Slow lorises are illegally traded as exotic pets, with welfare harm compounded by tooth removal for safety, transportation trauma, and the fundamental incompatibility of their biological needs with captive environments.
Slow loris welfare in the illegal pet trade involves multiple layers of suffering. Capture from the wild causes acute fear and injury. To make them safe as pets, dealers remove or cut the teeth without anaesthesia, causing chronic pain and often fatal infection. Captive lorises deprived of normal diet, territory, nocturnal activity, and social structure show severe physiological deterioration. The apparent docility shown in viral videos reflects not contentment but extreme stress-induced immobility. Sharing or engaging positively with slow loris pet videos directly drives demand for the illegal trade. Public awareness campaigns and social media platform policies have begun to reduce viral sharing.