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The illegal trade of animals as pets is a huge business earning black market breeders and trappers millions of dollars each year. They often trade in endangered and unique species, but some crooks lost out on a payday when 700 endangered pig-nosed turtles were saved in Indonesia.

The pig-nosed turtles were being smuggled through Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Jakarta and were likely being transported to Europe or Asia to be sold off as pets. The person suspected behind the act is under investigation. The species is only found in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea and their numbers are dwindling because of fishing, hunting and illegal trading.

The illegal pet trade impacts all rare and endangered animals, large and small. They are willing to chance getting caught because the payoff is so large. Apparently, the rich and ruthless aren’t happy with their purebred Pomeranians and want something a little more exotic. Sometimes the impact of the trade could be devastating. In Thailand, criminals were caught with 54 ploughshare tortoises. It’s believed that there are only 600 of them in the world, so that 54 represents about 10 percent of the total population.

Imagine if suddenly 10 percent of the world’s German Shepherds disappeared over night. The animals that are used for illegal trade are not treated properly and are purchased by people who don’t understand their diet, health and environmental needs.

Many of them are treated as prized pets until they lose their luster and soon find themselves either back on the black market or dead. It’s a shame that some of the most beautiful and exotic animals are hunted down to near extinction and then their remaining bretheren are kidnapped from their natural habitat and sold on the black market.

These two incidents are only a small fraction of the total illegal pet trade industry. Many people know about the killing of animals for their body parts, but few consider the multimillion dollar illegal animal trade. 

Photo courtesy of Animal Tourism