DAILY INDEPENDENT (Ashland, Kentucky) 01 July 05 Proposed pet ordinance peeves python owner (Kirsten Stanley)
Flatwoods: Rob Harden says he is ready to wage a war against those who want to ban his beloved 271/2-foot Burmese python Jade inside Flatwoods city limits.
He said a proposed city ordinance banning most exotic animals - snakes more than 8 feet in length, wolves or wolf hybrids, tigers, Komodo dragons and crocodiles, etc. - as well as certain breeds of dogs labeled as "vicious," has enraged him and many other animal lovers who feel they and their pets are being unfairly targeted.
According to the ordinance, these animals are "inherently dangerous to human health and safety of the citizens of Flatwoods."
The council approved a first reading of the ordinance last week, but it will not go on the books until after a second reading, scheduled for Tuesday during the council meeting.
Harden admits his giant reptile, who lives in a specially-built garage in back of his Fields Avenue home, could inflict serious harm or even death on a person and most animals, but said the snake is nothing more than an overgrown baby that shows little signs of aggression. In fact, the constricting snake is housed next to a room with five cats, Harden pointed out, none of which has ever been attacked.
"She does not get out of that room," said Harden, a salesman at Boyd County Ford, as he pointed to Jade's room, which is designed to be "junglelike" in temperature and humidity. "So, I don't understand how they can say she poses a danger to the community."
Harden said he even kills Jade's food - one 15- to 17-pound rabbit every two weeks - for her to prevent the snake from having an instinct to kill.
Harden has lived on Fields Avenue for about five years and has never received a complaint, he said. In fact, one of his neighbors said the snake rarely even crosses her mind.
"Oh, I don't worry about it," said 70-year-old Phyllis Adkins, who lives just across the driveway from Harden. "It's in the back building, it's not like he has it out."
She has never seen the snake, she said.
If the ordinance is passed Tuesday, pet owners like Harden will have to give up their pets or move out of the city. Those who do not comply with the ordinance will be fined a minimum of $200 each day of violation and will also have to pay the cost of seizing, impounding and confining the animal. Harden said he will refuse to give up Jade.
"My snake ain't going nowhere," said Harden. "I would die for this snake."
Harden said he hopes that the city will stop trying to infringe upon his rights and start addressing more important issues such as speeding and the need for speed bumps.
He said if people would educate themselves about snakes, they would see how fascinating they really are. Jade, he said, could set a world length record in the upcoming years because she is so young and has plenty of time to grow - the average life span is 30 - and because she is shedding so often, which snakes do when they are growing rapidly. According to Harden, she is shedding about twice as much as an average snake.
"To me, she is just phenomenal. She is such an asset to the community," he said.
He said Jade could be used as a teaching tool for those who are uneducated about snakes or simply fearful of them.
"There is just a lot of misinformation about them, that's really what makes me mad," Harden said.
Proposed pet ordinance peeves python owner