Keeping pets is a great way to relieve stress, as they make great friends to their owners. Many people, perhaps most, already count pets as members of their family. Those who do not own pets probably consider how great having one would be until they remember the many responsibilities that go along with raising one. Obviously the most popular pets are dogs and cats. Dogs and cats are great, especially dogs. However, these animals can demand a lot of their owners time and patience. Luckily, there are some types of pets that require almost no responsibility at all. Keeping goldfish must be boring because they cannot be handled without quickly dying as a result. But insects and spiders are a different story. Most of you know that insects, spiders and crustaceans are all classified as arthropods.
With the exception of crustaceans, keeping arthropods as pets is not uncommon. Most of you may have a friend or relative with a pet spider. Insects are not kept as pets as often as spiders, but why not? Keeping spiders and insects as pets actually comes with many benefits that dogs and cats do not offer. For example, if you are environmentally conscious, then you may want to consider keeping an arthropod as a pet.
The world is full of universally hated arthropods that are unthinkable as pets, such as termites and cockroaches. Although termites may benefit the environment by consuming dead plant matter, nobody wants to keep a termite farm in their house only to come home one day after work to find that they have escaped into your hardwood floor. But there are a lot of hassle free arthropods that would make ideal pets. Keeping a dog or a cat means feeding them pet food that is made from livestock. According to a UCLA study, raising livestock in order to be used as pet food can ultimately result in sixty four million tons of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere. Buying items that require this amount of greenhouse gas in order to be processed is not an environmentally friendly option. Arthropods, on the other hand, do not require much food at all. For instance, a bess beetle only needs water and an organic log in order to survive. Who would not want to witness a bess beetle grow into maturity. Also, dogs and cats can be messy, and they shed everywhere. But, beetles and most other insects can clean up after themselves, and they do not need to be cared for on a daily basis. Say what you want about keeping spiders or insects as pets, it certainly would be more fun than keeping a pet goldfish.
Have you ever kept an arthropod as a pet?