August 14, 2016 Lancaster, OH A pet monkey was loose in a Walmart parking lot for several minutes before being retrieved and returned to an RV trailer. The monkey reportedly bit a Walmart employee, though the associate did not require medical attention. Primates
August 3, 2016 Virginia Beach, VA A 9-year-old girl visiting Virginia Beach suffered a bite from a pet monkey that was in a tourist area with its owner. The owner fled with the monkey immediately after the girl was bitten, and officials are searching for them. Primates
July 20, 2016 Nederland, CO A loose pet lemur bit a 2-year-old girl in downtown Nederland. The toddler wasn’t seriously injured, and officials captured the lemur, which was then sent to a primate sanctuary in Florida. Lemurs are illegal to own as pets in Colorado. Primates
July 18, 2016 Miami, FL 21-year-old Victoria Valledor was bitten by a lemur outside her home. When the police arrived, the lemur chased them as well. Officials were able to capture the primate, who was likely a pet. Primates
June 26, 2016 Greenville, SC An 8-year-old boy was bitten by an exotic pet snake while on vacation. The family came across a man allowing people to hold or pet a nearly 5-foot-long Colombian red tail boa constrictor. The boy attempted to pet the snake, who bit him on the forearm. The snake was not venomous, and the owner will not face charges. Reptiles
June 1, 2016 Union, NY An intoxicated man was filmed allowing his friend’s pet alligator to bite his nipple. Reptiles
May 27, 2016 Lincolnton, NC A woman was hospitalized after being injured by her pet kinkajou. Animal Control staff said the woman has three of the animals in her home, and has the proper permits. Other
May 2, 2016 Chapel Hill, NC Ali Iyoob was bitten by his pet king cobra and was in critical condition at a hospital, but survived. Iyoob owned 18 venomous snakes, 16 nonvenomous snakes, one caiman, two turtles, four quail, and four fish, all of which were removed from his home. Possession of dangerous snakes is prohibited in Orange County, and Iyoob pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge. He was sentenced to two years of supervised probation and must also pay $4,000 to the state for costs related to snake removal. MarineReptilesOther
April 27, 2016 St. Francis, WI Animal control and police officers removed six snakes, two alligators, a monitor lizard, and a spider from a home after Jeremy Loveland was admitted to a hospital with a bite from a venomous snake. The animals were owned illegally. Police said more than two dozen reptiles had previously been removed from Loveland’s home by authorities in 2011 (see https://www.bornfreeusa.org/database/exo_incident.php?id=1651) and 2012 (see https://www.bornfreeusa.org/database/exo_incident.php?id=2395). ReptilesOther
April 15, 2016 Parker, FL F.T. Robertson was bitten by one of his cobras, but recovered in part due to the fact that he’d been taking the cobra’s venom for some time, a method called “envenomation.” Robertson owns lavender monocle cobras and coral snakes. Reptiles