Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I live in Texas and, as most of you know, this state is trying to make it more and more difficult to own snakes. Many of the cities around me have passed recent laws banning the sale of any snake that gets over 10 feet (and they don't care if it's a nicaraguan boa, it's still a boa so it MUST get over 10 feet!), and some even ban the sale of ball pythons!

So, as my own collection continues to grow, I'm wanting to move somewhere more big-snake-friendly (preferably out of texas) but I don't know much about boa/python laws in other states. I'm not so worried about my ball pythons being an issue, but I've got several boas and a couple burms. Anyone have any advice on boa-friendly states?

thanks,
~Kasey~
boas,balls,& burms

Florida has a very high percentage of Reptile keepers compared to most states. While it doesn't guarantee anything, it helps when you put the numbers and the revenue together in the face of legislational opposition.

I don't know for sure, but I believe Oklahoma is a snake friendly state.

I've never researched it, so you might want to double check.

New York State has outlawed snake species that get large (burmese, african rock, reticulated) and all venomous species.

Boas are still safe (at least outside of NYC, NYC has its own rules that can differ from the rest of the state), though.

However, local governments can always make whatever laws they want regardless, so check the city or town you want to move to, no matter WHAT the state laws may be.
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Lauren Madar - OphidiaGems.com | CageMakers
1.1 Ball Python, 1.0 Hog Island Boa, 1.1 Hypo BCI, 1.1 Surinam BCC, 1.1 Saharan Sand Boa

Ug. Forgot to say that anacondas are also on the "restricted" list in NYS... and anacondas are boas, so didn't want my "Boas are safe" statement to be confused.

Boa Constrictor Constrictor and Boa Constrictor Imperator, along with the other smaller Boa species are legal in NY but not the anaconda (yellow or green).
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Lauren Madar - OphidiaGems.com | CageMakers
1.1 Ball Python, 1.0 Hog Island Boa, 1.1 Hypo BCI, 1.1 Surinam BCC, 1.1 Saharan Sand Boa

I live in Arkansas, and I haven't heard of any negative laws here. I know that you can buy/sell boas and pythons here.

Jennifer

Does anyone know a good website to find out your state's herp laws?

http://www.animallaw.info/topics/spusexotic.htm

http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/reptilesgeneral/a/legalissues.htm

http://www.hg.org/usstates.html

http://www.altpet.net/legal.shtml

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/sregs/

http://www.animallaw.com/
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Thanks and take care - Joe Rollo
'Tis not the stongest of the species that will eventually survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change' Charles Darwin

Nevada was pretty friendly to exotics.. they sell monkeys in the pet stores as an example.

California is okay depending on where you are at. Always check the local laws for the county and city as well as state. I don't believe you can own boas or pythons in San Francisco.

Another example below for another CA city.

Just do a search online for "name of county/city animal code" and it usually pops up. Sometimes it takes a little digging.

Good luck,
April
this is for Dublin, CA, just an example

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'There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."' -Rainshadow

We live in Arkansas and breed ball pythons and redtail boas. We also own several other species of snakes as well as bearded dragons and a blackthroat monitor. Arkansas does not have any laws banning venomous or certain reptiles, but some cities may have their own laws. We live in Bryant and have to pay $100 yearly to keep the snakes, but that is just one of the city ordinances. Wherever you decide to go, just be sure to check. Good luck!

Despite its reputation for banning everything, Massachusetts has more moderate reptile laws than some. Rather than banning entire classes of animals, they individually evaluate them for danger to the environment or public safety if they are released, as well as whether an average pet owner can manage the husbandry issues. I think it's nice that they consider the well being of the reptile as well as the worst case scenario. Anyway, ball pythons, burmeses, and boas (except for emerald tree boas) are allowed. Venomous snakes, reticulated pythons, anacondas, and green tree pythons are not.

Sometimes the application of the law is rather unevenly applied. All monitors are banned (including Ackies and Savannahs), as are chameleons, but iguanids are not. I think most people would agree an ackie is a lot easier to care for and less likely to slash the bejeezus out of you on a bad day than an iguana, but at least they're trying.

In New Hampshire, most reptiles are legal except for venomous ones. It is also against state conservation laws to sell or keep any native animal (including local snakes and amphibians), even if they were captive-bred in another state.
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0.1 Boa constrictor imperator
2.5 Ball pythons
1.1 Crested Geckos

Question about the snakes that are legal in MA.. Im talking about the boas and burms.. Is there a law in MA that says you need a permit if a snake is a certain size? I mean can you keep a 20 ft burm?? If so, it kinda doesnt make too much sence that you can have a 20ft/250lb burm but if you have 2 ft retic you get in trouble. Puzzled

There may be state or county laws regulating the size of individual snakes, but the state will allow you to keep a snake of any size as long as it's a legal species. My understanding is that the state doesn't use size as an indicator of whether it should be legal, which I think makes sense. You don't want people buying legal 2-foot burms and then dumping them by the side of the road or at the pound when the reach an illegal length. Nor do you want people starving an animal to keep it small.

I'm not sure why burms are ok and retics are not. Basically any animal is evaluated on a three point scale - is it dangerous to people? Is it dangerous to the environment if it gets loose? Is it relatively easy to care for? If a reticulated is more aggressive or harder to care for than a burm, that may explain why they're illegal. I don't keep either, so I can't speak from experience. It may also just be that the people who do our wildlife law aren't that reptile-savvy - they may assume all common pet species are easy to care for and docile, and uncommon pet species aren't, which of course is naive.
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0.1 Boa constrictor imperator
2.5 Ball pythons
1.1 Crested Geckos