A 70-centimeter-long white tip shark on sale at a pet store in Wenzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province on Tuesday, June 22, 2010. [Photo: Qianjiang Evening News]

Perhaps you recall the scenes in Steven Spielberg's "Jaws," and how the shark from the film is still able to scare you. But believe it or not, sharks can now be purchased at a pet store and are welcomed by bosses of private enterprises in Wenzhou, Qianjiang Evening News reports.

A reporter went to a pet store Monday. There were two white tip sharks, nearly 70 centimeters long, and about four or five months old. When undisturbed, they are very quiet. They have just arrived in Wenzhou from Hong Kong. While residing at the pet store for a while, they will eventually meet their real owner. Storekeeper Ke says, he started selling sharks two months ago, and so far he has filled seven orders.

Ke says these sharks are artificially raised abroad. The white tip sharks mainly live in the Indian Ocean and coral seas in the Pacific Ocean. They are normally gentle, but do attack people occasionally. Cuttlefish are their favorite food. If you keep feeding them, you can establish a kind of rapport with them. Sharks have the ability to be friendly just like other pets.

White tip sharks can grow to 2.1 meters long. But the reporter noticed the shark's aquarium was only 1.8 meters. Ke explains fish, especially large ones, will adjust their growth according to the size of the aquarium. Owners can have the aquarium made to their demand, but they are generally no less than 2 meters long.

The white tip sharks in the store each sell for about 3,500 Yuan, with the price varying according to different types and sizes. Keeping the shark requires periodical replacement of the synthetic sea water, and the temperature in the fish tank should be kept at 24 to 28 degrees centigrade. The average monthly maintenance cost is around 400 Yuan.

According to an official at the Wenzhou Jinzhou Animals Museum, there is no domestic legislation on the protection of sharks, so having a shark as a pet is not illegal at this time.