Owning Exotic Animals, Is It Ethical?
Owning Exotic Animals, is it ethical?
Many people have pets in their homes such as dogs and cats. However, some people want something a bit more exotic and exciting. When a person thinks of exotic animals, what usually comes to mind? Many people think big cats such as tigers, leopards and bears, but there are more than just those particular animals. What are also included in the exotic groups are the reptiles, amphibians, birds, rodents, other large and small mammals. These animals are not the typical domestic pets such as dogs and cats. Many of these exotic animals are purchased over the internet such as large reptiles and even the big cats and are imported regularly for private collections. These exotic animals are taken from their natural habitat while they are still young. Exotic animals need to be left in the wild and the habitat is what should be protected for them to survive. They should not be in private collections.
Stronger laws need to be in place to regulate exotic animals going to private collections. Currently there are laws in place that do permit for people to own exotic animals and in each state these laws vary on what that person needs to do to acquire exotic animals easily. Currently anyone can go online or to a private breeder to purchase exotic animals without genuinely investigating if that particular exotic animal is legal in the state that person lives in. Tougher laws need to be in place for all federal and state laws and should come to the same agreement and not have any gray areas for these exotic animals to enter the country. These laws need to be changed and needs a better clarification and stricter guidelines for people wanting to obtain exotic animals for private collections. These laws need to place heavier fines and possible imprisonment for illegal animals imported into the country for private collections.
Keeping these types of exotic animals in captivity one really needs to ask themselves is it ethical? They
Many people have pets in their homes such as dogs and cats. However, some people want something a bit more exotic and exciting. When a person thinks of exotic animals, what usually comes to mind? Many people think big cats such as tigers, leopards and bears, but there are more than just those particular animals. What are also included in the exotic groups are the reptiles, amphibians, birds, rodents, other large and small mammals. These animals are not the typical domestic pets such as dogs and cats. Many of these exotic animals are purchased over the internet such as large reptiles and even the big cats and are imported regularly for private collections. These exotic animals are taken from their natural habitat while they are still young. Exotic animals need to be left in the wild and the habitat is what should be protected for them to survive. They should not be in private collections.
Stronger laws need to be in place to regulate exotic animals going to private collections. Currently there are laws in place that do permit for people to own exotic animals and in each state these laws vary on what that person needs to do to acquire exotic animals easily. Currently anyone can go online or to a private breeder to purchase exotic animals without genuinely investigating if that particular exotic animal is legal in the state that person lives in. Tougher laws need to be in place for all federal and state laws and should come to the same agreement and not have any gray areas for these exotic animals to enter the country. These laws need to be changed and needs a better clarification and stricter guidelines for people wanting to obtain exotic animals for private collections. These laws need to place heavier fines and possible imprisonment for illegal animals imported into the country for private collections.
Keeping these types of exotic animals in captivity one really needs to ask themselves is it ethical? They
References: ASPCA. (© 2010 ASPCA. All Rights Reserved.). Exotic Animals as Pets. Retrieved from http://www.aspca.org/adoption/adoption-tips/exotic-animals.html McLeod, DVM, L. (©2010 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.). Exotic Pet Laws. About.com. Retrieved from http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/reptilesgeneral/a/legalissues.htm McLeod, DVM, L. (©2010 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.). Exotic Pets Returned to the Wild. About.com. Retrieved from http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/resourcesgeneral/a/exoticsrelease.htm Sutton, K. (2008, Feb). Everglades Python Population Exploding.. Southern Sporting Journal, Vol. 14 (Issue 1), . Pavlin, B. I., Schloegel, L. M., & Daszak, P. (2009, Nov). Risk of Importing Zoonotic Diseases through Wildlife Trade, United States.Emerging Infectious Diseases, Vol. 15 (Issue 11), p1721-1726. Steve Irwin. (n.d.). BrainyQuote.com. Retrieved December 5, 2010, from BrainyQuote.com Web site: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/steve_irwin.html