# comparethemeerkats.com



## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

CBBC Newsround | Animals | Warning against meerkats as pets

so what does the breeder keep them in some parts are a bit of a joke IMO x


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## farmercoope (Aug 19, 2008)

What do you mean what does he keep them in? I totally agree with the article tbh.


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## alan66 (Jul 15, 2009)

We have a small Mob that started as a rescued pair.

I agree fully. Meerkats are very poor pets, UNLESS you can devote 18 hours a day to their entertainment and well being AND they have been hand raised.


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## farmercoope (Aug 19, 2008)

I also believe they should only be hand-raised if absolutely necessary, and if not, shouldnt be kept on their own, even for a short time, they know their meerkats and they need company.


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## Cranwelli (Mar 24, 2009)

For God's sake what is it with human mentality.


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## alan66 (Jul 15, 2009)

?????


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

alan66 said:


> ?????


thats wat i thought too alan :gasp:


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## alan66 (Jul 15, 2009)

I have experience of all kinds of animals, from gerbils to wild lions, and I can honestly say that meerkats are the most intensive I have ever had the pleasure of.

If you can devote the next 12 years to them, they are the best pet the good lord invented. If you cannot, you end up with a 30cm east end gangster.

They get nervous and skittish, and if these guys attack, you don't want to be anywhere near - just ask our dog!!!!

If you want to see how good they can be, come meet our 6 month old male in Wakefield at the Pets at Home store this Sunday. If you want to see what they normally are, watch one rip her sister to pieces in Meerkat Manor.

Our zoo vet reckons on them being the most vicious animal in the world!!

Alan


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## Marcia (Aug 23, 2009)

I agree with the article.


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## kodakira (Jul 11, 2008)

It depends on what you class as a pet.

We have two groups of Meerkats and are kept in large pit like enclosure. They let us stroke them on their terms.

Just becuase an aminal isn't tame and handleable does not mean it is not a pet. Or shall I say thats the way i look at it.

We love all our animals not matter whether they are handleable or not and class them all as pets.

As for Meerkats I believe they should not be kept singly and should be kept in in a large a group as possible. In my opinion a person cannot give the attention and social interaction a Meerkat needs and therefore they need to be kept as a group.

Meerkats make good pets but not all people can provide suitable homes and enviroments.

As for a Meerkat bite, well I have got a scar on my thumb even though I was wearing animal guantlets.

Best Wishes

Neil


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

I admit, I want at least a couple of meerkats in the future. Neil, wanna swap 2 meerkats for 2 marmosets? hehe


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

i agree with the article in some ways but if the breeder of meerkats doesnt reccomend them as pets why is he breeding them for zoo's? unless he is a zoo keeper but then it would say a zoo keeper at X zoo has a breeding progamme blah blah and he says " " now do you get me??

ill watch it again but i cant remember what it says....

also i agree with Neil some people keep huge venomouse snakes that cant be handled they are still at the end of the day a pet ,,, buttons dont like being handled but i still love him he is still my pet.

colin (not picking you out) you have to wear a balaclaver when entering your PET marms cage they do not give you snugggles but they are still you pets ??


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## alan66 (Jul 15, 2009)

But the context is that people are buying them expecting a cute, Alexander style meerkat. This is achievable, we have achieved it.

The more common result is a whirlwind with teeth and a bad attitude.

I agree. If your idea of a pet is something to watch and look after, then fine, but in this instance you need not one, but many. If your idea is a character animal that enjoys a cuddle and sleeps in front of the fire, you are much less likely to get it.

There are numerous success stories, but for each of them I can give you 10 disasters.

Alan


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

alan66 said:


> But the context is that people are buying them expecting a cute, Alexander style meerkat. This is achievable, we have achieved it.
> 
> The more common result is a whirlwind with teeth and a bad attitude.
> 
> ...


right yeah thats what i meant though....

i do agree and dissagree with it,,, i agree meerkats are not what they show on the telly but you would think they would guess that, right?? nahh im dreaming everything gets its bad press look at the recent hedgehog press and the skunks press and glider press even rats bad press 

suppose it has more to agree with than to dissagree on but yes i do see it differently but im not one of the idiots that think if i get a meerkat im gunna have a teddy bear so tbh i find it pointless but thats just the way i see things


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

quilson_mc_spike said:


> i agree with the article in some ways but if the breeder of meerkats doesnt reccomend them as pets why is he breeding them for zoo's? unless he is a zoo keeper but then it would say a zoo keeper at X zoo has a breeding progamme blah blah and he says " " now do you get me??
> 
> ill watch it again but i cant remember what it says....
> 
> ...


Connor, I only wear a balaclava, etc when I go in the aviary when my pair have young babies. 

But yes, my adult marmosets are not handleable as in cuddly, but yes they are my pets & I love them.


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

Zoo-Man said:


> Connor, I only wear a balaclava, etc when I go in the aviary when my pair have young babies.
> 
> But yes, my adult marmosets are not handleable as in cuddly, but yes they are my pets & I love them.


yeah but still that doesnt defy the point you have had to and will have to do it at some point.,..


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

quilson_mc_spike said:


> yeah but still that doesnt defy the point you have had to and will have to do it at some point.,..


Yeah...


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## animalsbeebee (May 19, 2008)

I dont know where you have all been getting your meerkats from,i had a group of four and they were never aggresive in 9 years,maybe i was lucky.The only really nasty one was one i hand reared(buried by mother),and that was fantastic with the owners but evil with anyone else.In realistic terms there are hardly hundreds of meerkats offered for sale anyway,so its not like nip down to local pet shop and buy one for a fiver.It is yet another case of a self appointed expert telling what can and cannot be kept by private people.Every animal should be kept correctly,but you will always get the ones that are not,even some animals not on display in zoos are not housed correctly,but the general public dont get to see that.


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## SilverSteno (Feb 12, 2006)

I think this article is more for the fear that there is going to be a repeat of Nemo, 101 dalmations etc where people saw a cute animal on TV and thought "I want one" without even considering if they could even take care of that animal and as a result many ended up dead/abandoned, not to mention the damage the boost in clownfish trade after Finding Nemo did to wild clownfish populations! Fotunately as meerkats are not easy to get hold of there is unlikely to be much of a case of that but there are always some people out there that are looking to make easy money out of exploiting the "in" critter without a care for the welfare of the animal.

I think getting the information out there - that a meerkat isn't like a dog or a cat or a rat is a good thing to be doing, and I think more proactive action like this should be taken when there is a risk that a movie or something on the TV may result in people wanting something that they may not be able to care for. Or at the very least, get them to look at the requirements that animal needs and then considering if they can cater for that animals needs.


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## Twiglet (May 6, 2009)

SilverSteno said:


> I think this article is more for the fear that there is going to be a repeat of Nemo, 101 dalmations etc where people saw a cute animal on TV and thought "I want one" without even considering if they could even take care of that animal and as a result many ended up dead/abandoned, not to mention the damage the boost in clownfish trade after Finding Nemo did to wild clownfish populations! Fotunately as meerkats are not easy to get hold of there is unlikely to be much of a case of that but there are always some people out there that are looking to make easy money out of exploiting the "in" critter without a care for the welfare of the animal.
> 
> I think getting the information out there - that a meerkat isn't like a dog or a cat or a rat is a good thing to be doing, and I think more proactive action like this should be taken when there is a risk that a movie or something on the TV may result in people wanting something that they may not be able to care for. Or at the very least, get them to look at the requirements that animal needs and then considering if they can cater for that animals needs.


 
As with everything, none of the above would ever become such a problem if only the people (breeders/shops/whatever) doing the selling bothered to ensure that the persons taking on the animal were capable of their upkeep. 
THAT to me is the main issue. 
Its got nothing to do whith what species can and cant be kept in private hands and everything to do with the right information being given out at the time. 
I quite agree that animals such as meerkats (or any animal for that matter) should never be bought on a whim because there was a cute one on tv (and I saw first hand the result of finding nemo... If i EVER have to hear another person ask me if they can buy a nemo to go with their goldfish or live in their pond I'm in danger of spontaneous combustion....)
Anyway.. if the sellers did their job properly in the first place there would be far less risk of animals ending up in inexperienced or incapable hands. 
Its up to them (in my opinion) to ensure that a potential buyer has already got a suitable enclosure, has done their research, has the capability to look after the animal etc etc. 

Just my opinion. 

Kat


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## SilverSteno (Feb 12, 2006)

Twiglet said:


> As with everything, none of the above would ever become such a problem if only the people (breeders/shops/whatever) doing the selling bothered to ensure that the persons taking on the animal were capable of their upkeep.
> THAT to me is the main issue.
> Its got nothing to do whith what species can and cant be kept in private hands and everything to do with the right information being given out at the time.
> I quite agree that animals such as meerkats (or any animal for that matter) should never be bought on a whim because there was a cute one on tv (and I saw first hand the result of finding nemo... If i EVER have to hear another person ask me if they can buy a nemo to go with their goldfish or live in their pond I'm in danger of spontaneous combustion....)
> ...


I agree, unfortunately there are people out there that aren't responsible sellers that are just in it for the money and don't care what happens to the animal after it has left their hands so it is important that people know what is and isn't a suitable pet for them. The buyers themselves though do hold some of the blame as they should research the animal before they even consider buying it, but again that doesn't always happen, which is how people ended up with dead "nemo's" because they placed them in fresh water instead of salt and couldn't understand why their pretty little fish is floating upside down on the surface! There is fault on both side - there will always be the "I want" people who just want something fancy and don't do their research and there will always be the rougue traders that are happy to suppy their needs for whatever happens to be trendy at the time, and this doesn't just applies to pets! As long as there are people out there that will sell to any numpty that happens to come along there needs to be something to reduce the risks to animals that have become "trendy" by educating those that may consider that animal as a pet.

The key here is to make sure as many people are aware of what an animal needs before they even consider taking the next step. As the link in particular is aimed a children, it will hopefully make them think a lot more about the pets they want and the time and commitment animals need, and that will hopefully be something they will keep throughout adulthood.


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