Ohio Governor Calls for a Ban on Exotic Pets

A typical reaction from a captive tiger

Governor Ted Strickland has recently made a proposal in banning exotic pets in the state of Ohio. Many of these pets go from small foxes and wallabies, to huge pythons and big cats. Despite their cuddliness and beauty, owners of such "pets" end up abandoning them because they are too expensive to be taken care of and are known to be aggressive. Just like normal pets like cats and dogs, exotic pet owners have also been known to take their pets to the veterinarian. But instead of getting a regular check-up, these animals would end up having either their teeth or claws removed to avoid risking serious injuries to their owners or themselves. Governor Strickland eventually stated that this practice should be discontinued.

Another problem seen is that animal sanctuaries specializing in taking care of abandoned exotic pets would be unable to take more animals in and breeding them for repopulating the species. One example was seen in Ohio's Heaven's Corner Zoo and Sanctuary, in which the staff received a rare Amur leopard and hoped they would find a mate to help with repopulating the 30 remaining subspecies in the frozen forests of Siberia. According to Tim Harrison of Outreach for Animals, the Cincinnati Zoo should be able to take care of endangered species since it has the largest embryo and eggs facility.

I'm glad to see how the government of Ohio is acting up to place a ban on possession of exotic pets in the state. This goes to show how the United States is taking a proactive step in helping save lives of both people and animals. However, there are several other states across the U.S where there maybe exotic pets living a miserable life away from their natural homelands. I sure hope that those states with exotic pet owners will one day join forces with the ones like Ohio and Florida, and help in placing ban on ownership of exotic pets.

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