Animal welfare issues
Wild animals kept as pets, also known as exotic pets, often: live in inadequate housing, such as small cages; lack proper enrichment; do not have their social needs met; and are fed unsuitable diets.
Inadequate diets
A 2022 British Veterinary Association (BVA) survey revealed that 85% of vets who treat ‘exotic pets’ believe that these animals often do not receive a suitable diet.
Needs that cannot be met in captivity
Crucial requirements, like the need to burrow, fly, leap, or climb, are either very difficult, or impossible to provide in home settings. Some highly social animals, such as African Grey Parrots, are regularly kept alone, resulting in serious welfare concerns.
Inadequate housing
Animals are often kept in inadequate conditions, such as small cages, enclosures or plastic boxes. Indeed, it is common practice for breeders to keep snakes in plastic boxes so small that the snakes cannot even extend to the full length of their body.
Disease & death
Many animals taken from the wild for the exotic pet trade die during or after capture. Those who do survive and are kept in a home environment often demonstrate signs of trauma such as self-harming, fear-based aggression and repetitive stereotypic behaviours.
There are significant health concerns from inappropriate care, such as metabolic bone disease and malnutrition. Indeed, most common health conditions vets see in practice are preventable, caused by incorrect care or diet.
Lack of veterinary care
There is a shortage of experienced vets willing and able to treat wild animals kept as ‘exotic pets’, meaning that many of these animals are denied proper veterinary care.
Treated as commodities
These animals are widely treated as 'things' to be used, bought and sold. Reptiles, in particular, are widely regarded as stupid and emotionless, resulting in their distress being ignored and them being kept in small, barren enclosures.
Conservation and human health
The exotic pet trade not only raises concerns for animal welfare, but also for wildlife conservation and human health. Exotic pets can spread zoonotic diseases, and the exotic pet trade can cause population declines, threaten species with extinction, and disrupt ecosystems when pets escape or are released into the wild.
Support for permitted lists
Several EU countries, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Cyprus, and Lithuania, already have a permitted lists. In 2022, polling commissioned by Born Free revealed that 84% of Scots believed the next UK Government should tighten the rules on the trade and keeping of exotic pets.
We, the undersigned, ask the Scottish Government to introduce a permitted list that includes only species that are suitable to keep as pets, whose needs can be met in a typical home environment. We also support other changes that would help ensure a list is effective and protect animal welfare, such as better regulation of pet sales, tackling misinformation, higher minimum standards, education and demand reduction strategies, and a ban on the import of wild-caught animals.
