True, that's why my friend also taught me some some steps to avoid such tragedies, and of course with the right handling tools it can be very safe.

After being rescued, a stray Cat will wolf down any food presented, even to the extent of making himself sick. Within a short time, weeks or months, depending on the individual, he will eat what he wants and leave the rest, knowing that he can come back to it within an hour or two, and there will be more food later in the day.

I can only speak for Cats, but it indicates the animal’s ability to understand when the circumstances have changed.

Personally I enjoy housecats the most. Reptiles such as snakes and chameleons are interesting as well. I suppose I like these animals the most because I am most comfortable around them, unless the snake is of course a twenty foot anaconda or an immense sea serpent!

I am not fond of large wild predators as I have been stalked by mountain bears and mountain cats before and let me tell you it is not a situation you would enjoy being in without protection!

Copperhead bites are unlikely to be fatal, but because they deploy a hemotoxic venom, localized tissue damage can occur and can cause permanent damage, including lost fingers.

I have two cats and a bunch of rats. They play together.

You being the resident snake wrangler I appreciate your jumping in here.

There are always nitwits that will take a statement such as "not lethal to humans" and put it to the test. And for those people, it bore pointing out that however unlikely it may be, that does not mean never.

Any venomous snake should be handled exactly like a venomous snake and not taken for granted.

First, as I've pointed out, even low-toxicity venomous snakes can cause considerable local damage; hemotoxins causing direct tissue destruction, and some neurotoxins can cause nerve damage. Since most of us prefer to keep our fingers and hands intact, grabbing venomous snakes, even those deemed unlikely to be fatal, is a stupid ass idea. This is like saying "oven burns are rarely fatal" and deciding this means you don't need oven mitts.

Second, venom itself is a cocktail of exotic proteins. Many people realize that even non-venomous reptiles can actually cause allergic reactions from bites, as their salivas can and do trigger reactions in some people (compare to allergic reactions to bee stings). Envenomation injects a considerable dose of varied and intentionally destructive proteins into your blood stream. If you do happen to have an allergy to one of them, this is a pretty damn good way to find out.

The ONLY venomous snakes I'd even consider letting your guard down with are extremely low-toxicity rear-fanged colubrids; the most common of these are hog-nosed snakes. This is chiefly because their fangs are positioned at the back of their mouth and are thus unlikely to even be able to reach your skin to penetrate it, although larger, high-toxicity rear-fanged colubrids such as boomslangs can and have caused fatalities. Safe to say that ever viperid and elapid (in laymans terms, all snakes of the viper/rattlesnake/pit viper variety, or the cobra/krait/mamba/coral snake variety) should be treated as a dangerously venomous snake. That includes copperheads.

I should also note, if you do sustain a copperhead bite, you still need medical attention. It is true that many hospitals opt not to administer antivenin for most copperhead bites, but they do administer steroids and other drugs to reduce swelling and tissue damage (a lot of tissue damage comes from local swelling causing arterial constriction, and hence tissue death of lack of blood flow), as well as pain killers to make that burning feeling a little less shitty - because if there's one thing vipers excel at, it's REALLY painful bites.

In this particular case, looks like the chimpanzee was the victim of a human who kept it in stressful conditions (looks like she even gave alcohol to the animal)

But still, it's not a good idea to have as a pet a creature that is basically 98% human, with the same short temper and anger as me but three times the muscular strength.

Dogs were the first animal that humans domesticated, and they are still my favorite. I like that they are so happily interactive with their human owners. Unlike most house pets, you can take them to the park, to the lake, to the beach, etc. They respond to training in a way that no other house pets do, and once you've taught them the rules, they generally won't screw up any of your stuff unless you leave them alone for a very long time. Another thing that distinguishes them from your other house pets is that most dogs will fight to protect their owner and, in general they will alert you to an intruder on your property. They guard your lair, which in my opinion is fairly important.

I also look at it from a usefulness perspective. A pet consumes resources that I could be spending on myself, so I prefer to own a pet that not only serves to function as humanity's oldest security system, but who is also friendly and loyal. In my opinion, they are the perfect pet.

For pure visual pleasure, I also enjoy fish, although I do not currently possess any. A friend of mine had invested the money into a rather large saltwater tank, complete with coral, as well as tropical fish. The fish were very colorful and active, and I thought that he was getting value out of his choice of pet.

Not really a fan of cats as house pets, but it's nice to keep a cat around outside. A good outdoor cat will keep your place clear of rats, mice, possum, moles, and squirrels.

Although I'm not violent, I would recommend that people not acquire pets that they cannot physically dominate. Apes, bears, cougars, tigers, etc, are probably a bad idea, because you don't want a potentially aggressive animal that knows it is stronger than you.

I personally have a cat, 10 or so fish, and 3 frogs (White's Dumpy Treefrog, Tomatoe Frog, and Green Treefrog). I have to keep Tom Atoe away from the other two as it is more agressive, but alone is pretty tame. Dumpy enjoys his time perched on My stomach, and the Green Treefrog just stays in the tank.

I have taken care of Red-Tailed Hawks for a short time before taking them to a zoor or what have you to gain better treatment.

Basher, I may not have been stalked by a bear, but I have been stalked by a Cougar and a Coyote, and I agree, it is not a pleasent situation to find yourself in. My girlfriend at the time kept freaking out, I kept having to remind her to take slow deep breaths, to calm down.

As far as "owning" an undomesticated animal, when, and if, I have the proper amount of land, I would like to take care of a Fox, specifically a Fennac Fox. To My knowledge, these are the only Foxes you can legally own. They come from Africa, their huge ears help them to adjust to different climates. I am hesitant though, as I do prefer animals being in their natural habitat. Again, just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

Couldn't agree more, though here i got my own personal medication locker. iv got a reasonable variety of the necessary medication including "Anti-venom". And to be frank, it is scary sometimes. specially if a friend accidentally tampers with the cage trying to open it to see the "cute" snake and bite his neck... If there's anyone here who is considering to buy a pet-snake, make sure your fully prepared, accidents DO happen.

I have a Gecko called Loki and she can be curious can the saying be stretched to "curiosity killed the leopard Gecko"

I've heard some who keep venomous snakes say they do or would like to keep antivenin on hand, but frankly I don't see the point unless you are keeping exotic snakes and no hospital or zoo nearby keeps antivenin on hand. Antivenin has a shelf life, and not a long one, so unless you're running a major operation where antivenin is really necessary, you're probably just going to throw it away and waste the hundreds of dollars it takes to acquire it. Nevermind that it can only be legally administered by a doctor, so paramedics will still have to haul you to the hospital before you get it.

If you're keeping a venomous snake native to the US (and live in the US), especially a rattlesnake or other viper, it's superfluous anyway. Cro-Fab polyvalent antivenin is stocked by most major hospitals and covers the spectrum of viperid venoms.

Why aren't spiders suitable to become pets?

Provided you have the adequate means to keep the animal, I can't think of any not suitable to become pets. I would not like personally to have birds as pets though, as I think their place is free flying in the sky but I wouldn't say they aren't suitable to be pets, just not mine.

- I have cats, and I don't think cats and spiders go well together.

Many species of spiders can escape through small crevices, so I wouldn't take that chance.

It's all about being responsible, one little mistake from me could cause big damage to my cats.

I think Spiders can be fascinating to watch in nature, but I don't want them in my home (Only the small ones who is already here are welcome. Also because my cats get some entertainment by them) - But each to their own.