KEEPING WILDLIFE

 

But I can raise it myself:

  1. Wildlife can transmit diseases to you, your children and your pets

  2. Wild animals need special experienced care. They require specific needs for nutrition, housing and socialization.

  3. Many animals require veterinary care which you cannot seek, because you have an "illegal" animal.

  4. All wildlife animals are protected under state or federal laws or both. It is illegal to possess a wild animal - even if you are trying to help it.

  5. If you want to teach your children about wildlife by caring for those baby bunnies or that nest of birds, most likely the only lesson they will learn is about suffering and death.

  6. Wild animals raised alone become "imprinted" on humans. They will not recognize their own kind and will never breed. They are never quite wild and never quite tame, being caught in a limbo that offers nothing except frustration, rejection and confusion

 But I want to keep it as a pet:

  1. WILD ANIMALS DO NOT MAKE GOOD PETS - PERIOD.

  2. Even the "tamest" animal is unpredictable and can attack .

  3. The constant stress of captivity will weaken the animals immune system, resulting in disease and often death.

  4. Some wild animals harbor disease and parasites fatal to humans and domestic pets.

  5. All wildlife animals are protected under state or federal laws or both. It is illegal to possess a wild animal, and if caught, you will be fined and the animal will be confiscated. Animals that have been habituated to humans, often cannot be released into the wild and are destroyed.

  6. If you love that animal, love it unselfishly. Allow it to live the live it was created for: wild and free.

 

Contact a Rehabilitators in Pennsylvania

This page used but permission of
Red Creek Wildlife Center