New Pet Laws in the US

[Lady's Human]

The only problem with the legislation is that in the southern US< particularly the Everglades, anacondas and boas are highly invasive and damaging species.

They SHOULD be controlled.

Just because you're a responsible owner and don't plan on releasing your pet into the wild, many do.

[BoaLover11]

The only problem with the legislation is that in the southern US< particularly the Everglades, anacondas and boas are highly invasive and damaging species.

They SHOULD be controlled.

Just because you're a responsible owner and don't plan on releasing your pet into the wild, many do.

For one, even in Northern Florida these snake find it hard to live (and there have been no recorded cases of these snakes surviving the winter in the rest of the Southern US). And two, this isn't just about snakes. This is also about bettas, goldfish, cavies, pacman frogs, etc. Basically (if not every) pet owned in captivity. Third, most of the population of snakes in Florida is caused by a massive break-out of one breeder's stock when a hurricane hit. Most (not all) can be traced just to that guy's stock. Pet owners releasing their animals makes up a very small percentage. And fourth, if this was a licensing law, I would be all for it. A license should be required for ANY pet, imo. I completely don't agree with bans or the Lacey Act, however. If I move out, I don't want to just get rid of my snake who I've had for so many years, just because I can no longer take it with me. Just like a dog/cat owner wouldn't want to leave their dog/cat behind. Being unable to transport across borders also seriously affects breeders' abilities to sell, and thus those animals become less common and more expensive.

This isn't about controlling these animals. This about getting rid of all pets altogether, and this is just the first step to banning all pets. They realized that when they tried banning reticulated pythons and Burmese pythons a few years ago, and it fell through. They had to settle with the Lacey Act. That's what we were willing to put up with, but it won't stop there. They'll pick it back up again when people feel more comfortable with it.

[Lady's Human]

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.

[Karen]

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.

[BoaLover11]

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.

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.

[Lady's Human]

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.

The proposed change in law would become the due process. They need more flexibility than they currently have to deal with invasive species.

[Alysser]

I don't agree with everything this law proposes and I don't think it's perfect. I think a certain process should be put in place in order for exotic pet owners to keep their pets while moving or something, and buy CERTAIN pets out-of-state.

But I don't think all species should be freely let over the borders from state-to-state and country-to-country. There are breeders for that. Here in NJ you cannot legally breed pet turtles of any sort here. However, you may own them if you can prove the came out of state, and you have a wildlife license from the NJFWS. I, personally, want to own a Box Turtle and would never breed one. But I can't see the point of the law, allowing turtles to be taken from other states. If you allow that than you might as well allow breeding because people are sure as hell going to do it. I don't think any of these laws are well-enforced or effective enough. We have an invasive species here known as the Red-Eared Slider and I see them everywhere. It really grinds my gears knowing morons get these turtles and than release them because they don't want them anymore. Particularly, because I work for a Nature Center and I know for a fact many NJ Turtles are already endangered, they don't need anymore competition.

I agree with LH that the Lacey Act has some good aspects. I think invasive species control is important. We already have enough here as it is. As a Natural Resources Major (Particularly in Wildlife and Fisheries Management) invasive species are the bane of my existence.