Why Wild Animals Are Not Pets

As many people know, having wild animals as pets is becoming more popular, but should not be taken in. Wild animals like lions, tigers and bears are not considered to be good house pets like a dog or a cat (which are considered domestics animals). These type of animals have needs that can easily be met by there owners, whereas wild animals are used to running free and not being contained within an environment. By containing these types of animals often may cause them to "develop lifelong health and behavior problem as a result of being kept in unsuitable condition and being fed proper diet"(Volunteers for Wildlife). Most of the people that have decided to taken in these types of animals begin to feel overwhelmed with these types of animals and are unable to provide the correct care that is required for them, so why do they bother to take them in the first place? First reason is that caring for wild animals is nearly impossible and quite frustrating. "The nutritional and social needs are demanding to meet and , in many cases, are unknown" (Humane Society of the US). In order to take care of wild animals, the person needs to realize all that it intales and that the only appropriate place for a wild animal is the caretaker having experience with the animal, the correct facilities and dedication to the animal itself. Without having any experience and you decided to take in an animal, that animals life will not last long after and if they do, they are misfits to nature. In the story of Where the Wild things are... A man took a young baby cub into his home and allowed it to run free without any problem. He devoted his time to this baby cub as if it were his own child, playing with it, giving it bath and even covering it with a blanket when it was napping; he pretty much fell in love with it. Thinking that he had everything that he needed to raise this baby cub, he continued to put off her release. Once she started to put holes in walls, he built a cage, in which she went into when he was not home, but other then that she ran free throughout the house. Since having a bear as a pet was not allowed in the state, police came and took the bear, along with charging the owner (Billel) with endangering a wild animal. In this story the owner was able to provide a well maintained home for the baby cub, but since the cub was still little, there is no question on the harms it may have caused if it continued to live like that. Second, the reason that baby animals grow up. Even though they may seem to be adorable, "the cuddly baby becomes bigger and stronger than the owner every imagined" (Wild Animals). Just like human babies, baby cubs, tigers, lions, etc. all grow to become extremely large and the owner will begin to notice the lost of attention they are no longer giving to the animal. Many people only keep the animals until they reach that certain size and they "are confined to small cages, passed from owner to owner, or disposed of in other ways" (Wild Animals). I believe that this should be the number one reason that people should not get wild animals as pets. Many exotic pet owners face major dilemmas because they are unprepared for the fact that the animal will grow larger. SPCA spokesperson, Stacey Wilbanks says, "They are cute and cuddly when they are young, but when they grow up, people realize they are in over their heads and they need help" (Houston). Stacey explains one case of a 2-year-old male tiger that stands 8 feet tall and could break your neck with a swat of his paw. The owner had contacted the SPCA about her tiger and needed him to be taking off their hands. Third, the reason that wild animals spread diseases. Many people are unaware of what can of serious causes an animal brings. Animals carry diseases, such as rabies, herpes B virus, and Salmonella, which are extremely dangerous to human beings. There are often others that cause harm that are not mentioned, as well. People stem off of the fact that the animal is cute, but never really think of the follow up factors that could harm them in the end
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Forth, the reason is because capturing wild animals threatens their survival. Most animals that are capture and transport, never even make it to the pet stores because they die before making it there. Most of the time they die due to the fact that the owner is unable to provide the correct care for it, but they also live lives full of misery if they live, due to the fact that they are cramped into a small area for a living space.
(Insert story) In conclusion, wild animals are defiantly not met to be domesticated and those who try to take these animals in can be considered to be selfish. That is because most people take these types of animals in when they are young because the animal is 'cute,' but do not realize that it will grow old and most likely the owner will lose interest.Also, the owner can be consider selfish, due to the fact that the animal is being taking away from the wilderness, which in turn will have an affect on wilderness experiences. If we continue to take the animals away from it, we will no longer have a wildlife and everything will be domesticated.