Sooooooo CUTE!!!!!!!

[JeannetteC]

DD just shared this with me. He's so adorable!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyDVGOv2Gx4

[kate3]

Love the eyes. What is it? A possum or monkey with panda eyes?

[kathybessey]

It is called a Loris and they are mammals that are endangered.

[kate3]

It is called a Loris and they are mammals that are endangered.

Why do you think they keep it in a pile of plates on a table? It looks like it needs a dark, quiet, snug space to feel safe.

[JeannetteC]

It is called a Loris and they are mammals that are endangered.

We wondered too. Thanks for the info.

[Retta]

Aw - I know you said it was a Loris, do they sometimes call them Sugar Babies?

[kate3]

If it is endangered then they shouldn't have one on their table. Unless they are saving it to set it free but then it still shouldn't be on a table being combed. It won't know how to be wild and survive. That is a big no no here. So many of our creatures are protected. If a possum gets into your roof you can't get it out yourself or hurt it. You have to get a trap cage from the Council and catch it. Then take it to a wildlife place if it comes back to your roof then you just have to live with it. Ours likes bread with apricot jam on it, we gave up and put a table on the outside of the house for him. He is huge or she is. It only gets a treat once or twice a month but I know it will die of old age in my roof. Only coming out at night to play.

[Retta]

wow. we have opossums here and they are not pets. We could share them with you and maybe they wouldn't be endangered. Seriously, not here, there are more hit on the road at night then bother most people. No shortage here. Are they the same as ours?

[Mary Kobe]

Retta, I agree! We can share them with Kate! Those things freak me out! I don't think there is anything cute about them. Gives me the shivvers to think of them. And they can be MEAN!

[Retta]

You have that right Mary!

[meme]

Adorable! When I was a kid we saved a raccoon; it was a baby and bottle fed it. We named her Rascal; she was alot of fun. We did release her though but had fun first and she was quite pampered. My brother found some baby raccoons abandoned(we assumed the mommy died; she wasn't around); I took care of one for a little bit and had it litter trained like a cat. He lives in the country and released them. They are soooo sweet!

[kate3]

wow. we have opossums here and they are not pets. We could share them with you and maybe they wouldn't be endangered. Seriously, not here, there are more hit on the road at night then bother most people. No shortage here. Are they the same as ours?

Retta, We have lots of possums. They are not endangered but they are cute. As a child I raised many baby ones. I loved the little ring tailed ones the best and I was always walking around with one hanging by its tail from my arm. Some of the bigger ones can be mean. I would not go near the one in my roof, it wasn't hand raised and it is full grown.
We have 10 out of 12 of the worlds most deadly snakes. There is no shortage of those either but they are all protected along with alligators, crocodiles and sharks. I am really careful in spring and summer going to my mail box and looking out for snakes. There is too much ground covering and trees around my mail box planted by the first owners.
Kangaroo's are protected and we find them every where dead on the roads because there are so many of them. You can get a license to shoot some but I couldn't. This makes me laugh because the Government took all of the guns away. So I guess the license isn't much good. Koala's are protected, we rarely see one as they come out at night and in the day they blend into the trees. Now there are so many they want to cull them.

[kathybessey]

I have known a few people that kept opossums as pets - why I could not quite figure out but they loved them.

In answer to Retta's question earlier - the Sugar Glider - sometimes referred to as a Sugar Baby - are not the same as a Loris. The Sugar Glider is native to Australia and Indonesia and are a marsupial.

The Loris is a primate and is generally from areas in Southeast Asia. All but one species of the Loris are threatened and three of the species are endangered. The Horton Plains species (from the Sri Lanka area) was believed to be extinct because none of these animals had been seen since 1939 however in 2002 it was reporting as being spotted and researches began their search for the animal. The first photographs of the Horton Plains species were captured later that year and it was removed from the extinct list and put on the endangered red list.

OK so there is your lesson Sugar Gliders and Loris

[Gigi]

Thanks Kathy - interesting information! I remember the first time I saw Sugar Babies I thought they were adorable. Probably like anything - they are as long as they are at a distance!!

[kathybessey]

Gigi the Sugar Babies actually are a booming business in the exotic pet world - they call them part of the "pocket pets" and as long as you are willing to devote 12-15 years to them and either spend 6 or so hours a day with them then they need a companion Sugar Baby. Like anything that people take to domesticating there is an abundance of Sugar Baby orphans and rescue centers for the abused and neglected ones.

I am passionate about animals - especially the "exotic" ones. I spent 10 years rescuing parrots from abusive homes. Many times these were wild caught birds smuggled into our country and sold much cheaper than a domesticated, hand raised parrot. These wilds turned into "pets" became the target of abuse by their owners because the birds would bite them and destroy anything in their path (wooden furniture, electric and phone cords, etc). We would take in these abused, malnourished birds, bring them back up to health and either find a zoo or other habitat for them or if they were hand raised birds, rehabilitate them into loving pets and find homes for them. (I was trying to find a picture of me and some of the parrots but do not have them on this new computer LOL)

[Gigi]

Oh wow, Kathy - what rewarding work that would be.

I have a real short fuse for people who abuse animals of any kind I just do not understand it. They need attention and love and you can't just ignore them!! Why do people get pets, even exotic ones, if they are not going to devote some time to them. I guess they just don't do their homework, but unfortunately the animal pays the price.

Thanks for all of the good work you did - that is so wonderful. Would love to see a picture if you find one!

[Retta]

Kate and Kathie thanks for the lesson, I always learn so much.

[Suzan]

Wow Kathy you are a plethra of information. Where were you when I had to do reports.

[kathybessey]

LOL Suzan! Writing my own reports LOL

[JeannetteC]

That's really cool Kathy! I know some people here who do a similar thing with wild animals that have been hurt, like squirrels and birds. They take care of them in their home until they are able to be released back into their environment.
It's a real shame when wild animals are exploited as pets and especially when people neglect them. That's a great thing that you do Kathy!