If you're thinking of buying someone a pet for Christmas – and I really hope you're not – then this new website is worth a look.
Put together by vets and other scientists, it ranks creatures by the difficulty in keeping them at home using a ranking system called EMODE, or easy, moderate, difficult or extreme.
Research shows that 75% of pet reptiles and more than 90% of fish do not survive their first year as a house pet.
One of the people behind the free website emodepetscore.com is biologist and medical scientist Clifford Warwick, who developed it to challenge claims that many animals are easy to keep.
“All too often animals become premature victims of impulsive decisions based on a pet shop or forum recommendation,” he said.
“Behind the frontage of much of the pet industry resides a network responsible for incalculable animal suffering, ecological harm, and public health and safety concerns.”
Elaine Toland of the Animal Protection Agency said: “Never buy a pet as a present – animals deserve more respect.
“Taking on any animal as a pet is a major undertaking and should require a lot thought and research beforehand. The EMODE Pet Score website is a very good place to start.”
Owners and their families can also become victims of exotic pets by contracting infections.
Annually in the UK around 6,000 cases of salmonellosis may be attributable to pet reptiles, says the Emergent Disease Foundation, and one study found that 27% of children under five that were hospitalized with salmonella infections contracted their illness from pet reptiles.
Foundation trustee Catrina Steedman said: “Whether cute or curious, too many pets are annual victims of impulse purchases, and too many people also end up as casualties because they were misled into believing the animal to be ‘easy to keep’.
“EMODE Pet Score will help avoid unknowingly inviting infection into the home.”
