Backyard breeders are those who create and sell animals from their own homes. In some cases, these backyard breeders have been known to illegally produce endangered species of animals for the pet trade market.
The internet has made it easier than ever before to find a wide variety of exotic pets for sale across the world, which is how many people end up with a squirrel monkey or a Bengal tiger in their living room without realizing that they need an expensive permit to do so. In this article, we’ll be exploring what’s really going on behind the scenes with backyard breeding and illegal animal trafficking as well as educating you about some things you can do if you suspect someone around you may be doing something illegal related to animal breeding. We hope this article will be able to help you understand whether or not backyard breeding is really the right choice for you, and if it is, what things you need to watch out for when getting one of these pets.
Wild animals really belong in the jungle
One example backyard breeders often use to justify their illegal activities is that wild animal belong in the jungle, so anyone who keeps them as pets must obviously know what they’re doing since they did the appropriate research beforehand. However, this justification falls apart rather quickly once you realize how many native species are being illegally trafficked right now. For example, in 2015 an international sting operation is known as “Operation Jungle Book” seized over 500 endangered reptiles from a single home in Miami Florida after police were tipped off about someone selling protected species online. In another case, an individual was caught with over 400 dead birds in his freezer most of which were endangered species that he had illegally trafficked from a variety of different countries. When you start to understand how many animals are illegally taken out of the wild each year for the pet trade market, it becomes clear that illegal animal trafficking is a worldwide problem and not just something that happens in the jungle.
There’s no such thing as a healthy wild-caught animal
Another common justification backyard breeders use to convince others to purchase their animals illegally is by arguing that wild animals never get sick or have any genetic issues because they’re perfectly adapted to their environment. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth since there’s only been one reported case of a perfect animal existing in the wild. In most cases, animals who are taken from their native habitat and kept as pets often have numerous health problems which backyard breeders will try to hide so they can sell them for more money.
Most of these animals die within days/weeks of being brought home from the pet store
Unfortunately, many people purchase exotic pets without doing any research about how to care for them or whether or not they’ll even be able to properly quarantine an animal that comes from a different environment. As a result, many non-native animals die shortly after being brought home due to malnutrition, dehydration, sicknesses contracted at the pet store, and improper environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity. It’s estimated by some researchers that about 90% of animals die in the first 30 days after being purchased from a pet store, and while this number is lower for people who breed their own pets at home, it’s still around 10%.
It takes years to take care of all the expenses involved with owning an exotic animal
A common misconception many people have when thinking about backyard breeding is that someone can just simply buy one of these animals and then forget about it afterward. However, taking care of exotic pets requires a lot more than just feeding and cleaning up after them; it also takes a significant amount of money to care for them properly. For example, if you want to keep your scorpion properly heated throughout the winter months, you’ll need to go out and buy a separate heating lamp in addition to the regular enclosure they already have. In most cases, you may also need to purchase UV lamps or other medical equipment if your pet becomes sick.
Not all of these animals are legal to own in the first place
While backyard breeders try to convince people that everything they sell has been properly bred and properly cared for by an experienced breeder, it’s important to remember that not all exotic pets are actually allowed to be owned legally in the first place. For example, even though someone could easily get away with owning an underage wolf-dog illegally due to how expensive it would be for law enforcement agencies to check up on each one individually, someone who did this would still be breaking several different laws due to the fact that wolves are an endangered species, and owning one can result in substantial fines or jail time.
Backyard breeding is not advisable for one simple reason. The animals bought from pet stores are more than likely illegally trafficked, and so it’s possible that they could carry diseases or parasites which can be passed on to the next generation of pets. This means that backyard breeders may actually be harming their own customers in an indirect way by passing on disease-causing pathogens without even knowing it! It doesn’t matter how experienced you think you are at caring for exotic breeds – if someone else has had them before you, there’s a chance that they’re carrying something with them when they come into your territory. If this sounds like a risk worth taking to save money, remember: illegal animal trafficking is a worldwide problem and not just something that happens in an isolated area. Doing this could potentially ruin your health and get you thrown in jail, so it’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to bringing non-native animals into your home.
Writing an article about backyard breeding is important because it gives readers a glimpse of what actually happens behind closed doors. With any luck, people will realize that many of these animals should not be kept as pets for the sake of their health, safety, and well-being, and hopefully, future generations will never have to deal with the consequences brought on by illegal trafficking ever again!
