NEWS JOURNAL (Newark, Ohio) 15 July 05 Louie the iguana not wanted by Lexington - Village ordinance bans exotic pets (Mark Caudill)
Lexington: Louie the iguana needs a new home.
Because of a village ordinance banning exotic pets, Missy Rice had to get rid of Louie, her pet of three years.
"I had no idea you weren't allowed to have them in the village of Lexington," Rice said. "I was shocked. She's one of the family."
Village Administrator Chuck Pscholka said the rules have been in place since April 1996.
"We didn't reinvent the wheel," he said. "We did some research."
Police discovered Louie on July 4, when someone walked past Rice's door and mistook the 3-foot green lizard for an alligator.
"We don't go looking for this," Lexington police Chief Brett Pauley said. "We act on complaints."
Police gave Rice a grace period for relocating Louie. Pauley said they didn't have to make such an allowance and could have cited Rice on the spot. The penalty is a fourth-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $250 fine.
Pscholka said there is a need for such a law.
"It's made pretty clear with the incident in Crawford County where that (Gaboon) viper escaped," he said. "It's very dangerous (to keep such animals)."
Rice said Louie is a vegetarian with no teeth.
"She nipped me one time, but it was like a paper cut," she said.
Louie is actually Louise.
"I didn't know she was a girl until she laid some eggs," Rice said.
Rice said she has grown attached to her scaly friend in the last three years.
"When I bought her, she fit in the palm of my hand," she said. "When you're talking about her, she listens to you. She observes a lot of things."
For now, Louie is staying with one of Rice's Mansfield friends. She hasn't made permanent arrangements.
"I was going to have her stay at my mom's. I was planning to sell Louie if I could," Rice said. "I was even going to call Jack Hanna (of the Columbus Zoo)."
Louie is staying in a pet carrier instead of his customary 6-foot cage that included heat lamps and a ladder where she slept.
"I'm looking at this big, empty cage," Rice said. "I've been really bummed."
Pscholka said rules are there for a reason.
"There's a place for people who need to have animals like this, but it's not in the middle of a municipality," he said.
Village ordinance
No person shall keep within this village any exotic animal except as inventory held for sale in a business district.
No person shall keep within this village any farm animal except on a parcel of land of at least five acres.
No person shall keep within this village more than four domestic animals per dwelling unit except that newborn offspring of such animals may be kept for a period of not to exceed 90 days after birth.
Exotic animals include lions, tigers, leopards, panthers, cougars, bobcats, bears, wolves, foxes, apes, gorillas, alligators, crocodiles, poisonous or constrictor snakes and any other member of the animal kingdom not defined as a domestic animal or farm animal in this section which is not native to the village and presents a risk of harm to human beings.
Farm animals include horses, ponies, mules, donkeys, cows, pigs, sheep, goats, buffalo, llamas, alpacas and any other animals which are raised for the purpose of providing food, entertainment, clothing or to be used as a beast of burden and not classified as a domestic or exotic animal in this section.
Domestic animals include dogs, cats and rabbits.
Louie the iguana not wanted by Lexington - Village ordinance bans exotic pets