Problems With Exotic Pet Ownership

Exotic Pets

The problem with exotic pet ownership has been escalating over the years, especially in the last ten to fifteen years alone. Many state governments in the last couple years have been trying to pass laws and different measures to deal with this issues such as an Ohio lawmaker that is proposing a new law that would ban people from owning most exotic animals starting in 2014 (Weekly Reader News Addition) and in Tennessee where lawmakers pitch new exotic ownership rules which would ban the private ownership, import, sale and transfer of most wildlife--regardless of whether or not they are indigenous to the state (DVM Magazine). A few big problems with owning exotic pets is they are often really dangerous and many people cannot provide
Burmese python’s became so popular that in fact according to an article in National Parks by the summer of 2010 Miami, Florida was receiving 12,000 shipments of wildlife to be sold as exotic pets, Burmese pythons among them. They got introduced into the exotic pet trade in the 80s and then became a problem starting in early 2000 when many of the owners starting letting them go when they realized that the python could grow up to 13 feet and in some cases longer. Many believe Hurricane Andrew is also responsible for destroying pet stores and other places where they could of escaped from. According to Linda Friar with Everglades National Park, park personnel have captured or killed 1,825 pythons since
Since it would not be fair to the exotic pet owners who has already purchased them to just hand them over and give up the pet we need solutions that would help to satisfy both sides to this issue. One solution would be to plant a microchip in the animal that could track it in case it escapes or if the owner lets it loose and if the snake does get found either return it to the owner if he claims it escaped or in the case where it was let loose, fine the owner a maximum penalty of up to five thousand dollars and up to three years in prison. Another plan is already being implemented to help overwhelmed exotic snake owners and other exotic pet owners. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission created a program called Non-Native Amnesty Day, an event that gives overwhelmed pet owners a chance to turn in unwanted exotic pets to certified adopters better equipped to care for them (National Parks). I suggest that Florida and other parts of the country do more of this to help the owners of these exotic snakes and all the other dangerous exotic