Few of us want to see entire classes of critters banned from ownership, especially reptiles. I read a debate on banning, on another site, and one member made an excellent point that personal responsibility was the key issue.
Recently, an owner of non reptile exotics who had recently been released from jail opened the cages of his animals and released them, and then he killed himself.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/us...lines&emc=tha2
Most of the animals are dead now, killed as a perceived threat.
Large exotics such as lions and bears may arguably not have a place in private urban households, but that is not the debate here.
Many of us do not want bans, rules, regulations and licenses because it seems like once the government has a little control, it is easy for them to move into a position of having a lot of control.
I do not think there are easy answers here. How does one enforce the personal responsibility others should have for their critters, and for their neighbors, without bringing in government control?
Sue the irresponsible party? For one, many may not have any assets worth attaching so if you win, you win nothing. And for another, even if you are right, and even if you have been injured, lawsuits are expensive, so in order for the lawsuit avenue to work, both parties must be affluent.
When incidents such as the above release occur, officials are likely to do what may be easiest and least expensive, which is issue a total ban on private ownership.
There has to be some solution that will allow people to be safe both from irresponsible owners and from the government.
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