Facebook complicit in selling of exotic animals

​worldanimalnews.com/signatures-needed-why-is-facebook-allowing-endangered-species-to-be-sold-on-their-platform-in-thailand/

Despite joining several large companies in the fight to stop the sale and export of wild and endangered animals in Thailand, it appears Facebook has been caught selling ads on the pages of groups that do just that. They claim their policy is to shut down these groups and close their pages to prevent the dsale of these exotic animals and yet, there are approximately 1500 wild and exotic animals currently for sale on groups in Thailand. Something doesn't add up here.

I remember first seeing a photo of a Fennec fox, teeny tiny, gigantic ears, and full of energy. I thought, what an amazing and fun pet that would be to own. I decided to do some research online and actually found some breeders who seemed legit to me and began doing some background research. Amidst my research, I discovered there were hundreds of varieties of exotic or wild animals for sale that were super unique and fun. Videos of slow loris' for example flooded my screen depicting a cute, bug eyed animal that seemed wholly content on being pet and contained within a household. The reality is far more sinister.

Often times, these animals are stolen from the wild and bred under suspicious circumstances for profit. The fact of the matter is, wild animals need to remain just that, completely wild. In some cases, these Thailand groups were selling animals that were listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act which is horrifying. As the article suggests, plucking even one of these endangered animals from the wild leaves these animals at risk of going extinct in the wild. There is absolutely nothing positive about purchasing a wild or exotic animal. In almost every case, you are contributing to the decline of the species in the wild. I've read several stories about sugar gliders that died within weeks of being contained within someones home / cage. The fact is, these animals are not destined to be house pets and need to remain in the wild.

Facebook needs to step up their efforts to shut down these groups and condemn their actions to demonstrate that they are truly committed to stopping the sale of these exotic and endangered animals. Profiting off of ads within these groups while also speaking out and supposedly committing to shutting them down is complete hypocrisy and suggests that money is the ultimate motive here. As I said, Facebook should be ashamed and should ramp up its efforts to shut these groups down entirely and prevent the future sale of exotic animals.

Look guys, the allure of owning an animal that is exotic and unique is undeniable, but the fact is, you will be contributing to the species' demise and contributing to an industry that is deplorable. There's no such thing as a wild animal that suddenly becomes a house pet, if it seems suspicious, it most likely is and has involved some shady and cruel methods of obtaining the animals. Always do your research before purchasing any kind of animal but stay far away from the exotic ones. Also, always adopt over shopping for pets. Pure bred animals are great but the fact is, there are people who are profiting off of breeding these gorgeous animals while dogs, cats, and other small animals die waiting for forever homes in shelters. Always opt to adopt over shopping <3

HAPPY VEG