Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Does anyone know all the legality of breeding snakes in PA?
Maby point me in the right direction.

Thanks Pat

I don’t think there are any laws in PA about breeding any type of snakes unless maybe it’s a native species. The best thing to do would be to call a herp society or the Pittsburgh zoo they have a reptile department. And are the ones that put on the reptile show in Pittsburgh they would have to know. But from living in PA I have never heard anything on not being aloud to breed snakes.

You can also call the fishery dept. they are in charge of reptile as well.

Thanks for your reply...i will contact them.

Pat

According to PA's fish and game site, there are no restrictions on owning reptiles in PA at all, aside from needing a permit for native poisonous species (timber rattlesnake and copperhead).

PA does have restrictions on it's reptiles. I don't know about snakes, but you're not allowed to sell native herps in PA, and there are limits to the number of certain turtles that can be possessed. Look on a chart for "daily catch" limits for reptiles on the PA Fish and Boat Commission's website.

Changes to the regulations have been in the works for about a year, and one of the proposed changes would have made it illegal to bring anything native in or out of state.

Katrina
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1.2 Eastern Muds - Fred, Ethel, Edith
0.1 Iguana - Tiffel
0.1 Bearded Dragon - Foster
Foster turtles: More than I'd like the husband to know about.

well that hardly has anything to do with snakes, now does it? All I know is that according to the fish and game site, you can own, breed, or sell anything as long as it is not a native venomous snake. And since i don't think he's worried about making turtle soup the daily catch limit is hardly relevant.

A daily catch limit DOES apply if there is a daily catch limit for the species in question, even a snake. If there is a daily catch limit of two, then you can't have more than two at any one time. Makes legal breeding kind of hard, doesn't it? PA treats their reptiles like game animals, thus the terms such as "daily catch limit".

As for selling herps in PA, for years the website for the Hamburg reptiles show has stated "NO ENDANGERED, PROTECTED OR NATIVE PA SPECIES PERMITTED". I've still seen native reptiles sold there, but there must be a reason they say it on their website.

http://pythons.com/hamburg/

Katrina

This (PA) law is pretty easy to find (unlike most) on the states website (FAQs on selling/buying natives #5) IF you can make the connection that the FISH & BOAT COMMISSION oversees the native reptile fauna.

http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Fish_Boat/mpag1.htm

I showed the following page to a UNIFORMED officer (very hard to find since most of them choose to attend as UNDERCOVERS) @ the Hamburg show to make sure I was "following" the regs. properly. He didn't seem very happy I was trying to follow or decipher "their" rules & actually appeared annoyed but what can you do - the guy is just trying to make a buck & feed his kidz right? Keep in mind OH & PA are neighbors and know it is a possibility you might have to go through a lot of legal (= $$ - poss. jail time) issues over that ribbon, garter, or ratsnake. In order to sell or OWN C.b.b. natives in OH, KY, PA, MD,, & I believe (?) NY, etc., one would have to have the paper work (i.e. permit #s) to prove they were legally obtained unless there is a set limit of WC animals you are able to own..

http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Fish_Boat/faqampr.htm#s3

down the thread.....

Just an FYI, in MD you can have a snake from DNR's List A (non-endangered, not a species of special concern) WITHOUT a permit IF you have four or less of them AND you are not breeding, trading, selling, or bartering the snakes. Those four may have been wild-caught in MD. This includes black rat snakes and corn snakes. If you have a permit, you can collect four from the wild, breed them, and sell or trade the offspring, but not the wild-caught animals. NO wild-caught MD reptile can be sold, traded, or bartered.
No microchipping required in MD. If you have more than four, or you are breeding them, you must have a permit.

Turtles are a different story that I won't go into here because the discussion was about snakes.

Katrina
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1.2 Eastern Muds - Fred, Ethel, Edith
0.1 Iguana - Tiffel
0.1 Bearded Dragon - Foster
Foster turtles: More than I'd like the husband to know about.

Oh, and another thing: you said that you can't sell native herps in PA, which isn't true; I've bought a native species (Ribbon Snake) from a pet store here in Pittsburgh.

Just because you did it doesn't make it legal now does it? You & the pet store have "broken the law" you rebels!! Of course we've all broken the law @ some point in time. The big question is will big brother take into consideration we are talking about a common ribbon snake - which is native but not (even close to) threatened or endangered - and not something that requires "protection" (funded by $$FINES$$ & $$tax dollars$$) or will they charge you & let the courts figure it out.? Do they want to keep themselves & friends (poss. family) in work by bringing cases against us "evil-doers". Are they trying to "move up" on the ladder at WORK (as it is a JOB 4 them). Would the person making these decisions be motivated by money thus ensuring his job.? I can tell you what the answer was to that question in OHIO '03. I don't know how many people were brought up on serious charges over Black Ratsnakes - one of the most common snakes found in N. America AND most dealings were with MUTANTS (Albinos, Leucys, & White-sideds) which are not designed to survive in the wild or represented in wild populations.

This (PA) law is pretty easy to find (unlike most) on the states website (FAQs on selling/buying natives #5) IF you can make the connection that the FISH & BOAT COMMISSION oversees the native reptile fauna.

http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Fish_Boat/mpag1.htm

I showed the following page to a UNIFORMED officer (very hard to find since most of them choose to attend as UNDERCOVERS) @ the Hamburg show to make sure I was "following" the regs. properly. He didn't seem very happy I was trying to follow or decipher "their" rules & actually appeared annoyed but what can you do - the guy is just trying to make a buck & feed his kidz right? Keep in mind OH & PA are neighbors and know it is a possibility you might have to go through a lot of legal (= $$ - poss. jail time) issues over that ribbon, garter, or ratsnake. In order to sell or OWN C.b.b. natives in OH, KY, PA, MD,, & I believe (?) NY, etc., one would have to have the paper work (i.e. permit #s) to prove they were legally obtained unless there is a set limit of WC animals you are able to own..

http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Fish_Boat/faqampr.htm#s3

3. I want to sell reptiles and amphibians. Do I need permit from the Fish and Boat Commission?

There are no permits issued by the Fish and Boat Commission for selling reptiles and amphibians. Our regulations require that with the exception of common snapping turtles, no reptile or amphibian may be taken from the wild in PA for sale, trade or barter. Also, it unlawful to possess, import or export species listed as endangered or threatened by the Fish and Boat Commission. For species not taken from the wild but which may occur in PA, a dealer or purchaser would need to obtain and maintain the proper documentation to show that the origin of an animal was from a legal source and not taken from the wild.

THAT is what was on the boat and game site, which is where I got my info from in the first place. It is PERFECTLY LEGAL, as I've said before, to BUY, SELL, and TRADE ANY REPTILE NOT NATIVE to PA. I SHOULD, however, need to find my ribbon snake documentation that says it is not from PA; not that I would be in trouble anyway; the pet store would be (as it is nowhere stated that it is illegal to BUY native species). Since I have no intention of selling cranky ol' Rasputin, the snake is fine as he is. If I were to decide to bag him up and sell him, THEN I would need documentation.

somehwere within the pa laws, I read it last year when everyone was talking about these new regulations it said "the state of PA does not regulate the interstate transit of non native reptiles" so maybe thats changed but I doubt it PA has better things to do then make criminals of pet owners, you will want to check city/township as well thats where you will run into stupid laws, the next town over to where I lived prior to moving to the midwest had banned all "flesh eating lizards" someone scared the mayors wife with a large monitor so she got all lizards that eat live prey banned is the story I was told, on the flip side you could have a 20ft retic or spitting cobra but not a bearded dragon, go figure, I had all hots large boas and pythons, I never had anything native, Id try fish and game as well I always thought they were in charge of those type regulations, best of luck
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Jason & Danica
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Classic Dums frozen feeders

I am aware of at least one series of busts which involved the sale of rough green snakes in pet stores near the Philadelphia area. These were snakes that were imported into the state in violation of the state law which allowed them to pursue the shippers for LACY Act violations.

Ed