Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just returned from the reptile show and unfortunately I was not able to get in the show. Ohio Fish and Game was there and blocking anyone from even entering the parking lot. I know that monkey pox has scared some people, but that is no reason to stop citizens from buying supplies for there pets, and participating in an event that has been around for over 10 years without any incident that warrants police involvement. The rights of exotic pet owners are being taken away.

I waited 'till 11am then went home and ordered via rodentpro. Sux, because now I got pay shipping and not support a local source. It also sux because I had arranged to meet severl boardies there and we agreed to meet by the snack counter. Woops!

FYI - They were finally able to open at 1:30 from what I here.

the closing had nothing to do with monkey pox. My wife and I traveled to buy from west michigan (750 miles round trip). We where there early and stuck inside all fricken day. Details
here:
Link

looked up the news site that was in there interviewing alot of vendors.
All Ohio Reptile Raid

This was pretty much a high hype to really hurt the herp shows. It seemed they were targeting ever one they could. Yes I was there all day stuck inside also - I was not cited. It really killed the business for the day - from what I hear, the only good "swapping" was apparently occuring on the streets beyond the barracks by people waiting to attend. Those of us still remaining sure were happy to see those who waited 4 1/2 hours to come in. The hope is that there will be future shows, but it is not looking positive.

I read the Ohio regulations regarding the keeping and sale of reptiles both native and non-native. It seems pretty straightforward to me. It also seems much more reasonable and less restrictive than the state I live in (Georgia).

Was anyone arrested or cited that was NOT in violation of one of the state laws?

Several people were NOT arrested or cited, what was different about what they were doing?

If you are going to be in the business of selling reptiles, wouldn't it pay to make SURE you understand and abide by the laws of the state(s) you are doing business in, as well as any Federal laws, such as the Lacey Act?

Why the surprise that they raided this show? According to the articles this was the culmination of a 2 year undercover investigation. In an investigation like that, when they would have reliable information that there would be many infractions of the laws at the event, what would you expect them to do? Send Hallmark Cards asking the people to stop violating the laws? Of course they are going to raid the place. There, they have the vendors,obviously and irrefuteably offering illegal animals for sale. When you have a protected animal in a deli cup with a price marked on top sitting on top of your vendor table, it's hard to argue that it wasn't actually for sale. According to Ohio State Law, all they have to do is show that it is captive born offspring from either legally collected Ohio native animals or legally collected animals from another state. You are allowed to keep 4 wild caught animals of each species for breeders and an UNLIMITED number of captive born offspring. The wild-caught animals can't be sold, but the captive born can. What's so tough about that? Keep good records and you have your defense.

in a field guide, and it appears that they might have been making up or misinterpreting laws. Supposedly they even confiscated a luecistic texas rat snake.

Well, now that could be a problem....