standpoint really annoy me....(yes i mean you jungle jack)
thank you for your time
...soapbox - off

[bloodpythons45]

well it is fox news lol they arent serious about anything so dont worry

[sandra]

Their answer for Yes doesn't exactly fit my answer so I said Other.

While I believe people should be allowed to keep exotic animals, I don't necessarily believe exotics are not dangerous. A large constrictor can be dangerous. A macaw can be dangerous. Even some exotic fish can be dangerous. Does this mean we shouldn't be allowed to have them, no!

I believe that as long as someone has the financial, mental, and physical ability to keep such an animal and can house and care for the animal appropriately, then they should be allowed to do so. Perhaps for the more dangerous species (like lions, tigers, and bears Oh My!) there should be a permit system where you have to have hands on experience and have your enclosure inspected prior to purchasing the animal.

I agree, because some people cant properly house exotic animals; it would be ashame to see a beautiful creature die because someone thought it would be cool to keep one. But people who do have the right financial ability and the dedication should be able too! So conflicting lol