> Debbi wrote: > >Why some people think they have to have exotic > >animals as pets is beyond me...
I replied:
> Why? If you buy into the idea that keeping pets at > all is ok, then what > does it matter whether it's a cat or a prairie dog > or a horse or a degu?
Debbie responded:
I didn't mean to insult anyone here;
No insult taken :-)
I should have said that animals which have been domesticated (dogs, cats, pigs, goats, chickens, koi etc. - and I even count the rat lines that have been bred to be docile and calm around humans) have, in the course of that domestication, been selected for interaction with and response to humans. Many "wild" characteristics, such as extreme aggression, territoriality, migration etc. have been modified or bred out over the course of multiple generations; those individuals which exhibited undesirable traits were culled, and likely not bred. Domestics can be "pets" because they are "primed" to live with us; 'their' nature is now 'ours.' Many seem even to crave human attention.
But there are lines of many animals commonly called "exotics" that have been bred for domestication for many generations (their generations, not ours), at least as I understand it. I couldn't find any info on how long guinea pigs have been domesticated, but it's long enough that they have certain sounds that they will only make in the presence of a human. Hamsters have been domesticated for almost a century. Parrots are still considered exotics, but have been bred for friendliness as pets for centuries. On the shorter side, degus have even been domesticated for a couple of decades and make wonderful pets, from what I understand (I don't actually own one, but I've seen them in pet stores -- they look like giant gerbils, more or less). I didn't really know a lot about prairie dogs, so I looked those up on the internet, and will now agree with you that pet prairie dogs are a bad idea as they apparently don't breed in captivity so prairie dogs sold as pets have to be captured as babies in the wild, and certainly aren't bred for domesticity.
Far too many exotics end up abandoned, maimed or killed b/c they *cannot* adapt to our demands. Frex, apparently young infants smell rather like baby rabbits, and ferrets - hunters - have attacked and seriously harmed infants.
My cat loves to lay down on my chest while I'm laying down in bed or on the couch in the livingroom. If she were to do so to a baby human, that baby would probably be unable to breath because it wouldn't have the muscle strength to lift it's chest with the weight of the cat on it. It this case, the cat isn't even being a hunter, it's just showing it's affection for the baby, literally smothering it with love. But cats are still accepted as a "normal" pet. And I would guess everyone here has heard at least one story about a dog killing, maiming, or otherwise injuring a human, whether infant or adult. And dogs are certainly natural bord hunters.
I would say, however, that one statement you make above is not broad enough. I would say that far too many pets of all kinds, exotic or otherwise, end up abandoned, maimed, or killed for many reasons that just don't make sense to me. In my mind, if you want a pet, you have to commit to caring for that pet for the rest of it's life. If it doesn't work out for you for some reason, then you should be responsible for finding it a home where it *will* work out. If you aren't willing to accept that responsibility, then you shouldn't have a pet. A pet is a living being, not a toy to be discarded.
Tropical exotics can carry all sorts of diseases (partially listed in two articles linked to the one I posted), and we just don't know enough about how some pathogens 'jump' from one species to another. I mean, who'd have thought that *prairie dogs* would be susceptible to African *monkeypox*?
By the same token, pathogens can jump between humans and other animals considered "normal" pets.
Furthermore, the demand for young endangered exotics (adults are usually completely unsuitable) leads to the hunting and killing of breeding females (frex clouded leopards, orangutans), further deleting the precious wild genepool; and many of those young also die.
I think I'm in agreement with you here; I wouldn't knowingly condone any endangered species being kept as a pet.
[very good examples snipped]> If you buy pets, you probably buy them based on how > cute you think they are, > how prepared you are to properly care for them,
This is where many fail, as they do not understand just how profound the differences between a domestic and a wild animal can be, and what proper care entails.
I also firmly believe in researching an animal before choosing it as a pet. We have several books now on regular hamsters, dwarf hamsters, and guinea pigs, all of which we currently own, and some books on hedgehogs (we are being given a baby hedgehog as a gift by a reputable local breeder from her next litter). Adequate preparation in advance, including visiting with people who own a type of pet in which you are interested in order to observe how it interacts with people, is a must. I can't say that I've always done this, but I have come to believe it's absolutely vital, both for you and for your potential future pet.
There are some wild animals who could probably be domesticated in time (frex several small South American wildcats), and some who are part-way there already (ferrets, mongooses).
I thought ferrets had been domesticated for a long time. Hang on a sec...
http://www.ferretcompany.com/content/aboutferrets.html or http://tinyurl.com/e3sl
Excerpt:
Exactly where and when the first ferret was invited into someone's
home is unknown, but early references to ferret-like creatures can
be found in the writings of Aristophanes around 500 B.C.
...
Domesticated ferrets moved across Europe with the conquering
Romans, earning their keep by flushing rabbits from their warrens
for expectant hunters.IIRC, this is how it is theorized that dogs first became domesticated, working as hunting partners with humans. But otherwise, point taken.
Debbi Finished Ranting For The Moment Maru ;)
If all your rants are this reasonable, please feel free to rant anytime!
Reggie Bautista Was That Rants or Rats Maru :-)
_________________________________________________________________
Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail
_______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
