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Pets from cuddly to weird Down Under
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THE proud owner of dingo “Kimba,” James Bornstein is part of the new wave of Australian exotic pet lovers whose unconventional companions are growing in popularity.
In a country known for its unusual wildlife, Bornstein said having a sub-species of the grey wolf in his Sydney home is an opportunity to change people’s negative perceptions about the native wild dog and apex predator.
“Dingoes are so intelligent. We want people to see her (Kimba) and realize they are not vicious animals, they are just like normal dogs,” he said.
Dingoes are infamous thanks to the dramatic case of Azaria Chamberlain — a 9-week-old baby snatched by one of the animals during a camping trip in central Australia in 1980, which was made into a movie.
Bornstein hopes his efforts will increase support for conservation, as dingo numbers decline amid habitat loss and cross-breeding with domestic dogs.
His views are echoed by Ben Dessen, reptile manager at Kellyville Pets store in Sydney, who owned his first snake at just six.
“Now we see every six-year-old that we set up with their first reptile — hopefully they want to go on and protect animals and have an appreciation for how amazing these creatures are,” he says.
According to the Australian Veterinary Association, exotic pets are becoming “more and more popular,” with Australians owning millions of birds, fish, small mammals and reptiles.
Ernie Chan, a breeder who has kept up to 130 reptiles, says shrinking homes and urbanization has seen potential owners turn to smaller pets that require less maintenance.
“You don’t need to take a snake for a walk,” Chan says. “Everybody’s had dogs and cats for so many years and it’s kind of reptiles’ time to shine.”
Brooke Winters is another exotic pet convert in a nation famous for koalas, kangaroos and wombats.
“I grew up with Steve Irwin as my idol, so pretty much everything that he did I just wanted to mimic,” Winters said at Macarthur Pets, a large pet store in Sydney that she manages.
“I just feel like people don’t appreciate (reptiles) enough and treat them very differently just because they don’t have fur.”
“Crocodile Hunter” Irwin was a world-renowned conservationist whose stunts with dangerous animals drew attention to wildlife Down Under before his death a decade ago.
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