It’s a miracle that no one was injured when a chimpanzee named Suekko escaped from a private menagerie and wreaked havoc in Kansas City recently. Other incidents involving exotic “pets” have had very different outcomes.
Across the U.S., privately owned tigers, primates, bears, and reptiles have maimed or killed countless people. The victims have included a Connecticut woman who lost her face and hands after her friend’s pet chimpanzee snapped, a Florida toddler who was strangled to death in her crib by her family’s pet python, an Ohio man who was mauled to death by a bear, and a 9-year-old Texas girl who was killed by her stepfather’s tigers. The list goes on and on. Most animals who hurt someone are killed.
Yet there is still no federal law that prohibits private individuals from keeping exotic animals, and we’re working hard to stop the madness. Please contact our Action Team to request materials to start a campaign to ban exotic pets in your area.
Written by Jennifer O’Connor
