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THE EXAMINER (Washington, DC) 23 April 08 Arlington weighs ban on owning poisonous or dangerous snakes (Taryn Luntz)
Washington: Arlingtonians on the hunt for a pet python soon may have to settle for a garter snake instead.
The county is considering banning the ownership of poisonous or dangerous snakes.
“Currently, there is no code against venomous snakes as long as they are contained and they are kept in a way that doesn’t endanger the public,” said Richard Cole, the county’s environmental health bureau chief.
“We have knowledge that there are some homeowners in the county that may own them, and so out of an abundance of caution, we think it’s better as a county to have laws against owning venomous snakes,” he said.
The issue came to officials’ attention when Arlington County police, animal control and code enforcement staff responded to a report of several venomous snakes in a single-family home, according to a county staff report recommending the new measure.
“After a multi-agency investigation it was determined that there was no violation of any law, ordinance or regulation,” the report said. “There is no prohibition of possession of poisonous or dangerous reptiles and it can be difficult to prove violations of regulations governing handling of these animals.”
While Virginia does not ban the possession or sale of exotic animals, Fairfax County, Prince William County and Falls Church have passed laws banning wild, exotic or vicious animals, including venomous snakes.
Alexandria and Arlington have no such laws.
The report, which staff was scheduled to present to the county board Tuesday night, identified several issues the county would have to resolve before adopting the law.
Arlington could choose to ban only dangerous snakes, ban a longer list of dangerous animals, or ban all or most of native and exotic animals “based on the concept that these constitute inappropriate pets in a densely populated urban area.”
The county also would have to consider whether to grandfather pets that are already owned and whether to allow exceptions to the law for certified service animals such as monkeys.
To deal with “immediate public health and safety issues,” county staff recommended passing a ban on dangerous snakes that would be effective after 60 days and recommended against grandfathering.
Staff would work with the current owners of the dangerous reptiles to ensure the proper disposition of the animals, according to the report.
Arlington weighs ban on owning poisonous or dangerous snakes

Limits and permits versus outright bans Virginia!
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Todd Hughes

SUN-GAZETTE (Springfield Virginia) 23 April 08 C. Board to Consider Narrow Prohibition on Snakes as Pets (Scott McCaffrey)
County Board members on April 22 started a process that could see poisonous snakes outlawed as pets across Arlington by summer.
But, at the same time, board members backed away from a broader ban on owning exotic or potentially dangerous pets, saying more study was needed.
Board members voted 5-0 set a May public hearing on changes to the county code to outlaw venomous pets as snakes.
“In our urban environment, venomous snakes, venomous reptiles are not appropriate,” County Board Ron Carlee told board members.
If the ban is enacted in May - as appears likely - owners of such pets would have at least 30 days, perhaps more, to find new homes for them.
The prohibition also would apply to poisonous reptiles other than snakes, such as gila monsters, but county officials say there is no evidence any such reptiles are being kept as pets in the county.
Under the legal language to be considered next month, possession of a poisonous snake or reptile would be considered a misdemeanor offense, but individuals could be charged with separate counts every day an animal is kept in violation of the adopted ordinance.
County Board members balked at advertising initial staff language that proposed an additional ban on “dangerous” but non-poisonous snakes. Such a ban would have applied to boa constrictors and pythons, among others.
Carlee agreed that limiting the scope of the ordinance to venomous snakes and reptiles was reasonable, for the time being.
“We don't have a clear definition of what 'dangerous' is,” he said.
The proposal to ban venomous reptiles was fast-tracked after one homeowner was found to have a large number of poisonous snakes, including two that escaped from the home and were in the neighborhood for some time.
How effectively a ban on snakes could be enforced remains to be seen. County officials would need probable cause and a search warrant in order to enter private property to see if snakes were being kept.
While the current proposal looks only at snakes and reptiles, Carlee said he is eager to hold conversations with his counterparts across Northern Virginia, in hopes of setting uniform standards on dangerous animals as pets.
Currently, some localities have no restrictions at all, while others have enacted stringent restrictions.
“We have a real patchwork of laws in Northern Virginia,” Carlee said.
(And a quirky patchword, it is: Fairfax bans ownership of monkeys, panthers and crocodiles, while Prince William bans owning pet bears and groundhogs, among others, Arlington officials said.)
C. Board to Consider Narrow Prohibition on Snakes as Pets