{"id":4930,"date":"2015-02-24T11:44:32","date_gmt":"2015-02-24T11:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/?p=4930"},"modified":"2015-02-24T11:44:32","modified_gmt":"2015-02-24T11:44:32","slug":"a-cardiff-pet-store-is-a-meer-aculous-place-for-lovers-of-exotic-animals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2015\/02\/24\/a-cardiff-pet-store-is-a-meer-aculous-place-for-lovers-of-exotic-animals\/","title":{"rendered":"A Cardiff pet store is a meer-aculous place for lovers of exotic animals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic2_print1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-4936 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic2_print1.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic2_print\" width=\"960\" height=\"539\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-4936 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic2_print1.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic2_print\" width=\"960\" height=\"539\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><br \/>\nIT is fair to say Aleksandr Orlov has gone a long way to raise the profile of the meerkat species. As the the forefront of the infamous Compare The Market adverts, Orlov has enthralled a generation of television viewers.<br \/>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4935\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4935\" style=\"width: 205px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic4.1_print1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-4935 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic4.1_print1.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic4.1_print\" width=\"205\" height=\"147\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4935\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4935 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic4.1_print1.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic4.1_print\" width=\"205\" height=\"147\" \/><\/noscript><\/a> Two of JFM Exotics&#8217;s meerkats<\/figcaption><\/figure><br \/>\nBut at JFM Exotics pet store, in Ely, keeping one of these furry meerkats as a pet is not the dream idea many think.\u00a0\u201cWhat people don\u2019t realise is that meerkats are actually really dangerous pets,\u201d said owner Nicki Clarke. \u201cI get people coming in every week to ask if they can buy one but they have no idea.\u201d<br \/>\nJFM Exotics is a family owned and operated reptile store, based on Cowbridge Road. As well as its meerkats \u2013 which are not yet for sale \u2013 the store stocks a wide range of exotic animals for more ambitious wannabe pet owners.<br \/>\nJust a quick walk round the store can bring you face to face with some of Cardiff\u2019s less traditional wildlife. Bearded dragons, lizards and iguanas are among those available for sale.<br \/>\nMs Clarke said: \u201cWe have a large stock of animals but we\u2019re looking to start breeding our own soon, so there\u2019s less costs with importing them.<br \/>\n\u201cWe currently have about 100 enclosures with animals ranging from lizards and insects up to large boas and pythons.\u201d<br \/>\nHaving run the shop for the last year, Nicki admits it is not always easy taking care of all the animals they store.<br \/>\n\u201cI even have to take animals home with me to look after. I remember the funny looks I got when I took a skunk out for a walk through Ely.\u201d<br \/>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4937\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4937\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic7.1_print.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-4937 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic7.1_print-300x218.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic7.1_print\" width=\"300\" height=\"218\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4937\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4937 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/KD_exotic7.1_print-300x218.jpg\" alt=\"KD_exotic7.1_print\" width=\"300\" height=\"218\" \/><\/noscript><\/a> One of the pet shop&#8217;s many reptiles<\/figcaption><\/figure><br \/>\nBefore taking over the store, Nicki ran children\u2019s parties there \u00ad\u2013 where youngsters would get up close and personal with the wildlife in store.<br \/>\nShe said: \u201cThe shop was originally owned by my father and my son used to work here in his spare time.<br \/>\n\u201cAfter my father died last year he left us money which we used to buy this place. Most of my family work shifts here each week and we often have students coming in to help.\u201d<br \/>\nAs Nicki explains, the store also has a vital role to play in educating children about wild and endangered animals.<br \/>\n\u201cWe\u2019re hoping to build an extension to the store to use as a classroom, so we can bring in children from local schools, and work closer with charities including ACE and Communities First.\u201d<br \/>\nFor more information on JFM Exotics, visit www.jfm-exoticsltd.com or call 02920 564435.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; IT is fair to say Aleksandr Orlov has gone a long way to raise the profile of the meerkat species. As the the forefront of the infamous Compare The Market adverts, Orlov has enthralled a generation of television viewers. But at JFM Exotics pet store, in Ely, keeping one of these furry meerkats as a pet is not the dream idea many think.\u00a0\u201cWhat people don\u2019t realise is that meerkats are actually really dangerous pets,\u201d said owner Nicki Clarke. \u201cI [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":248,"featured_media":4935,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[1291,2573,115,2574,2575,728,2576,2577],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-4930","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-longer-reads","tag-cardiff-2","tag-cowbridge","tag-ely","tag-exotic","tag-meerkat","tag-pets","tag-reptiles","tag-snake"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>A Cardiff pet store is a meer-aculous place for lovers of exotic animals - The Cardiffian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2015\/02\/24\/a-cardiff-pet-store-is-a-meer-aculous-place-for-lovers-of-exotic-animals\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Cardiff pet store is a meer-aculous place for lovers of exotic animals - The Cardiffian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&nbsp; IT is fair to say Aleksandr Orlov has gone a long way to raise the profile of the meerkat species. As the the forefront of the infamous Compare The Market adverts, Orlov has enthralled a generation of television viewers. 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