Accused of Poisoning Neighbors

Please read artical on my web site. Its a little long to post in thead. Feedback is welcomed.

www.iamhome2.com/rat

I've was operating a small business in my home as a hobby for over a year, feeding my own stock and providing for all my friends.

As of June 10th 2004 the business is absolved. No future sales will be made.

The main reason for this close of business is based on a complaint from my current neighbor who lodged a complaint to the local township. They stated the way I kill my rodents was by gas, and the gas was leaching into their home and making their children sick.

Their statement is just absurd, I used compressed nitrogen gas to fill a container to humanely euthanize all rodent stock. This method was given to me by another business. Nitrogen gas is an inert gas that makes up more then half the air we breathe everyday.

If my neighbors children are getting sick, they should look at them selves, as the children are rarely allowed outside. One is so skinny he appears to be malnourished. Could it be that this family who already states publicly without being asked that they suffer from chronic illnesses, which was prior to moving in as my neighbors are just hungry to blame all their problems on who ever they see fit or is close enough at the time.

As a further result of this complaint, the local township fined my townhouse management for allowing me to operate a business in a residence. I did to my defense have a federal and state business license. With me not having a open door policy I was unaware I had to apply for a local permit. My fault entirely, I should have done more research. I sold rats and mice and have no objection getting rid of all live rodents. Management decided to take it out on my snakes as well. They gave me 10 days to get rid of all my snakes and rodents. The majority of my snakes are of a small size and all are non-venomous. Management was asked over a year ago if I could acquire snakes and I was told verbally that they didn't have a problem with it if they were secure and not poisonous. But now I am being told I don't have it in writing. I was told that the pet clause states PET singular not plural.

Snakes are tank animals and fall in the same classification as fish. Next management is going to say you can only house one fish in your home. The tenants in these apartments and townhome's have a wide assortment of pets. To tenants knowledge the ONLY pets not allowed are dogs. Tenants in my complex have poisonous spiders, poisonous lizards, lizards, poisonous frogs, frogs, poisonous fish, fish, poisonous organisms (coral), birds, gerbils, hamsters, mice, rats, snakes, crickets, worms, grubs, insects, and cats.... OMG CATS cats and more cats. Cats everywhere.

Many tenants have complained of the cat population in the complex and were told that nothing can be done.

But my simple corn and king snakes, which are non-venomous have to go because my neighbors made an absurd story of thier children getting sick, off the fumes of the inert non-toxic gas I use to humanely euthanize all rodent stock.

This is just my personal little gripe and are my own opinions, names and addresses are withheld

That really sucks. I'm soooo sorry.

Will you be moving? I would move before I gave up all my snakes.

Well this i just my opinion, but here goes: I think you may have a legal or moral obligation to report your neighbors to the local child welfare authorities if one of their children actually looks malnourished and if they seem to be miscaring for their children.
Asd to your snakes and rodents, that stinks but my bet is that the management of your complex is within the confines of the renatl agreement. If you were not following the agreement, well you will wind up the loser. It is always best to get it in writing. Hopefully you can approach them again about the snakes, and get them to relent.

I have started an arangment with management to allow 5 snakes. This still is heart breaking as I have 13. :*(

I don't wish to move nor can I readly afford it. So kissing managements butt may be what I have to do.

As for the neighbors, a call is going out to Child welfare on monday morning.

PS. How do you report somone who has epilepsy and drives a car?
My neighbor (father) has epilepsy. And the other parent claims to suffer from comma states. She says that it just comes on her and she sits in a comma for hours to days. (bullsh*t if you ask me). Told you my neighbors are wacked.

I don';t know if epileptics can drive or not. Heck I live in NY, back here they let people drive who find licenses in boxes of Cracker Jacks!

Good luck with management. Maybe you can get someone to hold onto your other snakes for a while then get the managers to relent and let them all back.

Here in California, epileptics can drive if their doctor gives the DMV a statement that the seizures are controlled. So, all one has to do is report to the DMV that the person is an epileptic and it will investigated.


So, which 8 will you be parting with?

Here in MI if someone has a seizure they cannot drive for one year after the seizure then after that as long as there have been no other attacks and they are under medical care and meds they can drive again. I believe it probably varies from state to state, you should definitely check it out.
That seems, from what you are saying, one whacked out family.
Good luck on being able to keep your snakes. Perhaps if you can show them that those types of snakes present no danger and that you have them contained very well they will relent.
Again Good Luck.

In the US, there are many who just don't understand why one would want to keep serpents and/or raise mice... I was at a flea market in Tupelo, MS a few months ago with my g/f Joanne, and we had some available colubrids for sale at the time, kings and milks mostly, and a couple corns. The local pet store here in Oxford had a display table at the market, and they invited us over if we wished to go and set up on a corner of their pet shop setup for free as they weren't taking over any herps for sale, so we decided to make the drive... Joanne had pulled out an adult male 50/50 B/W cal-king to show some interested buyers, and the people at the booth across from us just started screaming "ARE YA CRAZY? ARE YA STUPID? THAT THING'S GONNA KILL YOU! THEY LET YA IN HERE WITH THAT?" Ect. (You'll have to interject your own southern Drawl LOL, we are in MS after all!!!! But DUH, we were at a pet store's table which was selling animals). In "Bible Belt" US, people just have a huge misinterpretation of the animals we keep, and it's this lack of knowledge and close-mindedness which threatens our hobby (and hobbyists) as a whole. There will always be persecution of keeping collections in apartments (I myself had to buy a home to keep my stock after living in an apartment, after they decided "oh no, this won't work!"), so I can completely understand where you're coming from, and wish you only the best of luck in keeping your precious animals... -Eric Lago *MS Reptilian Hobbyists*
http://msreptilianhobbyists.fabpage.com

It is my understadning, being a PA resident, that if one has seizures at any times the license is revoked for one year regardless of a doctor's note. I only know this as I work in mortgages and we have dealt with unique situations and we have a client at this time that no longer works as her license was revoked due to epilepsy(cant spell). As there may be more to it, I can't say 100% this is what PA does.

In my old condo in MD, I was fined $100 because I had 9 flower pots (of flowers) on my porch and you were only permitted 8.....
And I owned it! It was the stupid association!
So in retaliation I PLANTED flowers everywhere...right before I moved back to PA.
Sorry off subject!

Good luck with your snakes and I hope they let you keep them all!
I hope you report your neighbors for the sake of the kids.

Take care