"The agency suspects this is because the turtles are still permitted for use in scientific, educational or exhibition purposes."



No, the real reason is because most people don't know the regulations, the sellers don't educate the buyers and the buyers don't educate themselves, and local authorities refuse to do anything in the rare instances when it is reported.



The FDA regs state that the turtles cannot be sold in connection with a business to the public as pets, unless for "bona fide" educational, scientific, or exhibition purposes. The FDA DOES NOT consider a pet store or mall kiosk to be "bona fide". End of story. Even if a vendor has a sign stating "for educational purposes only", guess what? The FDA still says it's illegal because it's not for "bona fide" (i.e. educational institution).



I do rescue/adoption. 90% of the owner-surrendered sliders were sold illegally as hatchlings, mostly in tourist spots. The biggest violators, in terms of where the surrendered turtles come from, are Myrtle Beach, SC, tourist stores, NYC Chinatown, the state of Florida (roadside sales and mall kiosks), turtlesale.com, and local flea markets/carnivals. These are all illegal sales in the eyes of the FDA.



Maybe if the authorities would focus on enforcing the laws and regulations that are already out there, we wouldn't have this problem, and they'd worry less about our hobby.



In MD, anyone selling reptiles has to post a specific salmonella warning sign within three feet of the reptile. It's a simple thing, easy to do (you can print one out yourself), easy to enforce. If there's no sign, the animals don't get confiscated, the seller gets a warning or fine and has to put up the sign. Why not do it in other states?



Katrina

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