As part of the exotic pets campaign started by members of Nottingham Animal Rights, the group aim to raise awareness about the exotic pet trade.

The campaigners have been leafleting outside the shop in the hope of educating the public of the welfare issues of this trade.

Protesters gathered outside the store on the 3rd September in the evening with leaflets and posters when, shortly after their arrival, the owners closed the store an hour early and left the campaigners outside the shop. The protesters received support from the locals who honked their horns in support of the protesters, took leaflets and showed interest by asking questions and got into conversations with the protesters discussing welfare issues in the trade.

More than 1,000 different species of exotic animals are kept by private keepers in the UK, outnumbering the range of traditional domesticated species such as cats and dogs and making exotic animals (those who are non-native and non-domesticated) the fastest growing sector in the UK pet market. One study found over 150 big cats (including 12 lions and 14 tigers), 500 monkeys and 250 poisonous snakes licensed to private keepers in the UK.

New World Exotics are currently selling animals such as meerkats and skunks as pets, The exotic pets campaign are concerned of the ethics of selling such animals as pets when, for example, meerkats are extremely industrious and in a single morning can dig several hundred holes in search of food. They also build burrows and dens that go up to 8ft underground. A meerkat's natural habitat and social hierarchy is something that even zoos struggle to satisfactorily replicate and both their physical and behavioral needs are very difficult to meet in captivity.

There are many reasons why skunks do not make good pets: they have large, sharp canines and cause considerable damage when they bite; they have powerful front claws used for digging burrows; and in the wild they occupy territory of up to 8 square miles.

Skunks have two anal scent glands which produce a mixture of noxious chemicals that have a highly offensive smell strong enough to ward off bears and other potential predators! Muscles located next to the scent glands allow skunks to spray with high accuracy over a distance of up to 15ft. In the UK it is now illegal to have a skunk de-scented, with the Animal Welfare Act declaring this procedure to be an unnecessary mutilation. This means that within the UK all skunks born from 2007 onwards must be entire. Imported skunks should not be on sale within the UK as there are currently no quarantine facilities for them.

Campaigners are concerned at this trade promoting the exotic pets "craze" is irresponsible with the amount of stray "companion animals" such as dogs and cats that are already destroyed on a daily basis because there are not enough homes for them, and now with the rise in popularity of exotic pets we are finding more and more of these animals becoming unwanted after the novelty of these pets wear off and people realising the responsibility they have taken on. Even captive bred animals still show a lot of the instincts as those of their kind found in the wild. Can your home really provide all these animals needs??

For more information contact  exoticpetcampaign@live.co.uk or visit  http://www.exotic-pet-campaign.weebly.com