Pets May Pose Several Health Risks In The U.S
According to a recent survey, exotic animals, that are captured in the wild, are being imported into the U.S. by the millions with little or no screening for disease. This is making the Americans more vulnerable to a disease outbreak.
Parents in the U.S usually get the latest fancy pets to please their kids, but in the bargain forget that they are risking the health of their kids. There are more than 650 million exotic pets brought into the United States in the past three years. And wait these are just the number of pets imported legally. There are countless more pets that are smuggled across the borders illegaly as there is a huge demand for such wildlife.
And most wildlife arrives with no screening for disease, from places as far as Africa, Asia and South America. Scientists fear that bacteria and viruses are carried to the States and may infect humans. There are several zoonotic diseases that jump to humans from animals.
There are around 50 million people worldwide who have been infected with zoonotic diseases since 2000 and as many as 78,000 have died. So the next time you think of getting an exotic pet, get it properly checked for any diseases.