Although nearly all pets require licensing, there are exotic pets that are strictly off ... or animals where one parent was on that list and another was a more domestic animal.

Numerous cases have been reported globally of imported rare animals being kept as exotic pets ... Reptiles topped the list of species intercepted by the authorities, with 827 seizures.

And that list does not capture the number of people who become sick from coming into contact with zoonotic diseases. The term exotic pet has no firm definition; it can refer to any wildlife kept ...

He Yonghua, a young visitor at the Zenki exotic pet experience store, says the sensation of touching snakes is unique. "You realize it is a living creature, not as scary as it first appears.