As a child, Seth spent all his time learning about animals; at 19, he got his first parrot – Zoe the Macaw.
In an effort to socialize Zoe, Seth would regularly volunteer at his local Long-Term Care Home. These interactions enriched the lives of many senior residents (and Zoe), and became a positive experience that steered Seth into a lifelong career.
In 2011 Seth turned his passion for animals into a business – Hands on Exotics. Throughout the past decade, his business has grown into an outreach organization that offers programs including:
Hands on Exotics does not receive public funding and the care of animals is made possible through programming and services, as well as our team of volunteers.
We have a dedicated group of zookeepers who help to support our wonderful team of animals.
Our mission at Hands On Exotics is to:
We realize our mission through three main areas; outreach, programing, and advocacy.
We conduct outreach programs facilitating interactive and educational experiences with our program animals
We provide fun, positive hands-on presentations that help educate the public and dispel myths and fears about animals. We believe that meeting and interacting with animals up-close in person enhances learning and fosters a great respect for wildlife. In this way, we can impart knowledge on responsible animal husbandry as many exotic animals are obtained as pets without enough understanding of their required care. We also like to discuss wildlife conservation issues and empower individuals to help, whether it be from a ‘backyard conservation’ level to a global scale.
“No one will protect what they don’t care about, and no one will care about what they have never experienced”
– David Attenborough
We visit nursing homes, special needs groups, and other day programs with our animals to provide a mentally and physically enriching experience
The pet therapy program at Hands on Exotics currently visits nearly 300 nursing homes, retirement homes, autism groups, blind-and-deaf groups, and other special needs groups annually! The relationship between humans and animals can have a strong therapeutic effect through unique visual, auditory and tactile stimulation. Our animals get cuddles and attention while bringing smiles to the participants’ faces!
We provide monetary and time donations to help rescue and re-home animals in need and to help other wildlife conservation causes
We are also able to use the funds from our outreach programs to help organizations and causes that are in line with our mission.
There are different wildlife conservation strategies out that many amazing people put hard work into. However, we are a very small organization and do not have the facilities to run large conservation projects like breeding programs on endangered animals. Education and personal experiences are how we contribute to the fundamental change in society’s attitude necessary to conserve wildlife – we want to show people why they should care! We also endeavor to use our funds and help conservation issues when possible.
At Hands on Exotics, we want to do what we can to prevent rainforest habitat loss from mining. Learn more about the issue and how you can help below:
An operation run by Canada’s Sherritt is currently heading into rainforests of Madagascar to mine nickel, a key material to the rechargeable battery. As they mine, these companies will destroy up to 1700 hectares of rainforest, eliminating the home of 14 species of lemurs and many other endemic species.
We are hoping that, by collecting batteries, we will be able to limit the amount of mining required to create new ones and, in doing so, we will be protecting rainforests for years to come.
At Hands on Exotics we are dedicated to preserving the natural habitats of the animals we work with. We recognize that it is imperative to work together with our clients and other organizations to ensure that rainforests and other habitats around the globe are preserved. To accomplish this goal we are asking clients to get involved in our recently launched recycling of batteries program.
We are hoping that, by collecting batteries, we will be able to limit the amount of mining required to create new ones and, in doing so, we will be protecting rainforests for years to come.
Join us in making the planet a better place. Bring any rechargeable batteries you wish to donate to your next Hands on Exotics event and we will take care of the rest!
Hands on Exotics is also collecting old cell phones for the Toronto Zoo’s recycling program, Phones for Apes. The Phones for Apes program collects your old cell phones to recycle tantalum. Tantalum is mined in the Former Republic of Congo and is destroying the rainforests that gorillas live in. By donating your old cellphones, we can reduce the need to mine in these rain forests. Bring your old cell phones to your next Hands On Exotics event!
In 2011, Hands on Exotics started through programming at local nursing homes. Now we offer services to hospitals, adult day programs, autism and special needs groups, and other similar facilities on a regular basis.
We’ve taken some time to gather some frequently asked questions. We’ve organized them into three areas below. Have a question that is not addressed below? Feel free to contact us, and we will be happy to answer any questions.
Our standards of care can be found on the animal page
Unfortunately we do not accept or adopt animals.
It is strictly against our policies and philosophy to bring out animals to our programs that would be stressed out by the experience. This would be an abusive and unethical practice.
It is equally important to understand that for many animals in our care it would be abusive and unethical to deny them human interaction. The mental and physical health of hyper-social animals like parrots, especially parrots that were raised by and with humans, depends on regular and positive experience with people. The animals in our care are pets, they are used to and positively crave human interaction.
We are not a pet store and we do not sell any animals to the public, nor are we even allowed to.
Our animals are extremely safe. We carefully consider the temperament and behavior of each animal to determine whether it can go out in public at all. If an animal is deemed safe enough to do public programs then careful consideration goes into how long the animal can be out, how much interaction and what kind of human interaction is appropriate if any, and what rules must be in place to do the interaction safely.
That said, no animal related activities can be 100% safe. It is impossible to completely eliminate risk of allergic reactions or injury but we can get very close. Our animal programs are much safer than most other programs and activities such as sports games and school athletics.
All of the animals can and probably will poop. Our birds mostly stay on perches when they are not passed around and those perches are over drop-cloths that we put down and the birds do most of the pooping. So we take most of the mess with us but the occasional poop on a participant or the floor will happen. Its all part of the experience!
Let us know if one of the participants has a particular phobia and we will save that animal for last or not bring it out at all.
All of our animals undergo fecal tests and visits from the veterinarian to ensure their health. Vaccination records are also provided if your administration requires them.
Learn more about booking an animal actor by visiting our Film and Television page.
Learn more about booking an animal actor by visiting our Film and Television page.
If you are not able to find the animal actor you are looking for, please contact us through our Film and Television page.
We can help you find the perfect animal actor for your needs.
Yes we do. Feel free to contact us to learn more!
Visit our Services Page to learn more about our different packages.
We do all types of events, if you can't find what you are looking for on our Services Page, give us a call.
Feel free to visit our Terms of Use page to learn more about cancellations.
Depending on the booking there may be different requirements. Feel free to contact us to learn more.
Visit our animals page to see our full list of birds, creepy crawlies, dinosaurs, furries, reptiles and amphibians
Our hands-on encounters are sure to make many memories. Reserve your customized package today.