25 of the Worst Attacks by Exotic Pets
Sure, chimps, bears, tigers and even pythons can be cute. But they can also rip your face off. Here's 25 good reasons to let wild animals be wild.
February 18, 2009 at 7:38PM by Brian Clark Howard

On February 16 a 15-year-old chimpanzee named Travis seriously mauled a woman who was visiting the animal's owner -- Sandra Herold -- at a home in Stamford, CT. Herold made a terrified, shrieking 911 call, and tried stabbing Travis with a butcher knife.

When police arrived the chimp went after them, going so far as to open a cruiser door. He was shot several times, and eventually succumbed. Travis' victim was treated for serious injuries, including massive blood loss from the face. Travis had been a beloved pet who once appeared in major TV commercials, who was known and loved in the community, and who was toilet drained, dressed and bathed himself, and ate at the family dinner table (including sipping his own wine from a glass).

Travis' story is horrific and tragic. Luckily that kind of thing isn't common, but it does remind us of the tangled mess of problems, dangers and ethical questions surrounding the exotic pet trade, as well as our larger relationship to other intelligent species. We've all seen the moving images of reunification of Christian the released lion and his rescuers, but sadly that kind of happy reintroduction story is rare, too. For the most part, exotic animals do not make good pets, and the industry that supports them leaves a heavy toll on human and animal health, as well as the environment.

We're not talking about wild animal attacks, which have always happened, because we have to share this small patch of blue planet with millions of other living things. Yes, the deputy mayor of Delhi was recently killed by a horde of wild monkeys. Even more recently, a five-year-old was killed by a wild crocodile. Anyone who has ever been to an ocean beach knows that swimmers and surfers face some danger of attack by sharks, just as wilderness campers know there is a small chance they will meet a hungry, curious or provoked bear or moose.

It's true some kinds of animal attacks are increasing in some areas. In America restrictions on hunting and forest preservation have increased numbers of mountain lions, which are increasingly coming into contact with joggers and hikers as human beings fan out into the landscape in ever widening circles of sprawl. In parts of Asia where elephants are being pushed out of their native habitat by development, there have been increased rampages through villages.

Just as with dogs -- which undoubtedly injure more people than all other animals combined -- the vast majority of animal attacks are provoked by human beings, normally because of foolish or aggressive actions. Sometimes animals attack out of illness (rabies, distemper, Lyme disease, etc, which may explain Travis, pending an autopsy), to protect young or desperation.

Some attacks occur as fallout from hunting (see below), research or filming (see Anderson Cooper and Jeff Corwin or the late Steve Irwin). Many more occur as a result of animal training, particularly for circuses, or during zoo operations.

There are some who advocate for responsible exotic animal ownership, but most mainstream conservation, animal rights and animal welfare groups oppose the practice. According to the Humane Society of the U.S., exotic animals can spread diseases (including hepatitis B, salmonella, flus or monkeypox). And the harvesting of exotic animals can threaten endangered species and habitats. Captive breeding programs can be cruel and filthy, and exotic animals are often bored. They can live nearly as long as human beings, and so require constant intensive care, often beyond what owners are able to provide (remember the tiger and gator in the Harlem apartment?).

Exotic pets are not well regulated. Those who don't breed or exhibit big cats, for example, don't have to get a license. The federal government doesn't have the right to enter property and check on exotic pets like tigers or lions (though most places require individuals to inform local law enforcement of their presence). Stronger laws could be passed that require microchipping, licenses and insurance, notes HSUS.

According to HSUS, there are roughly as many tigers living in the U.S. as in the wild in the whole world, 5,000 to 7,000, with less than 10% at professional zoos and sanctuaries. Little wonder, since collectors can pick up a cub for a few hundred dollars on the Internet or from a dealer, or even get them free from people who grow tired of them. More than one crack house and fist-pounding, self-styled gangster has attempted to use big cats as "guards."

Although a great many animal attacks occur at roadside zoos, circus photo booths, and the like, we tried to make a list that focuses on some of the worst exotic pet attacks. Note that authorities believe attacks by exotic pets often go unreported, since owners are afraid their pets will be taken away and destroyed.