|
1-10 of 22 messages
|
Page 1 of 3
Next
|
|
USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by tigers9 on July 10, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I know usark meant well, but usark might end up being hated in herp community for this, feds will take the part ‘they r not pets’, to the anybody non AZA is a pet owner. The enemy (AR, feds) will ignore the rwst of expalnations, they will jsut use ‘they r not pets’ and as herp community admission of guilt.
I don’t like this article, I think it will do more harm in today’s political anti reptile climate, and will be used as admission that reptiles are not pets for federal crap too.
Saying pythons are not pets because you don’t cuddle with them in bed is bad example, gee, i don’t cuddle in bed with my box turtles either, but they r my pets.
Many horses are pets, and kill and maim and don’t snuggle in bed either, too BIG.
The fact that an animal can kill and is too big for bed doesn’t make it a bad pet, the same way a car that is in the deadly accident is not necessarily a bad car.
Z
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/breaking/story/825961.html
N.C. clamps down on deadly, exotic snakes
Bill seeks to stop growing problem; law hasn't been updated since 1949.
By Kevin Kiley
kkiley@newsobserver.com
Posted: Friday, Jul. 10, 2009
Slideshow
« Prev of Next »
http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2009/07/09/23/927-REPTILE-071009.ART_G4EKIFC9.1+python.embedded.prod_affiliate.138.jpg|286
http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2009/07/09/22/370-REPTILE-071009.ART0_GVGKI708.1+Python_Strangling.JPG.embedded.prod_affiliate.138.jpg|225
Police measure a Burmese python after they removed it from a home in Oxford, Fla., on July 1. The 9-foot-long snake strangled to death a 2-year-old in her crib. The animal wasn't properly kept and escaped from its aquarium.
http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2009/07/09/22/186-REPTILE-071009.ART0_GVGKI708.1+1608639.embedded.prod_affiliate.138.jpg|210
393142 05: An Albino Burmese Python slithers August 12, 2001 during the third annual Snake Day at the Miami Museum of Science in Miami, FL. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
More Information
REPTILE-071009.ART0.07102009.
Burmese pythons
Burmese pythons are among the world's largest snakes, native to Southeast Asia.
Diet: Carnivore.
Average lifespan in wild: 20 to 25 years.
Size: 16 to 23 feet.
Weight: Up to 200 pounds. Compiled by news researcher Denise Jones
Tracking pythons in S.C.
Scientists last month dumped seven Burmese pythons into a snake pit surrounded by 400 feet of reinforced fence at the Savannah River Ecology Lab in South Carolina.
Ecologists will track the exotic pythons, all captured in Florida, to determine if they can survive in climates a few hundred miles to the north. Using implanted radio transmitters and data recorders, the scientists will monitor the pythons' body temperature and physical condition.
The test could show whether the giant imported snakes, which can grow up to lengths of 25 feet, are able to spread throughout the Southeast. The pythons are all male so they wouldn't be able to reproduce.
Mike Dorcas, a professor at Davidson College in North Carolina, has sliced open pythons in Florida to find the remains of white-tailed deer, bobcats and large birds.
Dorcas is leading the experiment at the Savannah River Ecology Lab as part of a collaboration between the U.S. Geological Service, the National Park Service and the University of Florida. Associated Press
Scary snake tales
October 2008: A couple are bitten at the Maryland Renaissance Festival by a wild snake after a woman picks it up to taunt her boyfriend.
July 2009: A 2-year-old girl is strangled to death in her bedroom when the family's pet python escapes from its aquarium. Compiled by news researcher Lamara Williams
The Burmese python can grow longer than 20 feet, produce several dozen offspring in a litter and devour small children and pets. In North Carolina, they have a new natural enemy: the lawmaker.
There could be thousands of exotic, deadly snakes slithering loose in the state with the potential to harm not just people and animals, but entire ecosystems. But the legislature is likely to give final approval next week to a bill that would restrict the ownership and prevent the escape of venomous and large constrictor snakes, as well other dangerous reptiles.
The bill adds provisions to a law that hasn't been updated since 1949, when large snakes were less of a problem. In the intervening decades, perhaps abetted by Alice Cooper, Nastassja Kinski and Jake the Snake of the World Wrestling Federation, the reptiles have gained a certain popularity as household pets.
The bill, which received preliminary approval Thursday, would require these reptiles to be housed and transported in escape-proof containers and would punish people for violating safety precautions.
While it seems like common sense to not let deadly animals escape, that hasn't stopped it from happening.
“Snakes are escape artists,” said Andy Wood, an education director for the N.C. Audubon Society, who has handled snakes since he was young. “And they escape due to human error.”
In North Carolina, Wood said he regularly sees evidence of these escaped creatures in the wild, and that there could be a thousand slithering around the state.
He once found the skin of a 20-foot python under a house, where it had survived the winter.
‘They're not pets'
Snakes slithering free can do serious harm.
On July 1, a 2-year-old in Florida was strangled to death in her crib by a 9-foot-long Burmese python. The animal, which belonged to the toddler's mother's boyfriend, wasn't properly kept and escaped from its aquarium.
Indeed, non-native pythons threaten entire ecosystems in that state. Escaped pythons are starting to overrun the Everglades and threaten native species. That area now reportedly contains as many as 150,000 pythons, which are prolific breeders.
North Carolina's climate, with four seasons, is not as hospitable as Florida to the tropical snakes. But Burmese pythons have been known to survive in below-freezing temperatures, and can usually find shelter in urban areas.
Russ Walker, the co-owner of Animals Be Gone pest removal service in Hurdle Mills northeast of Greensboro, said he regularly has to remove native snakes and has had a few calls about exotic species.
He once responded to a house where an ex-boyfriend had left behind a ball python in a broken aquarium. The aquarium and snake had been moved to the laundry room, which the resident would no longer enter. He found the snake, which was then about 3 feet long, wedged between the washing machine and the wall.
“We had to pick him up and stick him in a bag and take him away,” Walker said. He added that non-native species like the ball python have to be euthanized, since they cannot be released into the wild.
The state has no record of how many exotic snakes live in the state.
North Carolina prohibits the sale of venomous snakes but does not bar their ownership. They can be purchased at reptile shows in South Carolina.
Some large constrictor snakes can be bought through pet stores or Web sites such as Craigslist, where they cost about $90. Burmese pythons, which are the most common type owned as pets, can grow to more than 16 feet and are capable of consuming dogs as large as German shepherds.
Andrew Wyatt, president of The U.S. Association of Reptile Keepers, which is based in North Carolina, was involved in writing the new law. He said the restrictions would help people understand what they're getting into when they buy deadly reptiles.
“There's always some fool that tries to work with these animals as a pet,” Wyatt said. “They're not pets. These are giant constrictors, venomous snakes and crocodiles. They're not going to be cuddling up with you in bed.”
Wyatt said the people who own the snakes the bill applies to tend to have a research or educational interest in them. Pet stores say they tend to sell smaller snakes, such as king snakes or corn snakes, to casual owners.
While the law doesn't prohibit ownership of the reptiles, Wyatt said it would lead to a de facto end to keeping them as pets, because stores would have to take expensive precautions when displaying the reptiles. Only experienced, trained reptile handlers would invest in keeping them.
The law, pushed by Rep. Earl Jones, a Greensboro Democrat, would require owners to keep the animals in escape-proof containers with an operable lock, even when moving them. The cases would also have to contain a written plan about what to do in the event of an escape. For venomous snakes, the containers would also have to be bite-proof and be accompanied by the correct anti-venom.
The original version of the bill would have required owners to register their deadly reptiles, but that provision was removed over concerns that it would cost too much.
The bill was drafted by a group of reptile owners, researchers and state employees known as the N.C. Partners in Reptile and Amphibian Conservation. Jeff Hall, a researcher with the N.C. Wildlife Commission who led the group, said they wanted to prevent reptile escapes before they became more widespread.
“You're going to have escapees of anything that anybody keeps,” Hall said. “Whether it be gerbils or bunny rabbits or pythons.”
kkiley@newsobserver.com or 919-836-4944
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by urutu on July 10, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Insisting that antivenom be available for every type of venomous snake owned creates an impossible situation.
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by pictigaster1 on July 10, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
These guys are crazy .They want no more pet venomous snakes.They seem to have an agenda almost as radical as peta.At one time I was a great supporter no more.AV in every carrying case.I guess they forgot it must be refridgarated .Just another radical group promoteing there Idea of a free,er America .
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by agkistrodude on July 11, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I read this as each container must have the proper anti-venom listed on the label and the location of where you can get it from, not the actual vial of anti-venom in the container.
(b) Each enclosure shall be clearly and visibly labeled 'Venomous Reptile Inside' with
23 scientific name, common name, appropriate anti-venom, and owner's identifying information
24 noted on the container. A written bite protocol that includes emergency contact information,
25 local animal control office, the name and location of suitable anti-venom, first aid procedures,
26 and treatment guidelines, as well as an escape recovery plan must be within sight of permanent
27 housing, and a copy must accompany the transport of any venomous reptile.
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by Cro on July 11, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
If the actual bill reads the way Marty posted it, that would mean that they just want the type of antivenom listed on the container.
You have to remember that the article posted above that was from a news paper, and not the actual bill. And as usual, the news paper writer made a mistake in how he stated the requirements of the bill.
Best Regards
John Z
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by MoccasinMan on July 11, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The article is crap... I was misquoted and the information is innaccurate. I was very disappointed because the N&O has done very positive articles for us in the past. This was a young reporter I didn't know that just wanted to jump on the "bandwagon" of current media frenzy over these issues.
Andrew Wyatt
President USARK
|
| |
|
RE: USARK in the news
|
Reply
|
|
by MoccasinMan on July 12, 2009
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The bill requires secure caging standards, bite protocols, escape recovery plans. It requires that you list the AV for the animals you have and the location it can be found... pretty straight forward stuff. NO PERMIT, NO FEES, NO REGISTRATION, NO MICROCHIP and NO INSPECTIONS. It is far and away the most herper friendly legislation in existence. Written by herpers for herpers.
AW
|
| |
|
Email Subscription
You are not subscribed to this topic.
Subscribe!
My Subscriptions
Subscriptions Help
Check our help page for help using
, or send questions, comments, or suggestions to the
Manager.
|
