I would have to say that of all the stories about animals and people, this one affected me more than most. A director of a wildlife sanctuary in Oregon was killed by a pair of cougars while cleaning their cage.

The part that got me, of course, was the fact that she had two small children. ( I can't imagine anything worse than losing my daughter-in-law )

After reading everything I could about the incident, I could picture myself being that women. If I had two animals that I had known forever, I would have been a victim as well. Once again, wild animals, no matter how long you've kept or known them, are wild!

We hear the stories all the time about some child being strangled to death in his sleep by the family python.

This lady up in Oregon was tragic enough. These were animals that were supposed to be wild. It's terrible but she got too complacent. She made the mistake of growing to TRUST them.

But too many people think that having a wild animal for a PET is COOL! And exotic snakes seem to be the most popular.

I got news for these people! A snake is a snake is a snake! They CAN NOT be domesticated and they CAN NOT be tamed. A snake WILL NEVER love you! A snake will do what snakes do. You may think he's a family member and he loves you, but the first time he get's out of his cage, he'll be hunting and YOU just look like FOOD to him. When he's just a little thing wrapped around your arm, those aren't little HUGS he's giving you when he squeezes! He's telling you then, "When I get big enough, I'm gonna swallow you whole like a jelly bean!" Why? BECAUSE HE'S A SNAKE!! You idiot!

And this come from someone who actually LIKES snakes....

But, no. Paul, you are exactly right. You can not make a pet out of a wild animal. Eventually, their nature will show through. Here's a good example; Everyone I know who has ever kept a coon for a pet has been bitten by it.

Another good example; I use to keep snapping turtles just because they were so fascinating. I had one that I had kept for better than 4 years. On the day I released it, it snapped at me just as it did the day I picked it up.

I am one of those people who believe that exotic animals should be banned. No boa constrictors, no Bemis python, no spider monkeys, no cockatoos, crock-o-diles, lions, tigers or qualia bears! The biggest reason is that people can not be trusted to keep these animals contained. If you don't believe me, just ask anyone down in Florida "How goes it with the snakes?"

Always thought a Pine Marten would make a cool pet. But I know enough about their attitude to know better lol.

My sister was friends with a guy in St. Louis whose Dad kept big cats...until the day one of them killed him.
Until I worked in WC, I used to think it would be kinda cool to have something like a coon or bear of my own. Until I worked in WC and handled coons.
One of my favorite movies/stories is Born Free, the true story of Bill and Joy Adamson, who raised an African lioness from a kitten, then successfully re-introduced her to the wild. Maybe this is because lions, like canids, have true family units & pair bonding.

No animal species started out as domesticated, yet we have large numbers of domestic animals now. Years of selective breeding went into animals such as cattle, pigs, chickens, goats and dogs to make them more usefull and easier to manage.

There may very well be some animals that are currently considered wild that may be extremely usefull to us once domesticated. Wild animals should be allowed to be kept, as long as proper safeguards are met.

Keith

When growing up, I used to watch Grizzly Adams and wanted a Grizz for a pet..Also found 2 wolf pups that ran alongside my dog out in the woods by a creek, when on a road trip at age 18. We named them Paco and Pancho..wanting to take them with us ,I sat and pondered awhile.

Somehow I've learned,maybe by others hardships.. You can take an animal out of the wild, but you can't take the wild out of an animal.

I understand how the woman would come to trust the cougars because of loving them so, but they still have natural instincts within their DNA. Ahh it was a sad story..

The only animal I've ever considered for a pet is the striped skunk. It's too late now of course; My wife says I'm too old and smell bad and I wouldn't want soil the reputation of a de-scented skunk.

P.S. I'm not kidding about the smell part. Every pet skunk I've ever come across, smells a heck of a lot better than your hunting dog.

Two words: Timothy Treadwell. Look it up. Sad stuff is done by those who think wildlife is their friend/soulmate.

Didn't they name a grizzly bear after him?

Can't be true.
We've been told in Oregon by our "officials" that cougars are 100% "people safe"...you just tell them no.

So, the person I did some trapping for who had a cougar stalking her kids playing outside can't tell a housecat from a cougar. Sadly...had I caught that cougar, I'd have to release it unharmed. We can't trap them here.

Much like our vegetarian coyotes only want to play with our pets and would never harm a human or pet.

Reality teaches hard lessons. It's most unfortunate a family has to suffer a loss because the human became too trusting.

Animals don't have to be wild to kill you. I've been between a ticked off Simmental bull and a gate before. I zigged when I should have zagged. I never knew I could bend a metal gate into a circle with my leg. Its not the bull or the big cat or the ladder for that matter, it is complacency that is the killer.

Oh! I thought of one!

Elephants! Man has been domesticating elephants for thousands of years now. The successfully domesticated ones are great assets to man. Strong and intelligent, they can handle many of the heavy task that we would need machines to do. They can move and lift heavy loads. They have been used to build roads, move merchandise, carry travelers, clear forest and even erect our circus tents. They bond well with their humane handlers and work for peanuts!


BUT... The wild elephants are still WILD elephants. They will stomp you into a muddy hole in the ground.