Quote Originally Posted by Lady's Human View Post
Just because someone wants an animal/particular species for a pet, doesn't mean they should be able to have it. The amount of damage done to the environment by invasive non-native species is staggering. With fish, in particular, the rate of growth and propagation can be astounding. Snakeheads and certain types of carp brought into the country from Asia are doing major damage to the freshwater ecosystem in the US.

Burmese pythons are a problem in the everglades in part due to the aforementioned hurricane, but there are releases as well.

Frankly, we have enough issues with invasive species, and the Lacey act is the main legal means of control.
I can understand your point of view, but I still do not believe that the Lacey Act is the answer. We can agree to disagree on the Lacey Act. But, do you really believe they should be allowed to add whatever species whenever they want, without any sort of due process? The US is a Democratic Republic, and they should be required to go through due process in my honest opinion.

Quote Originally Posted by Karen View Post
I once saw a TV show on people in Florida taking advantage of an unusual cold snap and using it to capture iguanas that people had released and are now an invasive species in parts of Florida. I wish there was a way of legislating common sense, but that doesn't seem to be the case. If only we could make everyone adopting or even buying a pet take a class - yes this tiny little iguana is really cute, and can fit in the palm of your hand, but it will grow, sometimes to 6 feet long, and live a long time! Are you prepared to house and feed a six-foot-long lizard ten years from now? No? then buy your kid a plastic dinosaur, and leave the live animal for someone who IS prepared.
I agree so much with this. Pythons can live very long; I believe the longest living ball python recorded was 48 years old. I heard a story about a boa that was in it's late-70's on display at a museum and it could still be alive for all I know. Not too sure about that one, though. Husbandry classes are definitely a very good idea, and would bring much good to the people attending as long as the classes taught the most recent practices, to ensure the best quality care.

I saw one story where a woman bought a Burmese python. I believe it was 12ft, but it could have been bigger or smaller. Definitely bigger than 9ft. She put it in a glass enclosure and put a screen on top. It was only secured with one cinder block. Constrictors are extremely strong, and it easily knocked the top off and killed her toddler/small child.

Outreach and awareness are top priorities in the pet word, and I wish there was more of it instead of shows like "Shark Week" and just horrifying tales of animal attacks.