The Dangers of Exotic Animals and Food

Although most people look at exotic animals as something beautiful, there are many dangers to them. The smuggling of animals is becoming huge, especially birds, now with the threat of bird flu. Smugglers are finding new and inventive ways to smuggle exotic birds into the country, which could potentially carry the bird flu. Most exotic animals can not be brought into the United States, and those that are allowed must be quarantined first. But many smugglers don’t want to run the risk of their animals being illegal or sick, so they sneak them in.
The risks also lie in food that can be smuggled into the country. Many things in other countries are considered delicacies such as duck eggs or certain meats that are hard to find in America. Yet people that may be from those countries want a taste of home. So they buy these delicacies from the black market. Not realizes that what they are eating could contain anything from Ebola to the bird flu.
The illegal smuggling of these types of things is becoming a huge problem for the health of the nation. And although inspectors are trying hard to find these smugglers and stop them, new ways of smuggling are being found. Anywhere from putting sedated birds into a hair curler to putting them into small tubes and taping them around their legs. This problem needs to be stopped in order to keep unwanted diseases out.