Penguins as pets?

Sheeps

I have a bit of a dilemma. I'm wondering if it is possible or even legal for that matter to have a pet penguin? Today as I was walking home from work, there was an injured penguin lying on it's back on the cycling path. It had been hit by a cyclist and some dude stopped, picked it up in a blanket and he brought it to the vet in his jeep.

I literally couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it. As far as I'm aware wild penguins don't live in Europe, which leads me to believe that it must have escaped from somewhere. This all happened in Templeogue in South Dublin beside a river, so the probability that it escaped from the zoo is slim, which leads me to believe someone may have been keeping it as a pet.

Anyone ever heard of pet penguins?

star-pants

I'm honestly shocked to think that there was a penguin wandering around...

Where would you even get a penguin? I would highly doubt anyone has (or would be allowed to have) a pet penguin.

seanybiker

Ok that si one randmo animal to find walking around. I would have brought him home, na seriously, I cant imagine anyone being allowed to have one in Ireland apart from zoo's and all that milarky. Hope the little chap is ok.

Sheeps

Well I don't know the extent of its injury, but it was confined to it's back and it couldn't walk. It should have been OK I think. The dude who was looking after it, who was just a puzzled as I was looked to be taking good care of it and said he was going straight to a vet who might know who to contact about it.

murrayp4

So the guy in the jeep literally P-p-p-p-p-p-picked up a Penguin? (Sorry):D

star-pants

Oddly enough upon googling 'penguin escape dublin' I got this, now whilst the thread descends into pun full jokes - there is the chance that this may have escaped from the Zoo.
Although there is nothing on the zoo website.

Eitherway, I hope the little guy is ok.

Sheeps

I don't think the species I saw was the same species they have at the zoo. It was a lot larger than the Dublin zoo penguins and had the orange feathers on it's neck, just like the penguins in "March of the Penguins".

cos!!

There could easily be penguins being kept as pets here, there are no licences needed for exotics in the republic, so you can keep pretty much any animal!

star-pants

So was it like this (A rockhopper)
or more like this (an emperor) ?

TequilaMockingBird

Are you sure it wasn't a really small nun?

Peppapig

Well I've had mine since last easter! , he's a hoor to eat and he's not to fond of the freezer!:rolleyes:

star-pants

Aye aye, we've used up the quota of jokes already thankee.

ball ox

So your saying that a cyclist hit an emperor penguin in templeogue.......and didn't think it was an unusual enough event to stop and to check it out....

Discodog

At least one of the travelling circuses that tour Ireland feature Penguins & they wont necessarily show up on a google search. Maybe a circus is overwintering somewhere nearby. The cost of keeping one as a pet would be astronomic. But it could have been dumped or stolen. A penguin is hardly going to escape in a hurry. If you noticed it missing then it could not have gone far.

Sid_Justice

macaroni penguin?

Penguins are wild animals and should not be kept as pets under any circumstances. They're also largely highly sociable and live in colonies so shouldn't be kept on their own.