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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Wildlife Wednesday: Not Intended for Cuddling

Okay, look at this picture of a baby marmoset during a check -up at the Everland Zoo :
Cutest. Manicure. Ever.                     Photo by In Cherl Kim/ Everland Zoo
Cute, right? Looks like it'd make an adorable pet, right? Sure it does.
Here's the problem: Marmosets are extremely high maintenance "pets," as detailed in this article on helium.com.
More importantly, many species of marmosets are endangered now because of the illegal pet trade.
Ironically, because the above article uses Google ads (just as I do), there are several ads for just such monkeys as pets. I expect that there will be the same below this entry for the same reason. (I may just delete my Google ads add-on, anyway. I haven't made a penny off of them. I just think that sometimes they might be of interest to my readers.)
Please, no matter how many of the ads you see here or elsewhere, and no matter how many cute videos you see on YouTube of marmosets riding around on dog's backs or eating out of cereal bowls on kitchen tables, marmosets are not meant to be pets. It's not good for them individually and it's not good for them as a species. It's also way too much trouble to keep them unless you intend to cruelly cage them like a guinea pig. Marmosets are not guinea pigs. they are wild animals and belong, ideally, in the wild, or, at the very least, in a wildlife sanctuary or zoo where they're needs as a wild creature can be suitably met. There are plenty of adorable pets out there that need your attention and love. Animal shelters are full of them. Leave the wild animals in the wild.
Now, if you want to look at some more pictures of the cute baby featured above, you can do so at the Zooborns site.

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