# If you could domesticate any animal, what would you have as a pet/companion? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 29, 2017, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667 "2017-05-29T19:06:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2017, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/21 "2017-05-29T23:59:26Z")
Chimp. Bonobo or common will due. They’re the most like us of any non-human animal, and if “domesticated” they could do all kinds of helpful things around the house and yard. And they’d be fun to hang with. ---
**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 30, 2017, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/22 "2017-05-30T00:29:10Z")
I’d do anything just to get my best friend Blackjack back. He crossed the Rainbow Bridge last year and I miss him terribly. I can’t imagine any other species turning out as well as a good dog. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/23 "2017-05-30T01:03:18Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Chimp. Bonobo or common will due. They’re the most like us of any non-human animal, and if “domesticated” they could do all kinds of helpful things around the house and yard. And they’d be fun to hang with. That’s a neat idea. I recall a thread about barnyard animals where various Dopers described owning goats. One described having a goat as like your drunken frat brother who was always into hijinks over something. I see a chimp as sorta like that goat but with more IQ and opposable thumbs. That’d be really cool. Until he decided to eat your face anyhow just for shits & giggles. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/24 "2017-05-30T01:17:09Z")
A fennec fox. A truly domesticated one would be fun. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/25 "2017-05-30T01:21:38Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I have been wanting to get a badger for some time now. Only a narrow window each year when they are at the right age. Wolverine would be another one. Any of the wild dog species. Canadian lynx would be another. Uh, you know you can’t legally keep a badger in California, right? At least not without a great deal of [money/time/paperwork](https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=28427&inline=true), and maybe not even then. CA has some of the strictest animal personal possession laws in the country, and a very good thing too, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/26 "2017-05-30T02:10:40Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I have been wanting to get a badger for some time now. Only a narrow window each year when they are at the right age. Wolverine would be another one. Any of the wild dog species. Canadian lynx would be another. If you’re wanting a badger, why settle for a mere ordinary badger? Once you’ve got the magic domesticator raygun, go whole hog and get a … wait for it … \*Honey \*Badger. I hear they’re quite something. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/27 "2017-05-30T02:39:46Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Chimp. Bonobo or common will due. They’re the most like us of any non-human animal, and if “domesticated” they could do all kinds of helpful things around the house and yard. And they’d be fun to hang with. Yep, I’d have to get an ape. Any ape really. I’m a big fan of orangutans, and a gorilla would make a good house guard. Commanding a troop of monkeys would be pretty cool as well. Maybe capuchins. Oh, and a raven to perch on my shoulder. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/28 "2017-05-30T03:45:40Z")
If I had a large greenhouse with an appropriate climate, I’d love to stock it with a selection of exotic butterflies and moths. Plus the plants they’d need for reproduction. But what I’d really want is a young and healthy version of my current black cat who’s about to cross the Rainbow Bridge. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/29 "2017-05-30T04:01:07Z")
Iberian Lynx. ---
**Author:** ![Whatever4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@Whatever4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whatever4)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/30 "2017-05-30T04:03:33Z")
one of these: [Golden lion tamarin | Smithsonian's National Zoo](https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/golden-lion-tamarin) ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/31 "2017-05-30T05:09:42Z")
An army of [coconut crabs](http://imgur.com/gallery/HSgVG) trained to obey my commands. Hey, nobody would mess with me. If extinct creatures count, I’d also like a [Barbary lion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_lion) or a [Terror bird.](https://www.wired.com/2014/03/absurd-creature-week-terror-bird/) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/32 "2017-05-30T05:11:01Z")
Anybody want a Wallaby? 'Cause I can hook you up with that shit… ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/33 "2017-05-30T06:38:43Z")
Giant squid! …Logistics TBD. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/34 "2017-05-30T06:39:45Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > \*Honey \*Badger. I hear they’re quite something. 🙂 The problem is they just don’t give a damn. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/35 "2017-05-30T06:58:35Z")
A particular six-year old boy. . . Sorry. You caught me in fantasy world for a minute. A gecko. We get them, but they are always running away. It would be cool to have one to keep on your shoulder as you run errands. Plus they eat lots of mosquitos just in case someone decides to visit. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/36 "2017-05-30T12:03:18Z")
One of the horned chameleons. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/37 "2017-05-30T15:15:56Z")
A King Cobra. How cool would it be to walk around wearing one of those like a neck wrap? ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/38 "2017-05-30T15:35:07Z")
I’d probably have a moose, a great, big bull moose! He’d be an awesome pet that you could also ride. I love their soft, velvety noses and what a view from up on his back 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/39 "2017-05-30T15:39:06Z")
Polar bear. I would keep him in my parlor making him a … 🙂 (We have a plush one on the mantle but a real one would be cooler) ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667/40 "2017-05-30T16:10:48Z")
A capybara. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-domesticate-any-animal-what-would-you-have-as-a-pet-companion/787667.md?page=3)