Home » Pets & Animals » Wild Animals

10 Exotic Hazardous Wild Animals People Keep As Pets

14 Comments
- If you had to choose…
- Guestbook Comments

38 Like

Like 38

Pin It

Ranked #7,322 in Pets & Animals, #183,616 overall

Having an exotic animal for a pet is unique and exciting in theory but if one is not 100% committed to the task that lies ahead and is not aware of the hazards that assuredly come with such a life-changing decision, they're heading for big trouble down the road. A lot of countries obviously have laws against such behaviour. That means that in most places around the world it is illegal to capture, sell or breed exotic/wild animals, and the punishments are usually severe. Yet there are still people who own these wild, bizarre, exotic, and most of the time dangerous pets. Some of them have legal permission to, others have not.

This cockroach actually hisses every time its angry! It can live from 1 up to 5 years and is odorless. It doesn't bite... doesn't do much anything to be honest. If you get a bunch of them together they will serenade you with their sweet loud hissing sound though! Oh, I forgot to mention - they run really fast if you let them go.

9. Ostrich

Sure these birds come off cute and awkward looking. They hide their heads in the ground after all! But don't let their appareance fool you - these guys can be vicious! They can chase you and they run really fast. If I owned one... Oh, who am I kidding?

8. Camel

Yes, a camel. I think they're very cute as a matter of fact but camels are known to be very temperamental. According to a news report on Fox News when a local TV news crew was out filming an exotic animal farm, a camel wheing 1800 and named Polo must have decided that they were not shooting his best side... When Polo became agitated he attacked his owner, kicking her and eventually sitting on her. Ouchy. And camels also love to spit.

7. Cougar

These cats are not only a handful but also highly dangerous! But that doesn't stop people getting them as pets. They're especially popular in Florida. They are quite loyal when kept as a pet and COULD get along with the family pets. They might even sleep together with their owners dogs. That's right - these overgrown kitties have the potential to be house pets. Wouldn't you like to come home with one of these clawing at your furniture?

6. Chimp/Monkey

They are very cute and their human resemblance is absolutely fascinating. They are also known to attack and bite humans and animals alike. There are some real horror stories about chimp attacks, true stories. It's definitely wiser to resist the temptation (if you have one that is) of owning this cute guy.

5. Scorpion

There is a guy who, as a performance and a world record chaser, actually puts live Scorpions in his mouth. Not the best of ideas if you ask me - these little guys have a highly venomous sting for crying out loud!

4. Hippopotamus

You must be out of your mind if you might think of owning a hippo as a pet. Did you know that they cause most river rafting deaths in Africa? Well, they do. Also, how does one fit a hippo comfortably into their home, let alone one room in their home? You'd have to be filthy rich to even afford him theoretically, given that you'd have to feed your hippo (and they do eat a lot) and probably hide him/her from the authorities aswell.

3. Venomous Snakes

They are snakes. They are poisonous. They bite. Unless you're an expert on snakes, do you really want to take the risk?

2. Alligators and Crocodiles

People often purchase crocodiles and alligators when they are little and cute and look like pet lizards. Have you seen the jaws on those things though? There are entire TV shows and movies focusing on how dangerous these animals are... that should really say something to the potential buyers.

1. Big Cats

Again - it's the cute ones that you have to worry about. When they are babies, who could resist? But no matter how young they are or how well trained they are, they can turn on you in a second. You would be in danger at whole times. They feed them raw steak when held in captivity, shouldn't that be a sign?

If you had to choose one of the six random ones I have listed below, which wild animal would you prefer to take as your pet?

Loading poll. Please Wait...

Share this poll
- Stumbleupon
- Facebook
- MySpace
- Twitter
- Digg
- Delicious
- Email

Show this lens some love! :P

This module only appears with actual data when viewed on a live lens. The favorite and lensroll options will appear on a live lens if the viewer is a member of Squidoo and logged in.

Add this to your lens »

Guestbook Comments

Reply

WriterJanis Jan 28, 2012 @ 2:39 am | delete

Do some people really have a hippo for a pet? This is a first for me!

Reply

Tipi Jan 10, 2012 @ 2:46 pm | delete

Stopping back to say, yup, I'd still go for the vulture if I must choose one!

Reply

SudokuNut Jan 5, 2012 @ 12:17 pm | delete

One of my neighbours in the 80's had a rescued barn owl as a pet...don't think I would want to go much more exotic than that myself. If it's liable to eat me or my family, I think I'll leave it in the wild where it belongs!

Reply

JaguarJulie Dec 28, 2011 @ 11:50 am | delete

Well, although I have done a page on the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach, that would be the last critter I'd want running around my place ... I can just hear the squish in the middle of the night.

Reply

Sylvestermouse Dec 23, 2011 @ 9:54 am | delete

I love a lot of wild animals, especially the big cats and bears, but I won't be bringing one home as a pet. I will be just fine with my dogs. They can get wild enough for me :)

Reply

DessertLover Dec 21, 2011 @ 3:37 pm | delete

Great lens! I don't think I would ever want any of these for a pet, especially a hippo! Can you imagine? Ooh boy.

Reply

jadehorseshoe Dec 20, 2011 @ 1:38 pm | delete

EXCELLENT Lens.

Reply

karmicchristian Dec 20, 2011 @ 6:13 am | delete

A great lens and a nice list of animals for pets. I would love to grow a tiger, if only I could! :)

Reply

CruiseReady Dec 17, 2011 @ 7:25 am | delete

I think some people don't realize what they are getting themselves into when they choose a dangerous wild animal for a pet.
Is south Florida, there is a BIG problem developing with people tiring of, and relasing very large dangerous exotic snakes into the wilds of the Everglades .... these snakes are NOT native to the area, and tend to want to eat and/or strangle things like cherished pets and I fear that small unattended children.

Reply

Frankster Dec 16, 2011 @ 12:31 pm | delete

I think giraffes would be less of a problem. I love bears and big cats the best however, I think people that get one as a pet (and some of these other dangerous animals) are just asking for big trouble. I love the lens. Blessed. Bear hugs, Frankster aka Bearmeister aka Cat-Woman

Reply

Lovelifelaughter Dec 16, 2011 @ 9:24 am | delete

I opted for giraffe - they look the gentlest. When I was a kid, my cousin had a lion.....but my mum wouldn't let me visit:-( He used to keep it in a double decker bus in his garden, but he lived with his mum who ran a playgroup, so the council made him lose the lion! he called it Shane, Used to take it out in his taxi.............bet he didn't get many fares! I found the "like" buttons now, I'm very new to this, can u tell? Lol!

Reply

Tipi Dec 15, 2011 @ 6:04 pm | delete

I'd go with the vulture, the others are just too high maintenance. The tragedy of those animals being cared for by the man in Ohio gives us all pause. Even many zoos cannot keep animals in a proper habitat for them.

Reply

tembrooke Dec 15, 2011 @ 3:41 pm | delete

Nice lens! But I can't help thinking about the recent incident where a man who owned lots of wild animals set them all free and then killed himself. I really don't think private citizens should be allowed to own dangerous animals like lions and tigers.