Animals kept as exotic pets include but are not limited to the following:

• African Pygmy Hedgehogs
• Alligators
• Amphibians
• Arctic Foxes
• Bears
• Capybaras
• Cockatiels
• Coyotes
• Degus
• Fennec Foxes
• Genets
• Hares
• Indian Star Tortoises
• Polecats
• Raccoons
• Red Foxes
• Skunks
• Sugar Gliders
• Tame Silver Foxes
• Wallaroos
• Wolves and wolf/dog hybrids

It has been estimated that as many as 15,000 non-human primates are kept by private individuals as pets in the United States. While many professionals, including veterinarians, zoologists, humane societies and others, strongly discourage the keeping of non-human primates as pets, we reveal the top 10 exotic animals people keep as pets in the United States. These figures are according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) 2001 pet ownership statistics.

By Households (in 1,000)

#1.  Fish                                  6,396

#2.  Rabits                               1,783

#3.  All others                             839

#4.  Hamsters                             734

#5.  Turtles                                 629

#6.  Livestock                              524

#7.  Guinea pigs                          524

#8.  Ferrets                                 472

#9.  Lizards                                 419

#10. Other birds, other rodents,

other reptiles, and snakes     315

By Population (in 1,000)

#1.  Fish                                 49,251

#2.  Rabbits                              4,813

#3.  Livestock                           2,936

#4.  Other birds                        2,894

#5.  All others                           2,013

#6.  Turtles                               1,070

#7.  Ferrets                                  991

#8.  Hamsters                              881

#9.  Other rodents                        786

#10. Snakes                                 661