Pets can make your life a lot more fun and interesting. Celebrities have owned exotic pets for a long time—think about Michael Jackson and his pet chimp Bubbles. 90s one hit wonder Sisqo owned a tiger. If an adorable kitten or puppy seems too mainstream, you may be tempted to think outside the box. But here are some exotic pets you definitely shouldn’t think about owning.
Capuchin
Justin Bieber had one of these primates as a pet. So did Ross on the show “Friends.” But even though they’re adorable, capuchins don’t actually make great pets. They require constant socialization with other animals of their species, which isn’t easy to make happen. (How many people do you know who have capuchins, anyway? It’s not like there are playgroups, either.) Capuchins also tend to be aggressive once they reach sexual maturity. Maybe you should just look at them at the zoo instead.
Chimpanzee
Sure, it was good enough for Jacko. But not only are chimps expensive, they’re also potentially really dangerous. Their upper body strength is five times greater than that of a human. Most chimps sold as pets were removed from their mothers shortly after birth, which is not only cruel but also affects their socialization. Chimpanzees are also prone to attacking humans, which has in some cases led to serious facial injuries. Chimps are cute and smart, but it’s probably better not to have one as a pet.
Fennec Fox
Fennec foxes look like a cross between a dog and a cat. They look more like a cat but are technically in the dog family. You’ll fall in love with their adorably big ears. But this is a case where appearances can be deceiving, because fennec foxes are hunters and diggers who belong in a desert. They need to live in large groups in the wild, not in your apartment.
Capybaras
Capybaras are the largest animals in the rodent family—in fact, they grow to over 100 pounds. They’ve become an increasingly popular choice as pets because people think they’re trainable and social. However, this may be more myth than reality. Male capybaras are actually quite aggressive with each other. Even if you have only one female capybara, coexisting with humans isn’t really the best option for these animals. They need to be around bodies of water like streams and lakes. A pool or bathtub isn’t the same.
Sloths
Sloths are amusing and have gained popularity as pets thanks to some outdated memes. They also tend to be gentle, which makes them seem like an ideal pet. But the problem with keeping a sloth as a pet is more about your environment than about their suitability as an animal companion. Sloths need to be in a humid environment where they can swing from branches all day. Unless you feel like cranking up your heat, running a humidifier 24/7 and doing some construction, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to provide the environment to make sloths happy. Again, it’s better to visit these animals at the zoo than to keep them as pets.
