# Can i have an aye aye as a pet? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 14, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279 "2013-05-14T01:07:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![e.fred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@e.fred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/e.fred)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/1 "2013-05-14T01:07:10Z")
Can I get an aye aye imported here where I live for a pet? Do you think they beat up cats and dogs? Also can they fight racoons, possums, skunks and bobcats. What would be a cool name for one? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/2 "2013-05-14T01:12:40Z")
Where’s here? Have you looked at a picture? They probably couldn’t beat up a hamster. Though they can flip you the bird like nobody’s business. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/3 "2013-05-14T02:11:11Z")
I think a friend of mine told me he got one of these and the damn things crawled inside his VCR and died. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/4 "2013-05-14T02:18:12Z")
No. Wild things do not make good pets. With the possible exception of a Pet Rock. Which, thinking on it, would be the perfect pet for you. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/5 "2013-05-14T04:34:45Z")
Having an aye-aye as a pet is a no-no. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/6 "2013-05-14T04:47:56Z")
Aye ayes are on the Endangered Species list, so they are illegal to import anywhere. In fact, they were once considered extinct from 1933-1957. Here’s a site with some facts about lemurs (which is what an aye aye is): > **[Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About Lemurs](http://www.lemurs.us/faq.html)** > > Lemur FAQ - Frequently asked questions about lemurs. This part specifically addresses the suitability (or non-suitability) of lemurs as pets: > [@](#): > > Can I have a lemur as a pet? > > In a word, no. Lemurs are wild animals, not pets. Although they’re cute and furry, you’re much better off with a cat. Not only do you not need the responsibility of taking care of an animal which may be on the Endangered list — if you could find one, which would be a tough task in the first place — but lemur behavior does not make for an ideal pet. Between scent-marking their territory, being very inquisitive (don’t get too attached to those knick-knacks Grandma gave you), and not being housetrainable, the best place for lemurs is in the wild. The next-best place for lemurs is in a facility where trained professionals are working to take care of them and make sure the species live to see another millennium. The worst place… is your living room. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/7 "2013-05-14T04:48:01Z")
I thought you wanted a gator? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/8 "2013-05-14T05:01:14Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > Having an aye-aye as a pet is a no-no. That would be a nay-nay. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/9 "2013-05-14T06:21:24Z")
Dr. e.fred Dolittle should get a [talking parrot, a dog, a monkey, a pig, a duck, and an owl](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Doctor_Dolittle_characters). And an alligator. And a [pushmi-pullyu](http://simchafisher.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/pushmi-pullyu-two-headed-llama.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/10 "2013-05-14T09:17:33Z")
> [@e.fred](#): > > What would be a cool name for one? Captain, of course. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/11 "2013-05-14T12:08:17Z")
> [@AaronX](#): > > Captain, of course. **AaronX** , know this: somewhere, in a corner of the globe quite far from you, you have made a stranger on the internet laugh, and brightened someone’s day. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/12 "2013-05-14T12:12:50Z")
> [@e.fred](#): > > Can I get an aye aye imported here where I live for a pet? Ask your dad when he gets home from work. ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/13 "2013-05-14T12:25:27Z")
Is it just me, or does anyone else think [the aye-aye](http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5202/5348898968_da352b13a9.jpg) must have been the inspiration for [Max Schrek’s look in _Nosferatu_](http://timeentertainment.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/max-schreck-in-nosferatu.jpg?w=480&h=320&crop=1)? ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-have-an-aye-aye-as-a-pet/658279/14 "2013-05-14T13:48:05Z")
Sadly, its creepy looks are one reason why it’s so endangered. Locals decided that the aye-aye must be some sort of evil demon, and have been killing them on sight for a long time.