This is perhaps the most arrogant pompous post I've ever read. There is so much wrong with it I don't know where to begin. You obviously have very little real knowledge of the subject matter and don't understand the concept of sustainable use of wildlife that benefit local folks who live around and profit from imports. I'M NOT AN IMPORTER AND HAVEN'T BEEN FOR YEARS SO THERE'S NO CONFLICT OF INTEREST IN MY STATEMENT BUT IT IS FACTUAL. I am a former member of the IUCN Croc Specialist Group and we went commercial 25-30 years ago and look at the success story with most species of crocs compared to everything else. In fact the story of conservation in Cyclura is a dismal one compared to crocs because of the tunnel vision of the folks leading the way. Your statement reminded me of a human deciding to act as GOD mandating whatevery one else should do. Your complaint about snakes in boxes and them covering large areas shows your paucity of info about most snakes. Ball Pythons the most common one held in boxes live their entire life in a termite mound! Studies from the 80's have shown this. In fact if housed in larger cages they hate it and go off feed. You, of course wouldn't know this, unless you actually had kept some and reviewed papers on them in situ. There are some snakes [very few species] like Drymarchon who do need lg. spaces but every breeder I know gives it to them. The reason is when you combine a love for the critters with a vested lg amount of money it is in your best interest to keep your herps well. I HAVE BETTER FACILITIES AND AM MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN ANY ZOO. Also if I produce a lot of babies I don't kill them or freeze the eggs as many Zoo's do with their Fiji Iguanas and Komodo Dragons etc. If the truth were known about what really happens in many AZA facilities people would be up at arms. It is remindful of marxism when a small group of people try to tell the rest of us what is good for us and the animals. Are there some bad apples, yes without question. Most of these "bad apples" are strictly wholesellers who import cheap Pet Store herps that they try to sell quickly with little money spent on holding facilities. They are a minority not a majority. I have went to great expense to even set many snakes up in lg. outdoor enclosures and it works for some species and has been a failure for others. The reason is that snakes live in small bio-niches in situ and prosper in captivity when kept accordingly. I realy don't care what you think as your opinion is not important to anyone but your ego. The only thing I can agree with is that potentially dangerous herps should be regulated but NOT BANNED. Merry Christmas to everyone...
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Tom Crutchfield

www.tomcrutchfield.com

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