What are the main animal welfare problems with exotic pets?
The trade and keeping of wild animals as pets involve inevitable suffering. Animals are either cruelly captured from the wild or bred intensively in poor conditions¹. Whether wild-caught or captive-bred, many species do not thrive in captivity².
Often, very little is known about the specific biological and behavioural needs of exotic species and so providing for them in captivity is largely based on guesswork³. Most animals need lots of space and a varied diet and some social species need to live in large groups. Captive exotic animals need carefully controlled temperature, humidity and lighting that mimic the day and night times, as well as the seasonal differences of their natural environment⁴˒⁵. Signs of suffering in exotic pets are often not obvious until it is too late⁶ and many die within one year in the home¹. Read more >
