Dogs are, indeed, a man's best friend. And while I have my issues with cats, they can at times be undeniably entertaining. Salt water aquariums can be beautiful and almost hypnotically soothing. I'm ambivalent about most pet birds, but disapprove of the trade in many of the more spectacular parrots and macaws that are becoming endangered in their native habitat. But when it comes to what they call "exotic pets", I really don't understand it, and I read yet another article in today's LA Times that has me shaking my head.
The article is about exotic snakes, mostly of the anaconda and huge python variety, that have been released by their former "owners" into the wild once they stopped being cool, and took on all of the charm of one of those vampire dogs in the movie "I Am Legend".
Why do people buy these things as pets? Why are they even allowed to?
For the record, I'm not a member of PETA, and while many of their goals are laudable, I often feel they cross over the line into WTF? territory. This isn't about being humane. It's about good judgement, understanding natural habitats, and being environmentally and socially responsible. We all grew up (or perhaps I'm aging myself) hearing the urban myths about giant alligators lurking in the sewer systems of certain cities after they were purchased as cute little 8"pets, but then grew too big and were flushed down the toilet. Whether or not that ever actually happened, it is without a doubt happening now with pythons, boa constrictors and anacondas of various stripes. With devastating results.
The Everglades is being overrun by the Burmese Python, which grows to some 20 feet in length and can weigh over two hundred pounds. It is one of the 6th largest snakes in the world, and is native to India (Hence the name "Burmese Python"). That pretty much places it into the rarified ranks of Top of the Food Chain. What does it eat when it is released into the wild? As it turns out, just about everything. Birds, squirrels, rabbits, bobcats...even deer and alligators. What eats them? Aside from the occasional tussle with an alligator that has an unfortunate (for the python) ending, nothing. They lay eggs 50 at a time. Do the math.
Some 5,000 of these snakes are estimated to be kept as pets...PETS...in Florida alone. So many have been released by former owners who experienced the sort of epiphany that only a 12 foot long reptile can provoke, that the Everglades now has full time staff whose only job is to try to hunt them down and remove them. How would you like THAT job? But seriously...they are causing major problems, and pose a serious threat to the entire ecosystem of the park...possibly the entire state of Florida.
There are several other large exotic snakes sold as pets in Florida, with cute names such as the reticulated python, Deschauensee's anaconda, green anaconda and Beni anaconda. Those are being set loose too, but due to their physiology and habit needs they may not spread out beyond much of Florida. Biologists, however, fear that the Burmese Python might eventually spread throughout most of the Southern States.
One need only look to Guam to see what could possibly happen. Less than 50 years ago the Brown Tree snake was accidentally introduced there. Having no native predators, it quickly established itself and multiplied. The Brown Tree snake has now eliminated 10 of the 12 native bird species on the island. Gone. Eaten. They are so numerous that they have to wrap tree trunks with electrically charged wire, and all of the hotels have grounds keepers who get up at dawn and police the grounds for snakes so as not to frighten the guests.
This isn't a new story. That's one of the reasons I'm shaking my head. I've read a number of pieces on the Burmese Python problem in the Florida Everglades in the past year, and the New York Times has been reporting on it since at least 2004. Yet they are still allowed to be sold, and it shouldn't come as any surprise that there is a trade group trying to throw up roadblocks in front of efforts to end the trade. The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council opposes any restrictions on interstate trade in these exotic snakes because, get this, such restrictions "could backfire as people who want to get rid of their snakes may feel forced to sell them illegally, kill them or release them in the wild. Hello??? They already ARE releasing them in the wild.
Meanwhile,
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will decide whether to declare these snakes "injurious species," which would prohibit imports and interstate commerce in them. Ken Warren, spokesman for the wildlife service, said a decision could come early next year.
Note that he said "could". Take your time, Ken. It's a thorny issue, and there's no need to rush into anything.
There are lot's of animals that shouldn't be kept as pets, or in a pen in someone's back yard. But at least there's a certain poetic justice when a fool is mauled by their own big cat or Black Bear. Non-native species should not be permitted to be imported for the pet trade.