I found this on another website, thought I might see what people think. Link to website will be below.



Regulation Proposal







Suggested State/County/Local Regulations

For the Keeping and Maintenance of

Venomous Snakes and Lizards, Large Boids &

Crocodilians



This proposal is intended to provide a set of

standards that a State/County/Local government can

adopt to regulate the acquisition, keeping and

maintenance of venomous snakes and lizards, large

boids (such as Burmese Pythons) and Crocodilians.

These standards would be a means of allowing reptile

enthusiasts to pursue their hobby of keeping these

animals while also reducing the concerns of both the

reptile-related scientific community and non-reptile

enthusiasts (people who do not enjoy keeping reptiles

as companion-type animals). It is well known that

inexperienced reptile enthusiasts, at times, make

mistakes and cause serious concern among people. Some

of these concerns would be:



1. Large pythons and other Boids escaping from their

enclosures, roaming the neighborhoods and casting fear

upon other residents. These same pythons have been

known to kill their inexperienced keepers by mistaking

them for prey items.



2. Venomous snakes escaping from their enclosures due

to the inexperience of some reptile keepers, thereby

causing a real danger to themselves and other

residents and their pets in these same areas.



3. Crocodilians escaping from their enclosures, again

due to the inexperience of their keepers, and, again,

causing unnecessary fear and concern among local

residents.



The facts listed above are just some of the reasons

we have drawn up these Suggested State/County/Local

Regulations to solve what has become a major

controversy over the past several years. We as

responsible reptile handlers/keepers fully understand

and indeed share the concerns of others as to what

happens when inexperienced, immature or thoughtless

people allow reptiles that are potentially dangerous

to come into unwanted contact with other people, their

families or pets. We cringe whenever we hear the

television news, or read the front page of our local

newspapers, and learn that a careless individual has

allowed their fifteen foot Burmese Python to escape

and it has subsequently terrified other local

residents. We are not only concerned for these

people’s safety, but concerned as well as to the

future of what will become of what is nothing short of

a passion to us.



As responsible reptile keepers, we feel that our

animals are our companions. We also realize that many

people do not feel as we do about reptiles, especially

snakes. However, just as the dog, cat, fish or bird

“owner” has the right and the privilege to keep their

beloved companion in their home with them to enjoy, we

believe as well that we, too, should have the right

and the same privilege to keep our beloved creatures

in our homes to enjoy. Therefore it is our intention

as well as our hope that these Suggested

State/County/Local Regulations can alleviate the

controversy, or at the least, greatly lessen this

conflict, and find a suitable compromise that will

satisfy a majority of the people on both sides of this

sensitive issue.













Template for Suggested State Regulations





The following reptiles cannot be purchased, sold,

traded or acquired in any way by an individual without

a valid permit issued by the State/County/Local

government of (insert name here). Furthermore, these

reptiles shall be considered Potentially Dangerous

Animals:



The following large snakes in the Boidae Family:

Boa constrictor imperator- Common Boa

Boa constrictor constrictor- Red tail Boa

Boa constrictor longicauda- Long tailed Boa

Boa constrictor occidentalis -Argentine Boa

Boa constrictor ortonii- Orton's Boa

Apodora papuana- Papuan Python

Eunectes murinus- Anaconda

Eunectes notaeus- Yellow Anaconda

Liasis olivaceous olivaceous- Olive Python

Liasis Olivaceous Barroni - Western Olive

Python, Pilbara Olive Python

Morelia Amethistina- Amethyst Python, Scrub Python

Morelia boeleni- Boelen's Python, Black Python

Morelia/Liasis Oenpelli- Oenpelli Rock Python

Python molurus- Burmese Python

Python Reticulata- Reticulated Python

Python sabae sabae - African Rock Python



Any venomous species of Snake or Lizard:

The following species of Snakes and lizards shall be

considered venomous:

Any snake within the Viperidae Family (i.e

Rattlesnakes, Gaboon Vipers, etc.)

Any snake within the Elapidae Family (i.e. Cobras,

Mambas, Kraits, etc.)

Atractaspididae Family (Mole Vipers, Stiletto

Snakes)

Psammophis (Sand Racers)

Rhabdophis (Keelback Snakes)

Dispholidus (Boomslangs)

Thelatornis (Twig Snakes)

Helodermatidae (Gila Monsters, Beaded Lizards)



Any Crocodilian species



Persons wishing to obtain a permit for any of the

above listed animals must meet the following

requirements:



A. Person shall provide proof by means of a written

test that they have a full understanding/knowledge of

the animal’s inherent nature/disposition, food, water

and housing requirements, and dangers/risks involved

in keeping of said animal.



B. Person shall provide physical proof in the form of

a photograph that they have in their possession

adequate housing for said animal that meets size and

safety requirements for that animal, or a valid

receipt of purchase from a local merchant for a

manufactured cage/enclosure meeting adequate housing

and safety requirements.



C. Person shall pay all fees for tests, applications

and permits as required by State/County/Local

Authorities prior to any permit or permits being

issued. A Permit issued for any Potentially Dangerous

Animal shall include any and all animals which fall

under that specific category. Permit fees and

schedules shall be as follows:

Permit fee for keeping/handling large Boids to be

renewed annually. (Suggested permit fee - $10.00)

Permit fee for keeping/handling Crocodilians to be

renewed annually. (Suggested permit fee - $15.00)

Permit fee for keeping/handling Venomous snakes or

lizards to be renewed annually. (Suggested permit fee

- $20.00)



D. In the event that an animal does indeed escape by

any fault of its permitted keeper, and said animal is

found anywhere off-site of the owner's property, said

permit shall be immediately revoked, and future permit

or permits shall not be approved for a period of (how

many years?), after which time said permit may be

reinstated, provided no serious physical harm to any

persons resulted from such animal's escape. Any

fines/punishments shall be enforced by the

State/County/Local Judicial system.



E. In the case of keeping and handling of venomous

snakes or lizards, each person desiring a permit must

be Venomous Certified to keep and handle venomous

snakes or lizards. The (State?) requirements for

obtaining Venomous Certification are as such:



Certification of any person desiring to acquire and

keep venomous snakes or lizards shall consist of a

minimum of five hundred (500) hours of training

under the supervision of (State?)-approved personnel

experienced in the handling and husbandry of venomous

snakes or lizards. Said personnel shall be deemed

approved by the (State?) as “experts” in the handling

and husbandry of venomous snakes and/or lizards.

Persons which the (State?) may consider as qualified

to administer training may be those belonging to or

employed by:

Zoos

Animal Rescue/Rehabilitation Facilities

Museums (Natural History or similar)

Herpetological Societies/Associations/Organizations

Wildlife Sanctuaries/Parks

Any other persons with reasonable experience and

knowledge of handling/keeping venomous snakes and/or

lizards.



Certification of persons in the keeping/handling of

venomous snakes and/or lizards shall be available

within four (4) separate categories. Each category

shall require a minimum of five hundred (500) hours of

training by (State?)-approved personnel. Persons

seeking permits for any two (2), three (3) or all four

(4) of the categories below shall receive the minimum

hours of training for each category. Therefore, a

person seeking to obtain certification for two (2)

categories shall require a minimum of 1,000 (1,000)

hours of training, a person seeking certification in

three (3) categories shall receive a minimum of

fifteen hundred (1,500) hours of training, and a

person seeking certification in all four (four)

categories shall receive a minimum of 2,000 hours of

training. These categories shall be as follows:



Category I:

Keeping/Handling of Lizards in the Heloderma

Family, which would be Gila Monsters and/or Beaded

Lizards. Minimum 500 hours of training.



Category II:

Keeping/Handling of snakes within the Viperidae

Family, including, but not limited to, Rattlesnakes,

Copperheads, Cottonmouths (Water Moccasins), True

Vipers. Minimum 500 hours of training.



Category III:

Keeping/Handling of venomous Colubrids such as

Psammophis (Sand Racers), Rhabdophis (Keelback

Snakes), Dispholidus (Boomslangs), Thelatornis (Twig

Snakes). Minimum 500 hours of training.



Category IV:

Keeping/Handling of snakes within the Elapidae

Family, including but not limited to, Cobras, Mambas

and Kraits. Minimum 500 hours training.



F. Persons seeking to be certified in the keeping of

venomous snakes and/or lizards are responsible for

paying for required training by (State?)approved

experts, with such fees set by the personnel that

shall be implementing the training program for

desiring individuals.



G. Persons that receive a permit or permits allowing

them to keep any potentially dangerous animal(s) must

advise the following agencies that they retain such

permit or permits, and that they will be keeping

animals that fall within the respective permit

categories:

Local Law Enforcement Authorities

Local Animal Control Offices (or similar)

Local Fire department(s)

Local Ambulance Service(s)

Information of individuals obtaining and maintaining

above stated permits will be kept strictly

confidential and will not be released to the public

or to the media unless a court order is presented.

Keeping these records private will ensure the

protection of individuals with said permit(s) and

their respective collections of animals from criminal

action.



H. All animals kept by person(s) prior to these

State/County/Local Regulations coming into effect

shall be exempt from these regulations, provided such

persons having in their possession any venomous

species of snakes and/or lizards can provide proof of

a minimum of three (3) years prior experience in the

keeping/handling of such animals.
Regulation Proposal

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