Pua has a boyfriend

[TamanduaGirl]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/507326079/


Best way to get you updated is to start with the big news

Meet Stewie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/497021404/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/489580863/

He is on loan till Sept as he needed a place to go. they since decided he wont be coming back. I was hoping to buy him but a job we have in Canada this June will be shorter than expected so might not be able to swing it but we'll try.

Pua grooming Stewie's ears
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/501164689/

We are hoping for a baby out of his visit so if we can't keep him we will at least have that baby I know Pua wants a baby. She went through a false pregnancy when I got her. I'm hoping for a girl so if we can't keep Stewie the baby can stay and then get an unrelated male later that they both can share.

they get along great and sleep together, whether with me or some other cozy spot
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/499069429/


The little guy is a trouble maker though
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamanduagirl/486813402/

[luckies4me]

OMG I'm so dying of cuteness overload over here lol!

If you have babies I want one!

Seriously. I've wanted one for years, just haven't found a breeder yet. I've had years to research so I guess that's a good thing though, and I've learned even more from you.

[TamanduaGirl]

they only have one baby at a time. Rarely they will have twins but you don't hope for that as their are complications with that. In the wild twins don't survive. They have to cling to mom's back and she can't fit two so one at least gets left behind but twins also tend to be smaller and weaker since they had to share so often neither can hold on, and or, mom gets confused by having two and rejects them both. Twins have survived in captivity when mom kept them and they also got extra suplamentation since they wont be getting left behind like in the wild, it's still a scary thought.

So if I keep one, that's it, ha. If I can't then I'll have one available. I've already had people contact me saying they would be interested just based on having a pair. It's not like I'm advertising or anything. Actually this was the first time i posted up front that we hope they mate. People always asked before.

Yeah breeders are really rare for them. It's hard to find a domestically born and bred baby. One lady had one, and was the rarer vested type(rare in the US) and there was practically a cyber cat fight over it, lol, I'm exaggerating but...

If you think you really want one. Read the care sheet http://taqmanduagirl.blogspot.com/20...caresheet.html it really needs updating, quite a bit to change actually but it's a decent intro to the basics still
then if that sounds like your kind of pet join the group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/xenarthra_keepers/ fare waring there are a few on the group who are anti-pet whenever someone comes asking as it's open to any xenarthran keeper zoo, USDA enterprise, pet, or wild rehabbers.

[lbaker]

I can't decide if I agree or disagree with the whole idea but I don't really know enough to make an honest judgement. I DO know that this is just the cutest, weirdest, funniest "pet" thread I've seen since the pet buffalo from years ago. That little Pua is adorable "Pua has a boyfriend"... hee hee, you GO girl!!!

[critter crazy]

Awwww.....look how cute they are together!! I bet Pua would make a great momma, good luck.

[k9krazee]

They are ADORABLE together!!!

[ratdogg]

OMG, these are such adorable pics!! I had a lot of fun reading your blog and watching your youtube vids! Pua and Stewie are the coolest animals EVER! They are more interesting than most humans!

[lute]

awwww!!!! Those two are so cute! I hope you get a baby!

[TamanduaGirl]

lbaker I'm not sure which part you are feeling concerned about so will address both potential concerns. Anteaters as exotic pets and the fact Stewie is on loan.

Since most people here don't seem to have a problem with Pua I'll start with the loan concept. A breeder loan is a fairly common thing in the animal world but that's not really what happened here. A couple who I knew had gotten Stewie and one of their other dearly loved pets fell ill. After much testing the vet declared it was an allergy to the tamandua's pee. They were looking at getting rid of their newly loved pet to save their long time loved pet.

So I offered to take him for awhile so they could see if the other pet got better with him gone. but they decided during working the contract out that he wouldn't come back. The other pet was always stressed by Steiwie's presence and if he didn't get better his coming back would still make it worse even though not allergic to him. There were also some other things going on that made it better he not come back and they didn't want him to come back then be shipped off again. So if by the end of the loan I can't buy him I hold on to him and help them rehome him one less transfer that way.

I really was just trying to help someone out even though the agreement does benefit Pua and me. I would have hated to be in their position. but they took some consolation in that they felt I would be a great home for him and that they knew they would get regular pictures and updates from me.

As to anteaters as pets I'm going to use my hamster argument. Surely you don't have a problem with people who keep hamsters as pets? Did you know hamsters have only been in captivity about 70yrs and all descended from only 2 wild caught ones sent to a lab? Most exotics like foxes and skunks, which most anti-anteater people would be against as well, have a much longer history of captivity. Even fennec foxes who have been in the US as pets nearly as long as hamsters have a history of being kept as pets in their native lands for much farther back then that.

Most exotic animals fall into the category above and have been bred for many generations in captivity. They will never miss the wild as they never knew it. Stewie was born in captivity. Pua was not. Tamanduas are one of those rare exceptions where some do still come from the wild. I got her knowing I planned to breed her. Every exotic pet and even the domestics started some where.

I don't feel guilty at all for where she came from. I know how they are treated and fare down there in most of their range and it's not good. Pua was a very sick little anteater when I got her. I was concerned she wouldn't make it but we nursed her back to health. She basically came strait from the wild to me. she would not have survived in the wild much longer the condition she was in. So better dead in the wild or alive and thriving with me?

Pua would gladly tell you with me She will come right back to the door of the shop or my room when she's had a walk and feeling done. A nice hike in the woods she will head back to the car or if really tired has crawled up me and into her carry bag. she has no desire for the tuff wild life again. Heck when I got her fresh from the wild it was just a matter of days and she was sleeping in bed with me and it was her idea.

I wouldn't encourage anyone to get an animal from the wild for a pet. there are a ton of laws to be dealt with, it took a full year to get Pua, aside from just the moral aspect. I got her knowing I would breed her and use her for education on her species and the plight of the South American habitats. Again each pet species starts somewhere. Her babies will add to the captive population and give others a choice of getting one domestically bred. I did years of serious research before getting her. Even talked to zoo keepers and vets from across the globe. i was and am very dedicated to giving her the best.

Did you know we'd have no wild bison in America if it weren't for private owners who donated some of theirs for reintroduction? Privately kept exotics are a good thing. Long as, like with any animal, they are kept responsibly. I see no reason to deem something wrong if the animal is happy and healthy and everyone is kept safe(if it were a potentially dangerous creature).

Hamsters keep a 1 mile territory in the wild. no one gives their hamsters that. It's not needed. They like any exotic can be kept happily with enough exercises, enrichment, love and basic necessities. Animals in the wild roam great distances because they need to, not for fun.

Sorry to go off on a speech, ha, but if someone says they haven't made up their mind or otherwise voices concern. I feel I might help them or others just reading better understand and come to a decision.

[Hellow]

Hey, um, how did you get Pua?

[TamanduaGirl]

thanks for all the nice comments. They are a lot of fun. I just love to watch them wrestle and snuggle time with them. Stewie especially is a little mischief maker. He's been called a Denis the menace by another family member, lol. He's just young and REALLY curious.

[TamanduaGirl]

Hey, um, how did you get Pua?

I contacted an experienced importer who took care of most of the legalities for me. He did question me a bit about what knowledge I had of them before agreeing to help.

[Hellow]

Oh, ok. Do you feed him ants since he is an anteater?

[Kalei]

Aw that is too cute! Pua looks so happy to have a companion around

[TamanduaGirl]

Oh, ok. Do you feed him ants since he is an anteater?

No they just get ants for treats and when they find some when out and about. It's been shown they don't do well on a diet of ants and termites in captivity. We have different species here than in South America. Even in a study done in their native habitat at a tamandua rehab they did bad on a diet of nests gathered from the wild and brought to them. They did much better on a man made diet.

Why is likely variety. You can't bring all the species of ants and termites they would be eating to them. different species live in trees, old wood, the ground, in ant or termite made nests. Even in the same species those from different colonies will have different nutrients from eating different things from the different areas.

I made my diet based on successful zoo diets and a study analyzing the stomach contents of wild tamanduas, which is essentially the same as daily dietary requirements since that is what they are living on naturally. Then a few adjustments to what worked best for them as individuals.

They do have freeze dried Asian tree ants as the insect part of their diet mix right now but I rotate insects for variety.