We all know pets are adorable creatures and having one around us can easily improve our mood and life in general.
Especially when you come back home from work and you find them waiting for you – hopefully without the entire house turned upside down – ready to play and cuddle.
But while most people go for either a dog or a cat, there are plenty of other interesting options out there.
From birds and amazing amphibians to creepy crawlies and marsupials, there’s a lot of cute adorable animals that you could take home.
Why don’t we take a look as we countdown 15 exotic animals that you can legally own?
TURTLES Number 15 on our list are turtles. While turtles might seem like the perfect pet—less work than dogs and cats, more interactive than fish—there are a few things to keep in mind before buying one. First, never take a wild turtle as a pet.
Chances are they won’t do well in captivity. Look into adopting a turtle from your local turtle society or petfinder before buying one.
And if you do buy, make sure it’s been born in captivity.
Because many turtles carry salmonella, young children, the elderly, pregnant women and others at risk should avoid contact with turtles or be extra careful to wash their hands thoroughly after touching them.
Connected to this risk, federal law prohibits selling turtles less than 4 inches in size because of the risk of children putting them in their mouths.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urge people to treat all turtles as if they are contaminated with salmonella, because they probably are.
Wash hands thoroughly after touching turtles, their cages or their feces, and do not touch your face, other people, or any surface until your hands have been washed.
Also, turtles should be kept separate from food and kept away with people at high risk of infection, the center advises.
Some turtles that start out small can grow to the size of a garbage can lid, so do your homework ahead of time when selecting a type and gender of turtle to call your own.
In many species, females grow to be much larger than their male counterparts, Smith says Turtles require more maintenance and space than most people generally assume, and they live for decades, so buyers should be aware that they are a pet that may well outlive them.
Turtles require a varied and sometime messy diet, room to roam in an aquarium and strict temperature control.
Their habitat needs to be cleaned more often than many people realize, although water turtles require less maintenance than box turtle or other varieties.
Turtles can be beautiful pets and are cool to have. They’re extremely interesting and have individual personalities.
But they are exotic pets, and pet store owners are generally an extremely poor source of information about them.
TARANTULA Number 14 on our list are Tarantulas. Keeping tarantulas as pets can be a fascinating hobby. They are interesting to watch, take up relatively little space, and are fairly easy to maintain.
However, tarantulas aren’t the best choice if you want a pet you can handle, as they do have venomous bites.
The best tarantulas for beginners are typically the ground dwellers, such as the curly hair tarantula.
They tend to move more slowly, which makes any necessary handling easier.
The pink toe Tarantula is often cited as a good tree-dwelling tarantula to keep, but it’s not a good first tarantula overall.
In general, tree-dwelling species are more challenging to care for because they’re quick and agile, making handling difficult.
In general, handling tarantulas is not recommended except when necessary, such as moving the spider out of its enclosure for cleaning.
In that case, it’s best to coax the spider into a small container for transport, rather than moving it in your hands.
Tarantulas are generally docile, which is why some people do allow their spiders to walk on their bodies.
However, tarantulas will bite if they feel threatened, and their bites are venomous.
A few species that usually aren’t kept as pets have venom that can make people extremely sick or kill them. But for most species, the toxicity of their venom is much like that of a bee or wasp.
It can cause a nasty local reaction that includes pain, redness, and swelling, though some people can have more serious allergic reactions that require prompt medical care.
They’re a good choice for people who want a quiet animal that doesn’t require much attention.
