Your Help is Desperately NEEDED- PLEASE

Just to let everyone know -that anyone in any state can sign that petition and it is not just limited to FL residents.

Thanks
Beth Moody

Thank you to Beth for bringing this matter to everyone’s attention.

FWC has a good working relationship with the reptile industry in Florida and they are interested in getting input from the industry. I recently attended a meeting in Tallahassee for public input on the proposed regulations. Many people in the Florida reptile industry are making their voices heard, and I think we can impact the final draft of these regulations. I urge all of you to give your input to FWC regarding the proposed regulations.

Those of you who are out of state may still be impacted by these regulations. They are not specific to venomous reptiles, but also include ‘Reptiles of Concern’. This could significantly impact some of you who attend the Daytona breeders expo or other shows in the state. It may also impact your ability to purchase reptiles produced in Florida if the regulations become so restrictive as to eliminate production of certain species. Additionally, you can rest assured that PETA and HSUS have no qualms about sending in plenty of form letters and petition signatures from people who are not Florida residents.

The specific list of Reptiles of Concern is currently a short list, but one of the most troubling things is the lack of any description as to how additional species are added to the list. Between the bill that failed to pass last year and this years draft Tegus were added to list with no initial explanation as to why they were added. The list currently addresses several large python species, water and Nile monitors and tegus. One of the biggest concerns is that once this is passed it is much easier for all boids, or all constrictors, or all varanids to be regulated by a small change in language in a current regulation.

The reality is that there is a problem with Burmese pythons in the state, and the perception is that this problem is serious enough to require regulations. Our industry in Florida is going to become more regulated; as such it is imperative that we give input as to what sort of regulations we can live with. FWC does value our input and will consider it in their final draft. Several industry members have put forth the idea that the real problem is with the end consumer, not the producers or importers of these animals. We would like to see the regulations targeted at the retailer-end consumer transaction, and not on the responsible professionals who raise the snakes or who import them.

Many concerns over pit tags for venomous reptiles and reptiles of concern have been raised. These are primarily related to health risks for the reptiles, as well as health risks for the keepers, inspectors and veterinarians needed to insert and inspect the pit tags. Additional concerns were raised about the long term effectiveness of pit tags, and the possibility of a person being in violation of regulations if a snake were to pass the pit tag. Anecdotal evidence was presented that snakes have lost pit tags in the past. The FWC officials at the Tallahassee meeting seemed to think the current regulations for venomous snakes in Florida were working. There haven’t been cases of escaped venomous snakes tracked back to legal permit holders. In light of this, it seems that the use of pit tags in venomous snakes could only serve to support punitive action against a permit holder in the future if a snake was tracked back to the permit holder.

Another issue that is under review at this time is cage sizing. Under the proposed regulations a 28 quart Rubbermaid could house two blood pythons in excess of 5’, but not a single leopard gecko. Needless to say, there are plenty of issues with the cage size regulations. All of you who reside in Florida have a serious vested interest in reviewing the proposed regulations and giving your input on this matter.

Please spend a few minutes to give your input to FWC regarding these issues. From the FWC site:

FWC appreciates your interest in Florida’s captive wildlife and encourages interested persons to participate in the public workshops and/or provide written comment during this process. Written comment should be provided to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Division of Law Enforcement, Investigations Section, Attention: Ms. Precious Boatwright, 620 South Meridian Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1600. The deadline for submission of written comments is September 13, 2006.

Thank you for your time,

Joe Hiduke

I signed it and was in the process of getting everyone I know to sign it and now it's disappeared. The link is dead. What happened? -Chris

The problem is anytime you are dealing with politicians they only understand two things and those two things are the absolute only leverage you have to influence them with: money (which the reptile business and community do not have anywhere near enough of to make a dent), and votes, which when they look at your petition and see 2,000 names and only 200 Florida natives, they will laugh you out of their work schedule.

I am not trying to be mean to you. I have been very involved in this struggle. I have personaly dealt with authorities in 4 states and many cities over herp related laws. I even pushed the city I used to live in, into the court room to try to force them to make my animals illegal and I defeated them. I also started a non-profit organisation for just this sort of information years ago. So believe me when I say to you that I am not only sympathetic of you fight but do understand that it is a slippery slope and that they are coming to take away our rights and animals, BUT you have to do things the right way and you have to work inside the rules you have and the system you have to beat them at their own game.

Lesson 1) Take all the help and advice you are offered. The people here are being critical of you because they are wanting to fight you battle with you but they need you to be smart and well informed on how to do that.

2) Be specific so people this applies to know it does and will be motivated to help you with it.

3) Talk to an attorney that is willing to look at case law and help your cause. You can take up a donation fund to pay for it. People will contribute money if you have an absolute cause it is going to pay for, not just "we need money, help. '

4) Put pressure on the politician in the area this affects. Phone calls, letters, emails, etc., to a politician will let them know people who are able to vote for them/against them will not tolerate this action.

I am sorry for the length of my reply. I get damn fired up about this stuff. Get a petition that is well written up on the wall at every pet shop in the area with a sign up sheet right away. Evan

OK Here is the email I just received:

The Jacksonville Herpetological Society Link to our on line petition failed last week. We've finally been able to reload the petition online however, we've lost all the signatures that were gathered. If you believe as we do, and had signed the petition or would like to please return to www.jaxherp.org and click on the link for the petition or go directly to http://reptiles.petitiontime.com/


Thanks so much,

Janine Wells
Vice President Jacksonville Herpetological Society'


PLEASE please go resign it. Deadline is September 13, 2006. I don't know why the site went down and was devastated. But hopefully with everyones help we can get back all the signatures that were lost. Again it doesn't matter what state you live in. This is a worthy cause.

Thanks in advance for everyones help.

Sincerely,
Beth Moody
Simply Snakes

Here is the email I just recieved from jaxs herp society. Wanted everyone to know what was going on. Also have some email address if you'd like to email as suggested in the below email.


These are the email addresses of Lt. Harrison and Precious Boatwright.
Send your concerns to both.


linda.harrison@MyFWC.com

precious.boatwright@MyFWC.com



I've sent to FWC a hard copy of the petition of signatures we had collected. I've emailed Lt. Harrison, and Precious Boatwright a link to view the online petition.
We are going to keep the petition ongoing. We've also sent a letter to Rep. Poppell and Senator Posey who originated Senate Bill 990 also known as House Bill 145 a letter that states what we are doing.
It was stated at the last CWTAG meeting that Rep Poppell intends to bring the bill back up in Feb 2007.
I personally also feel that he along with certain other powerful person or person(s) are responsible for putting pressure on FWC to come up with these rules. (Which had changed significantly from what CWTAG had been working on when it was announced at the public forum.)

I've attached a copy of the letter that was sent to Lt. Harrison, Precious Boatwright, Rep. Poppell and Senator Posey.

Hopefully what everyone is doing will make a difference.

Thanks again everyone for your help.

Sincerely
Beth Moody
Simply Snakes

i had no idea people were going to criticize you and insult you over this? apparently they pay more attention to grammatical errors and posting errors than the actual post...good luck to you - i hope all turns out well.

I just signed the petition. Hope im not too late!!!

Originally Posted by ashnazgh

i had no idea people were going to criticize you and insult you over this? apparently they pay more attention to grammatical errors and posting errors than the actual post...good luck to you - i hope all turns out well.

Yeah, no kidding!!!