# Could a walrus be kept as a pet? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 23, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736 "2011-03-23T16:57:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/1 "2011-03-23T16:57:34Z")
I get the impression most walruses are really much too large to keep as a pet. Unless you had a gigantic room to keep it in. But what if you could find a small, dwarf walrus - would it be possible to keep it as a pet? I assume you can’t just go into the wild and grab a wild walrus and bring him home. Are there legal channels you could go through to legitimately obtain a walrus - outside of being a licensed wildlife researcher? Walruses probably have to stay below a certain temperature to survive. If someone were rich enough that he could build a giant freezer, and use this as the walrus habitat, could he pull it off? I mean, zoos can build walrus habitats (and polar bear enclosures) so the technology is there to accomplish it. It’s just a question of having the money. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/2 "2011-03-23T17:14:25Z")
Obviously it’s possible, for certain values of “possible”. Zoos and aquariums and marinas house walruses, so all you need is a giant pool you can keep at the correct temperature, hire a pretty-much full time caregiver, and be prepared to spend bucketfulls of cash on food. Walruses are huge, but they are highly intelligent social animals that can interact with humans and are trainable. See: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHD8\_YGtP8o&feature=related](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHD8_YGtP8o&feature=related) However, there are no legal ways for a private owner to obtain a walrus, so you’d have to set up some sort of non-profit org and jump through a lot of hoops to convince the regulators that your backyard pool is fulfills some sort of scientific or conservation need. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/3 "2011-03-23T18:37:13Z")
I believe walruses are fairly aggressive and territorial. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/4 "2011-03-23T18:46:31Z")
There’s a number of places that have [traps](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2425/3930679674_b85662aec9.jpg) for a Walrus. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/5 "2011-03-23T19:24:01Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I believe walruses are fairly aggressive and territorial. Walrus are very dangerous animals. [Never mind the Polar Bears, beware of the Walrus!!!](http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Svalbard/Spitsbergen/blog-11140.html) > [@](#): > > We now knew why the Inuit consider walruses to be their number one enemy. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/6 "2011-03-23T19:28:20Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > However, there are no legal ways for a private owner to obtain a walrus As with all legal matters, this depends on the jurisdiction. I’ll bet you that there are at least some where individuals can own walruses. Even if there aren’t, if you’ve got enough money to keep a walrus as a pet, you’ve probably got enough money to bribe some third-world dictator into issuing an edict allowing you to keep one on his territory. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/7 "2011-03-23T19:33:19Z")
I have worked closely with northern elephant seals, and while not the same as a walrus I can attest to them being exceedingly dangerous and unpredictable. A full grown walrus could easily knock you down and crush you, whether intentionally or unintentionally, although they can be trained to a certain degree. There is no such thing as a dwarf walrus. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/8 "2011-03-23T19:39:25Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > There is no such thing as a dwarf walrus. Not as a distinct species, but I don’t see why individual walruses might not have congenital dwarfism. It’s not like the condition is limited to humans. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/9 "2011-03-23T19:40:18Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > There is no such thing as a dwarf walrus. Interesting. Has anyone studied walrus DNA to find a cure for dwarfism? ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/10 "2011-03-23T19:44:46Z")
Interesting thread. What other animals would be bad as pets? I’m talking aquatic ones here. ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/11 "2011-03-23T21:03:15Z")
Previous thread on the same subject: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=523997&highlight=Marine+mammal](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=523997&highlight=Marine+mammal) ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/12 "2011-03-23T21:04:35Z")
> [@BigBertha](#): > > Interesting thread. What other animals would be bad as pets? I’m talking aquatic ones here. [Leopard seal](http://www.paulnicklen.com/leopard-seals.html)springs immediately to mind. I’ve seen footage that was shot by a diver who was in the water with them at the time - terrifying stuff. (By the way - the 10th image in the series linked there is of a leopard seal tearing the head off a penguin, if you don’t believe me about the “terrifying” part…) They’re beautiful, in a sinewy, twisty, agile sort of way. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/13 "2011-03-23T22:03:12Z")
> [@BigBertha](#): > > Interesting thread. What other animals would be bad as pets? I’m talking aquatic ones here. I think my usual rule of thumb applies equally well to aquatic animals: - Nothing poisonous - Nothing non-domesticated that will weigh more than a quarter of what you do ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/14 "2011-03-24T00:26:21Z")
I heard of a carpenter once who had a walrus for a friend. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/15 "2011-03-24T00:41:27Z")
Only if you has a bukkit. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/16 "2011-03-24T17:09:15Z")
Just wanted to say, I’m NOT the walrus, googoo cachoo. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/17 "2011-03-24T17:18:26Z")
> [@BigBertha](#): > > Interesting thread. What other animals would be bad as pets? I’m talking aquatic ones here. Blue whales might be hard, unless you had a really large swimming pool in your backyard. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/18 "2011-03-24T17:21:59Z")
> [@BigBertha](#): > > Interesting thread. What other animals would be bad as pets? I’m talking aquatic ones here. I think a [hippopotamus](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippopotamus) would be an even worse idea than a walrus. > [@](#): > > Despite its stocky shape and short legs, it can easily outrun a human. Hippos have been clocked at 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances. > … > Hippos are very aggressive towards humans, whom they commonly attack whether in boats or on land with no apparent provocation.[51] They are widely considered to be one of the most dangerous large animals in Africa.[52][53] > > To mark territory, hippos spin their tails while defecating to distribute their excrement over a greater area.[54] Likely for the same reason, hippos are retromingent-- that is, they urinate backwards.[55] ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/19 "2011-03-24T18:02:48Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Just wanted to say, I’m NOT the walrus, googoo cachoo. Silly of anyone to think that you are. From what I can tell you are not an eggman either. Of course IANTE and TANTE so none of us are the Walrus. Glad to help, Bubba ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736/20 "2011-03-24T18:08:25Z")
Retromingent: word of the day! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-walrus-be-kept-as-a-pet/575736.md?page=2)