The Lacey Act makes it illegal to import the four species into the United States (something I don't have a problem with.) It also makes it illegal to cross state lines with these animals. In fact, it is a FELONY to do so - for EACH STATE LINE YOU CROSS. That means, if you take your Burmese python from Florida to North Carolina...you have committed felonies for crossing the state lines for Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The economic impact on the business is obvious and I will discuss later. First I'm going to talk about something near and dear to me...the responsible pet owner and how we got screwed just as badly.
I am the proud owner of three snakes. A 3 ft. ball python (Ralphie), a 2 ft. rosy boa (Jamie), and a 1 ft. Kenyan sand boa (Elliott). I don't keep them for breeding, I keep them because I love snakes and, particularly, love them. I keep them in locked cages, make sure they have the right habitat and heating. I take them out and love watching their gracefulness and their beauty. And yes, they do have personalities. Ralphie loves to wrap himself around my neck like a choker (but that's not what he's doing), and is afraid of live rodents. Jamie is super curious, a bit of a nipper, and LOVES to eat...often eating something that is WAY to big for her. And I love how Elliott sticks his head out of the sand to where I only see his shovel-like nose and his eyes. When I take him out, he moves about curiously, but I know it's time to put him back in his tank when he starts to burrow into whatever he is on. And unless I could not properly care for them anymore, they are with me until God decides to call them home.
Fortunately, my snakes aren't on the Lacey Act list (yet). But many other responsible pet owners' snakes are. Snakes can be very long lived animals. My ball python can live over 40 years. The other two around 30 years. Someone could legally and responsibly own a Burmese python in Florida for decades...and heaven forbid if he should have to move, looking for a job, family issues, etc. Because that snake, who has been in his care for decades CAN'T go with him. There's an emotional attachment to this animal. At this point, the owner has five choices. 1. Can find a home for the snake (which can be hard with Florida's own reptile bans) 2. Have it euthanized (remember...a beloved pet and it loses it's life over some stupid law.) 3. Let it loose (the reason for the law being passed in the first place.) or 4. Take the snake with you no matter what. And you can be caught, prosecuted for a felony, possibly face jail time, definitely a fine, AND you beloved pet is euthanized or 5. Choose to stay in Florida no matter what...even if it means you can't find that job or have to turn down an offer.
My question is why? Why are responsible snake owners being punished for having snakes? The Lacey Act says it's because the snake is "injurious to wildlife." Burmese pythons are found in 3 COUNTIES in Southern Florida. That is all. And yes, I agree, they shouldn't be there and something should be done. But punishing our responsible snake owners has nothing to do with it. It has been scientifically proven that these snakes can only survive in southern Florida and southern Texas. And there aren't any in Texas. So let Florida handle the problem, and leave the tens of thousands of responsible snake owners be!
Maybe some of you are thinking that they are still dangerous. No, frankly, they're not. A well fed, well cared for Burmese python is nothing but a gentle giant. I've handled a beautiful albino 17 ft. Burmese python at a show once, and she was absolutely tame. Have pictures to prove it. There are statistics to back this up. In 2010, 34 people were killed by dogs. Between 1990-2008, only 8 people were killed by constrictors. On average, 50 people are killed by horses, dogs, and cats. And snakes? One person is killed every other year. Yet you don't see dogs, cats, and horses illegal to cross state lines for being dangerous. Think about it.
The bottom line is that there will be a lot of snakes either killed or let loose.
And I can't help but feel for the breeders either. Many of which runs their business as a primary business. Some of these snakes are worth thousands of dollars. On March 23rd, those snakes will be worth $0 to sell. And the breeders are still going to be responsible for their care and for feeding them. With what money will they be able to do this? They will have to support their families and pay bills...and their business just went belly up. In Florida, they can't even sell them to anybody who doesn't have a commercial license to own the snakes, and they are in the same boat. What are their choices? To kill the snakes that they have, for one. They started breeding these snakes out of love for the species...and now they have to kill them, or do something else, in order to survive.
I know someone who breeds boa constrictors. They aren't on the current list, but I'm sure that they will eventually be listed. He fed his baby boa constrictors (one of the most popular snakes found at shows and often seen in the media) to his kingsnakes (kingsnakes eat other snakes). Is that right?
And what really makes me angry is that the politicians listened to the Humane Society of United States lobbyists and used a faulty study done by the US Geological Survey that isn't even classified as scientific. However, there have been PLENTY of studies, considered scientific, that has disputed what the USGS says. And is it just me, or isn't it fishy that the US Geological Society, who studies earthquakes and the like, did a study on pythons??
Yes, the Humane Society of the United States, our "Champions for animal rights" is behind something that will kill thousands of animals or cause the populations of invasive snakes in the Everglades to go up. And this will be after the fact that the last two winters killed a majority of the snakes down there.
I hope it's not too late to challenge this law... http://www.usark.org is trying to raise the money to go to court on it. And I really hope that they succeed. However, it's going to take a lot of money, and they need donations.
The toll this law takes on pet owners and breeders is going to be astounding. I signed the petitions, I called and emailed my representatives, and I've called the media to talk to them about doing a more unbiased approach the laws. All for naught. And now all I can do is pray for each person that loses their pets, every breeder who is out of a job and has to get rid of their animals, and every animal that loses their lives over this calamity.
Ciao,
Carrie
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