African crested porcupines can make extremely sweet and loving pets if purchased as a very young baby and bottle fed to acclimate them to humans. They are members of the rodent family and are found on all continents except Antarctica. Contrary to popular belief, porcupines do NOT shoot their quills. They are herbivores whose diets consist primarily of leaves, stems and tubers. In captivity they do require a hard surface that will inhibit them from digging out of their enclosure. They love tunnels in their enclosure that will simulate the burrows they have evolved to inhabit in the wild.