All over the nation laws are being considered that are designed to bring the exotic pet trade under control. It really gained ground last February when Charla Nash of Connecticut was mauled by her best friends pet chimpanzee. With the all too recent death of the Florida toddler the media has been in an uproar about snakes, particularly Burmese pythons. With the full court press going on against snakes and other exotic animals from virtually all sides it is sometimes hard to see any light at the end of the tunnel. Fortunately there is a light. A very bright, very noticeable light. What all of this clamoring is going to do will be to put in place some sensible laws regarding the ownership of snakes (and other exotic animals).
And that’s exactly what has been missing all along. Sensible laws that promote responsible ownership of snakes both big and small. Because of this and the lack of enforcement of the existing laws that states have adopted we find ourselves staring down the barrel of a very big, very ugly gun. The public in general has no love lost for snakes and they want nothing more than a reason to go on a 21st century witchhunt. It won’t be against other people, their faiths, or even skin colors. It will be against beloved pets. Unless we in the exotic animal community step up and join forces with people and groups like USARK who are working tirelessly to advocate on our behalf.
I’ll close by saying this – We can either get on the ball and start being a responsible community across the board or we’ll find that light I mentioned earlier is in fact a muzzle flash sending a bullet right into our hobby and our businesses.
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