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Whenever people online see cute wild animals, a common response is to say "I want one!" without realizing the gravity of that statement. For instance, there are many who keep pet primates, but realize too late that they've sold their soul to an eternal toddler. What are exotic pet species you know that aren't worth the effort of keeping? Keep in mind, this depends on how much time and effort you would dedicate to taking good care of your pet(s).

Really anything bigger than a monkey seems impossible. Big cats, ratite birds and bears sound dangerous and not just for your wallet.

A Relationship

Servals. They look cute but they're definitely high maintenance to keep.

Ratites are livestock that can be raised in a house when they're young, but not when they're older. However, let's not forget that there are forms of livestock capable of being good pets, like Vietnamese potbelly pigs.

At least we have Savannah cats to have a part of servals with us without having to deal with so much of their energy.
Surprisingly, in my native California, a state notorious for its exotic pet restrictions, wild-hybrid cat breeds (of all generations!) like the Savannah are allowed. It's because, while they have genes from wild species, they were created by intentional breeding by humans, which makes them domesticated.

Wow! That's awesome to know. It's like the best of both worlds

Anything with scales is either the easiest or most difficult thing to keep. Their weird heat, sun, and dietary restrictions make them a pain to keep.

But if you can hit that sweet spot and sink about $300+ into it the really just sit there and take care of themselves. I had some Green Anoles back in Carolina that were chill AF aside from a younger one that got rather sickly.

Green Iguanas start out out as cute little lizards and end becoming mini Godzillas, sharp teeth and claws, require lots of space, special light for heating and stuff, diet, hard to tame, territorial, yadda yadda.

Big shame how often they are sold when they require such high maintenance, many of them are sadly abandoned or have to be given away to shelters due to careless owners.

That applies to most monitor lizards as well, tbh.