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Ever thought about having an exotic animal as a pet? Some people have made that dream a reality, sharing their lives with wild creatures. We've previously shared some surprisingly bizarre stories about some of the most unusual pets you can imagine.
But what starts as a bizarre fascination can quickly turn into a terrifying reality. Sadly, if you’ve ever fantasized about being on the back of a unique creature, this list showcases 10 instances when these beloved pets turned lethal.
10. Cassowary
The cassowary is considered the most dangerous bird in the world, surpassing both the emu and the ostrich. While a cassowary’s height can match that of a person, its real danger lies much lower, closer to the ground.
This bird possesses claws that resemble 10-centimeter (4 in) swords, attached to its incredibly powerful legs. A single kick from a cassowary can kill through blunt force trauma and blood loss. As a result, some exotic animal enthusiasts seek them out as pets.
In Florida, a 75-year-old man who bred these birds was attacked by one in 2019. According to reports, the man fell by accident, and when he hit the ground, the bird struck. Once he fell, he was likely doomed, as a cassowary can run at speeds of 50 kilometers per hour (31 mph) and leap 2.1 meters (7 ft) into the air, despite being flightless.
This wasn’t the first dangerous encounter with a cassowary. In 2012, a man in Australia was chased by a cassowary and trapped on a cliff above a pool of water. The bird kicked him in the back, sending him tumbling down into the water below.
Though he survived with bruises and a torn shirt, he hadn’t provoked the cassowary in any way, other than being in close proximity, yet the bird attacked without warning.
9. A Hybrid Between a Red Deer and an Elk
In Australia, Paul McDonald met his tragic end when a hybrid of a red deer and an elk (also known as a wapiti) attacked him on his farm. His family had raised this typically calm animal for years before the incident in 2019.
The sudden aggression of the animal seemed to coincide with mating season. The creature’s hormones were running high. Red deer stags typically live in social groups for 10 months, but during the two months of 'rutting,' they exhibit heightened aggression and sexual behaviors.
Research on wild deer populations links violence to fluctuations in testosterone levels. Both castration and isolation from other deer can help prevent aggressive outbursts during mating season. Unfortunately, this hybrid became unexpectedly violent despite being somewhat isolated from other deer.
One morning, when Paul went to feed the hybrid, his wife and son heard a disturbance from the animal’s pen. The creature attacked Paul, and when his wife tried to intervene, she was injured by the animal.
Their son rushed to get help. After paramedics and the police arrived, they treated the injuries and euthanized the hybrid. Unfortunately, Paul succumbed to his injuries, while his wife survived. She was transported to a hospital, where she eventually recovered after undergoing several surgeries.
8. Hippopotamus
In 2011, the tragic death of South African man Marius Els made headlines after he was killed by his pet hippopotamus, Humphrey. This incident was particularly shocking because Els and Humphrey had been featured in media and videos together, showcasing their seemingly friendly relationship.
Earlier that year, a video titled “My Pet Hippo: I Love Humphrey” was uploaded to YouTube, showing Els with Humphrey. Els had rescued Humphrey as a calf during a flood, and about six years later, the hippopotamus killed Els by repeatedly biting and mauling him.
This wasn’t the first time that Humphrey, the 1,179-kilogram (2,600 lb) mammal, had caused death. He had previously killed several cows belonging to a business partner of Els.
Els' friends reportedly feared it was only a matter of time before Africa's most deadly animal would kill someone. Hippos are responsible for more human deaths each year than several other supposedly more dangerous animals combined, including elephants, lions, leopards, and rhinos.
Els was famous for performing risky stunts with Humphrey, particularly posing for pictures while riding on the hippopotamus’s back. Before his death, Humphrey had already attacked two canoeists who got too close while paddling on the river. The men had to climb a tree for safety and remain there for hours.
7. Southern Pig-Tailed Macaque Monkey
Monkeys may not seem like the most perilous creatures, as we often picture them engaging in amusing activities like eating bananas or throwing feces. However, their bites can be fatal—such was the case in Malaysia in 2019 when a monkey bit through a major artery, leading to a fatal outcome.
A 72-year-old man and his son were attacked by their pet monkey while attempting to train it to climb trees and gather fruit. The older man lost his life, while the son sustained a neck injury.
The monkey had been trained to pick coconuts from palm trees through an unconventional method known as 'monkey school.' In Malaysia, these schools teach the southern pig-tailed macaque species to help with the local coconut industry.
For over a century, monkeys have been trained in this way, with each one typically attending school for 2-3 weeks before being employed as a coconut harvester. The process starts by sparking the monkey’s curiosity about coconuts, encouraging them to play with the fruit. Training progresses through stages where the monkey learns specific movements and command words.
The monkey involved in the attack was older than the usual age for starting training, which may have contributed to the failure of its schooling. The son found his father lying in their coconut grove and went to investigate, only to be attacked by the monkey himself.
A neighbor heard the commotion and rescued the son. Unfortunately, it was too late to save the father. It remains unclear whether the monkey mistook their heads for coconuts or if there was another motive behind the neck attack.
6. Black Bear
In 2009, a pet black bear named Teddy fatally attacked one of its owners. Despite the seemingly innocent name, this was far from a cuddly tragedy. Kelly Ann and Michael Walz, residents of Pennsylvania, had previously held a license to sell exotic animals, although it had expired by the time the bear killed Kelly Ann.
The Walzes had previously kept a variety of wild animals in cages on their property, including a lion, tiger, jaguar, leopard, and several servals—small savanna cats—along with the bear.
Though Michael had once held the exotic animal license, it was Kelly Ann who was cleaning the black bear’s cage when the attack took place. To distract the bear, she threw a shovelful of dog food to one side of the cage while she cleaned the other. The bear attacked her while she was occupied with the task.
Kelly Ann had been raising the bear for nine years, since it was a cub. Bear cubs are generally manageable, but experts claim that any bond formed with a cub dissipates once the bear matures around four years old and begins to show signs of aggression.
Despite numerous attempts, especially in Russia, bears have never been successfully domesticated. They remain wild and unpredictable creatures, even after living in close quarters with humans for extended periods.
5. Camel
What would you consider gifting your wife for her 60th birthday? Jewelry? Flowers? Perhaps a baby camel?
This was the surprise birthday gift given by Pam Weaver’s husband in 2007. Residing in Australia, Weaver, a passionate animal enthusiast, had previously cared for a variety of animals, including goats, kangaroos, emus, and rabbits.
Having a camel in Australia might seem odd, but it’s not as unusual as it sounds. Wild camels have been roaming the continent since the 1800s, when they were introduced as pack animals. Over a million feral, single-humped camels now inhabit Australia as an invasive species, causing millions of dollars in property damage each year and becoming a major nuisance.
The pet camel is thought to have knocked Pam Weaver to the ground before straddling her, resulting in her death. Pam had raised the camel since it was a calf, and it was only 10 months old when the incident occurred. The camel had reportedly exhibited strange behaviors before, including attempting to straddle Weaver’s pet goat.
One expert speculated that the camel's erratic behavior was likely driven by sexual instincts, with the young animal possibly trying to engage in mating behavior. Naturally, the headlines quickly followed with insensitive puns, declaring that the woman had been humped to death.
4. Crocodile
In January 2019, an Indonesian woman named Deasy Tuwo fell into an outdoor enclosure where an illegally kept crocodile named Merry resided. Deasy, who was the head of a pearl farm laboratory producing beauty products, was found in the enclosure. It was unclear why a crocodile would be kept on the property, as these creatures are not typically associated with beauty, but apparently, the animal was being treated like a pet.
It is believed that Tuwo accidentally fell into the crocodile's enclosure, or that the animal was able to leap high enough to grab her from below. Crocodiles are known to make impressive leaps, using their powerful tails to propel themselves out of the water when swimming.
In some regions, it’s a popular tourist attraction to tease crocodiles by holding meat above the water, prompting the reptiles to jump to catch it. This is known as a “jumping crocodile cruise.”
By the time Tuwo’s body was discovered, Merry the crocodile had already eaten one of her hands and most of her abdomen. To remove the dangerous and illegal reptile from the property, a collaborative effort was launched involving police, the army, and conservation officials.
It took a coordinated effort involving dozens of people to carry out the three-hour operation to remove Merry the crocodile. After being captured, she was secured onto a flatbed truck and transported to a wildlife rescue center.
3. Black Mamba Snake
In Putnam, New York, a couple was keeping about 75 snakes, including a black mamba, inside their home. The black mamba is known as the second-most venomous snake in the world, thanks to the potency of its neurotoxic venom.
The snakes weren’t simply allowed to roam freely around the house. Instead, they were kept in various glass tanks and acrylic enclosures. Unfortunately, one day the lock on the black mamba’s cage was found mysteriously open.
In 2011, the 1.5-meter (5 ft) venomous snake bit Aleta Stacey on her forearm. The black mamba's venom is infamous for its speed, as almost all bite victims will die within 20 minutes if they don't receive immediate medical attention.
Stacey succumbed to the bite, and it appeared that she didn’t attempt to call for help. While there was speculation that her death may have been intentional, no evidence was found to support that theory. Her boyfriend discovered her body and noticed the snake's enclosure was left unlocked.
Owning some of these snakes was illegal, particularly since more than half of them carried venom capable of causing harm to humans, such as the cobra they also kept. Ultimately, the collection of snakes, including the black mamba, was handed over to the Bronx Zoo.
2. Wildebeest
The gnu, an African antelope often known as the wildebeest, can weigh several hundred pounds, and both male and female wildebeests possess large and imposing horns. Despite this, one man in Indiana kept three wildebeests as pets: an adult male, an adult female, and a calf they had raised.
In 2004, Klaus “Dick” Radandt was tragically trampled by one of his wildebeests behind his home. The animal had been made safer by removing most of its horns, but this ultimately did not prevent the fatal incident. The coroner concluded that the wildebeest caused blunt force trauma to Radandt’s head and chest, likely by ramming him and then trampling him.
What likely triggered the wildebeest’s violent behavior? It was the onset of the mating season. The animal may have been particularly aggressive to protect his mate from Radandt. In addition to the wildebeests, Radandt and his wife kept emus, reindeer, and other exotic animals on their farm.
His wife found Radandt’s body after noticing that he had been absent from the barnyard for an unusually long time. She must have been horrified upon discovering him surrounded by the herd of wildebeests. Fun fact: a group of gnus is called an ‘implausibility.’ At least this peculiar detail adds a small bit of lightness to a tragic tale.
1. Elephant
Ram Lakhan Verma, a politician affiliated with India’s Bahujan Samaj Party, became known for keeping an elephant as a pet. The party’s official symbol is the elephant, and Verma used the animal as part of his political campaigns.
In 2003, Verma’s pet elephant began acting erratically. Seeking to calm the animal, he took it to the outskirts of their village. For a brief period, it seemed like the situation was improving, but soon the elephant became furious again.
In response to the elephant’s outburst, Verma struck the animal in an attempt to control it. He tried hitting the elephant on its forehead with a sharp iron rod, but the rod got lodged in its ear instead. Losing his balance, Verma fell to the ground, leaving him vulnerable.
The terrified elephant trampled Verma to death before charging back toward the village. The villagers, however, were prepared for the animal’s return. They opened fire, shooting the elephant over 200 times before it finally fell.
Did the killing of their party’s symbolic elephant impact the Bahujan Samaj Party’s political standing?
Not really. In the next nationwide elections in India, which took place after the death of both the elephant and its owner, the Bahujan Samaj Party went on to win the state assembly elections with a strong, non-coalition majority, a feat not seen in over a decade.
