Source: Birds of Eden
Animals who arrive alive are often subject to inadequate care. Because caretakers are often unprepared or unable to provide for the needs of species that are so far removed from their natural habitats, the animals will likely die or be abandoned by their caretakers. For instance, the head of the Western Cape of Africa’s Environmental Crime Investigation unit estimates that 90 percent of exported reptiles die within a year.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) handles the importation of animals—specifically cats, dogs, turtles, and nonhuman primates—that may pose a disease threat to humans. Unfortunately, according to one CDC officer, “There are all kinds of exotic species that may be unknown vectors of human disease.”
The multibillion-dollar business of buying and selling protected wildlife is one of the largest sources of criminal earnings, behind only arms smuggling and drug trafficking.
Never buy exotic animals from dealers or pet shops. Animal shelters and rescue groups are filled with dogs and cats who need good homes. Support legislation that would make owning exotic animals illegal in your community and prohibit the interstate sale of exotic animals.
Like Monkeyland, the popular primate sanctuary next-door, Birds of Eden boasts its own canopy walk, while shorter than the 128m bridge at Monkeyland, it hangs above the clouds. The decision to develop Birds of Eden stems from the need to create a safe environment in which to release a large collection of free-flight African birds, miniature monkeys and the sanctuary also enables bird owners to apply to release their pet birds into the sanctuary, after undergoing rehabilitation.
Every
year, people succumb to the temptation to purchase “exotic” animals
like hedgehogs, macaws, lizards, and monkeys - even tigers and bears -
from stores, auctions, or the Internet to keep them as “pets.”
But often, life in captivity rapidly leads to pain and death for these animals, who can easily suffer from malnutrition, an unnatural and uncomfortable environment, loneliness, and the overwhelming stress of confinement. The exotic animal trade is also deadly for animals we don’t see: For every animal who makes it to the store or the auction, countless others die along the way.
But often, life in captivity rapidly leads to pain and death for these animals, who can easily suffer from malnutrition, an unnatural and uncomfortable environment, loneliness, and the overwhelming stress of confinement. The exotic animal trade is also deadly for animals we don’t see: For every animal who makes it to the store or the auction, countless others die along the way.
Animals Suffer During Capture and Transport
The journey for many of these animals begins in places like Australia, Africa, and the jungles of Brazil.
The few laws and penalties that do exist hardly dissuade dealers in
light of the money that can be made from smuggling: Prices on animals’
heads range from tens of thousands of dollars for a hyacinth macaw to a
few bucks for a giant cockroach.
Taken
from their natural habitats by trappers, animals may change hands
several times, through intermediaries and exporters, and endure grueling
transport conditions. Parrots may have their beaks and feet taped and
be stuffed into plastic tubes that can easily be hidden in luggage, and
stolen bird and reptile eggs are concealed in special vests so that
couriers can bypass X-ray machines at airports. Baby turtles have been
taped so that they are trapped inside their shells and shoved by the
dozen into tube socks, and infant pythons have been shipped in CD cases.
Their chances of survival? “We have a mortality of about 80 or 90
percent,” says a German customs agent. Goliath frogs smuggled into California from Cameroon were so severely crowded in their cardboard boxes that their skin absorbed their feces and poisoned them to death. Four exotic birds died when a California man tried to smuggle them in his suitcase.
Ignorance Breeds Misery
Animals who arrive alive are often subject to inadequate care. Because caretakers are often unprepared or unable to provide for the needs of species that are so far removed from their natural habitats, the animals will likely die or be abandoned by their caretakers. For instance, the head of the Western Cape of Africa’s Environmental Crime Investigation unit estimates that 90 percent of exported reptiles die within a year.
Animal control authorities confiscated a crippled cougar cub from a Buffalo, New York,
basement: The animal, kept by a teenager, had not been fed a diet
sufficiently high in calcium and, as a result, suffered from deformed
legs. Hedgehogs, who roll themselves into tight balls, can easily become
injured if children try to “uncurl” them or if cats attack them. Sugar
gliders are very social animals and, if they are not given enough
attention, may self-mutilate or die from the stress of loneliness.
The
American Zoo and Aquarium Association says that “zoos are being asked by
irresponsible owners to relocate displaced and unwanted animals . . .
but because most zoos do not accept donations—there are literally
thousands of exotic animals who remain in unsuitable conditions.” Some
people sneak animals into exhibits—and risk infecting zoo populations
with diseases—or leave animals in front of zoo gates; usually, these
animals are euthanized. Jack Cover, a curator at the National Aquarium
in Baltimore, says, “We’d have to have two or three warehouses to handle the donations we get calls on.”
Other
people try to return unwanted animals to their natural homes or simply
abandon them along rural roads. Without appropriate habitats or
rehabilitation, these animals will starve or fall victim to the elements
or predators. If they do survive, they may overpopulate and wreak havoc
within the ecosystem, killing native species.
Disease Threat
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) handles the importation of animals—specifically cats, dogs, turtles, and nonhuman primates—that may pose a disease threat to humans. Unfortunately, according to one CDC officer, “There are all kinds of exotic species that may be unknown vectors of human disease.”
Seventy-five
percent of all new infectious diseases originate from nonhuman animals.
The monkeypox outbreak that affected dozens of people in the Midwest in
2003 was traced to a Gambian rat from Africa; the animal had been
housed with prairie dogs in an Illinois
animal dealer’s shed. Prairie dogs also have been known to carry the
plague and tularemia. The herpes B virus can be transferred from
macaques to humans; the CDC warns that “this risk makes macaques
unsuitable as pets.” Human contact with reptiles and other exotic
animals accounts for 70,000 cases of salmonellosis each year. One Minnesota
infectious disease expert had his son’s African dwarf hedgehog tested
for diseases: The lab found three strains of salmonella that had not
previously been seen in the state.
Parrots
can transfer psittacosis, which can be deadly, to humans. Exotic
Newcastle disease (END), which devastated whole flocks of chickens and
turkeys in the 1970s, was believed to have been brought to this country
from South American parrots smuggled in for the pet trade. An outbreak
of END in Florida
resulted in the deaths of 8,000 parrots in 1980. “We’re not trained to
detect diseases,” says a U.S. Fish and Wildlife inspection officer.
Reverse
zoonosis, or the transfer of human diseases to animals, can be a threat
as well. Mumps, tuberculosis, and hepatitis are only a few of the
diseases that can be transferred from humans to other animals and back
to humans.
Few Government Regulations
The multibillion-dollar business of buying and selling protected wildlife is one of the largest sources of criminal earnings, behind only arms smuggling and drug trafficking.
The United States is the main destination for exotic and endangered wild animals.
National,
state, and local governments are passing laws that prohibit the capture
and sale of certain species, but most of these regulations are poorly
enforced and are designed to protect humans from disease rather than
ensure that animals are handled humanely. It can
be difficult to sort out what government regulations exist to control
the influx of exotic animals into the U.S. Endangered species are
supposed to be monitored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS),
but smugglers find ways around inspections. Protected species may be
hidden among legal animals or dangerous species of animals so that
officers are less likely to thoroughly hand-inspect shipments.
The FWS
also suffers from a lack of resources: “With the number of inspectors,
we are able to physically inspect 25% of wildlife shipments,” says one
federal wildlife inspector. Penalties for violations of the Convention
on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) are stipulated by
individual countries, and the punishments range from short jail
sentences to fines. “People simply pay [the fine] and continue to break
the law,” according to one CITES representative.
There are thousands of tigers, lions, and other big cats held captive in the U.S.
“A 600-pound tiger will do what it wants, when it wants to,” says Tippi
Hedren, a former actor who now runs a big-cat sanctuary in California.
“You buy this cute creature at 8 weeks old. After six months, it’s torn
your house apart and taken a good chunk out of you.” There have been
dozens of captive big-cat attacks on humans in the past decade,
including incidents in which a tiger mauled his guardian’s 3-year-old
grandson, a lion killed several dogs and trapped a child in his room,
and a Bengal tiger tore off the arm of a 4-year-old boy.
Wolf
hybrids have also increased in popularity - it’s estimated that hundreds
of thousands of them live in homes across the country - and since 2000,
at least four people have been mauled to death by these offspring of
wolves and domesticated dogs. One veterinarian and animal behaviorist
says that “people who breed these animals and sell them as pets are
playing Russian roulette. It’s a gross misrepresentation to sell these
animals as pets.”
In the United States,
23 states have banned the ownership of big cats and 15 do not permit
nonhuman primates to be kept as pets. Thanks to a law signed by the
governor of Maryland
in 2006, state residents can no longer own, sell, breed, or transport
animals such as foxes, poisonous snakes, alligators, or chimpanzees.
What You Can Do
Never buy exotic animals from dealers or pet shops. Animal shelters and rescue groups are filled with dogs and cats who need good homes. Support legislation that would make owning exotic animals illegal in your community and prohibit the interstate sale of exotic animals.
If you
are concerned about the welfare of an exotic animal in your community,
contact your local humane society. Sometimes animal control officials
only conduct investigations after they receive complaints from
neighbors.
About Birds of Eden
Birds of Eden, is the Garden Route's very own World class free flight bird sanctuary. The
unique two hectare dome (the World’s largest) spans over a gorge of
indigenous forest. The sanctuary has its own mysterious ruin, which
incorporates a walk-behind waterfall.
Like Monkeyland, the popular primate sanctuary next-door, Birds of Eden boasts its own canopy walk, while shorter than the 128m bridge at Monkeyland, it hangs above the clouds. The decision to develop Birds of Eden stems from the need to create a safe environment in which to release a large collection of free-flight African birds, miniature monkeys and the sanctuary also enables bird owners to apply to release their pet birds into the sanctuary, after undergoing rehabilitation.