 Slow lorises are sold locally at street markets , but are also sold internationally over the Internet and in pet stores . They are especially popular or trendy in Japan , particularly among women . The reasons for their popularity , according to the Japan Wildlife Conservation Society , are that " they 're easy to keep , they don 't cry , they 're small , and just very cute . " Because of their " cuteness " , videos of pet slow lorises are some of the most frequently watched animal @-@ related viral videos on YouTube . In March 2011 , a newly posted video of a slow loris holding a cocktail umbrella had been viewed more than two million times , while an older video of a slow loris being tickled had been viewed more than six million times . According to Nekaris , these videos are misunderstood by most people who watch them , since most do not realize that it is illegal in most countries to own them as pets and that the slow lorises in the videos are only docile because that is their passive defensive reaction to threatening situations . Despite frequent advertisements by pet shops in Japan , the World Conservation Monitoring Centre reported that only a few dozen slow lorises were imported in 2006 , suggesting frequent smuggling . Slow lorises are also smuggled to China , Taiwan , Europe , Russia , the United States , and Saudi Arabia for use as pets . 
