Munich (dpa / lby) - Because of the rising energy costs, more and more people are giving up their exotic pets in animal shelters and sanctuaries. In Bavaria, however, these stations are already overcrowded - the operators themselves do not know how to cover the costs in winter. "We can't sleep anymore because we don't know how to finance it," says Markus Baur, head of the reptile sanctuary in Munich. About a dozen e-mails and calls from reptile keepers who want to donate their animals are received there every day. But the station is already packed.
Animal protection organizations are also concerned about the well-being of exotic animals in the coming months. One finds oneself in a dilemma, says Katharina Lameter from the organization ProWildlife. At home, many people could not comply with the standards for species-appropriate animal husbandry, but they could not give the animals to the overcrowded animal shelters and sanctuaries either. Together with the German Animal Welfare Association, ProWildlife is demanding regulation of the keeping and trade of exotic animals.
