Michigan Exotic Pet Store Popped for Having Poor Conditions for Hyena Pup and Kinkajous

There are certain expectations when you walk into an Exotic Pet Store. You for sure will see snakes and lizards. You might see a few rarer species of cats, and even some fish. I'd also expect to be shocked by one or two animals I would have NEVER expected to see.

But even those expectations would have been shattered, had I walked into this pet store in Saginaw Township recently, and seen that they had several rare Kinkajous for sale, AND, a HYENA PUP!!! They obviously took "exotic" a bit far, and now, unfortunately, are paying the price.

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Custom Creatures Pet Shop in Saginaw only opened a few years ago, and within a year was already under scrutiny following a bite from a baby sloth during a live sloth experience they were hosting.

Nevertheless, they prospered, and stayed open, holding onto their Class-B license as an animal dealer, which allows them to purchase, and re-sell warm-blooded animals. All seemed to be in order, until a recent inspection showed they had 12 violations, including several animals that were NOT supposed to be there.

What Were the Violations?

One included them acquiring three skunks earlier this year from an unlicensed breeder. They were also popped for not keeping records of animal births, and deaths, which is required.

The inspector also questioned the store operator's license approval, because they seemed to be ignorant on how to properly handle some of its animals, including a number of Kinkajous, Coatis, and even a Hyena Pup! The inspector noted that the hyena in particular was living in less-than-ideal conditions, and that there isn't one facility that has ANY prior experience working with the animals.

"The enclosure is so small that the hyena touches both the back and front wall when attempting to turn. The hyena is in constant motion without purpose with various vocalizations being heard, including what sounded like a growling noise.

Also listed for sale from the store were armadillos, sloths, African crested porcupines, fennec foxes, prairie dogs, servals, and coatimundis, which are all VERY rare species of mammals.

The business owner recently spoke with MLive about the inspection and its results, acknowledging the problems, and said they resulted from the "reckless and irresponsible leadership" of a former shareholder, who was supposed to be overseeing the daily operation of the business.

That being said... WHAT THE HELL! The report went on to say that Hyena hadn't been out of its enclosure for TWO WEEKS! Who knows how those other animals are being treated, too.

I'm not sure what this shop was doing holding animals like this... like... did they deal exclusively with Michigan Cartel bosses? I'm surprised there weren't alligators and hippos in the back.

I hope they get their act together, and properly take care of these animals, or at the VERY least, find them a home that is going to properly take care of them, because this... is no way to live as an animal.

It's no wonder they attack us in the wild.