via Instagram
Meet Juniper, a North American red fox that’s also a social media star. The 6-year-old rescue pet has more than 3.6 million followers on TikTok. Photos and videos of Juniper playing with chew toys, rolling around in her owner’s bed, and wearing funny clothing (right) have racked up millions of views. Juniper’s owner also posts videos of her other rescued pets, including several more foxes, a raccoon, and an opossum.
You might expect to see Juniper and her furry animal family in a forest or scurrying through your neighborhood. But they’re part of a growing trend on social media: animal influencers. An influencer is anyone, including a pet, with a big social media following who influences the way people think and act. Videos of furry critters like Juniper may encourage people to get wild pets of their own.
That can be a problem. Experts point out that it’s illegal to own wild animals in many states. Plus, new owners of wild pets often don’t realize there is more to caring for these critters than what they see on TikTok or Instagram. They don’t fully understand the responsibility—or the dangers.
“There are consequences for the animal and for the human,” says Terry Messmer. He’s the director of the Berryman Institute for Human-Wildlife Interactions at Utah State University.
Meet Juniper. She’s a North American red fox that’s also a social media star. The 6-year-old rescue pet has more than 3.6 million followers on TikTok. Photos and videos of Juniper playing with chew toys, rolling around in her owner’s bed, and wearing funny clothing (right) have racked up millions of views. Juniper’s owner also posts videos of her other rescued pets. They include several more foxes, a raccoon, and an opossum.
You might expect to see Juniper and her furry animal family in a forest or scurrying through your neighborhood. But they’re part of a growing trend on social media: animal influencers. An influencer is anyone, including a pet, with a big social media following who influences the way people think and act. Videos of furry critters like Juniper may encourage people to get wild pets of their own.
That can be a problem. Experts point out that it’s illegal to own wild animals in many states. Plus, new owners of wild pets often don’t realize there is more to caring for these critters than what they see on TikTok or Instagram. They don’t fully understand the responsibility—or the dangers.
“There are consequences for the animal and for the human,” says Terry Messmer. He’s the director of the Berryman Institute for Human-Wildlife Interactions at Utah State University.