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 #1989755


MikeIsEvil
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 My thoughts on the PR669 Bill...

(I just copied and asted this from a messege I wrote on Facebook alerting my friends of the bill, so I had to go into detail on certain things since my friend arent familiar with reptiles, lol)


As you know, Im a big animal lover, mainly reptiles. Well, due to the increase of utter stupidity running through the human population a ban has been in the swing to BAN ALL Non-native animals from being sold in the USA. Non-native meaning anything that isnt NATURALLY found in the USA, cannot be sold, bought, traded, imported to here. You always see those cute little hamsters at the petshop, and you always want to buy one? Too bad, hamsters are non-native and cannot be sold in the USA. Along with a lot of exotic snakes, birds, ferrets, frogs, lizards, gerbils, etc.

So the bill is being passed around congress as we speak. It is called the PR 669 bill. There is in fact a petition going around to STOP the bill. But thats not why Im typing this lovely note for you guys. I need help. I dont want everyone to sign the petition to say NO NO NO. Because honestly, I might be sorta kind a tad bit smidge for the bill. Thats why I need help. Let me explain:

Cons: I love reptiles, obviously. So I would not be allowed to buy ANY non-native animal at all if the bill is passed. I try my hardest(as A LOT of reptile enthusiasts) to take care of my pets. But like I said, due to people releasing unwanted exotic animals into the wild(which disrupt the natual eco-system) the ban was put forth. So eventhough we take great care of them, uneducated foolish people ruin it for everyone else.

Breeders. There are LOTS of people out there in the US that breed exotic animals for a living. Like them and petstores, pet expos, etc will be critically altered by this bill(if passed). So that creates another dilema. So if this is passed, petstores will go out of business, people will have no means of an income and will have to find new occupations, etc.

If the bill is passed, people will continue to be greedy and ignorant and try to smuggle the animals in to sell them illegally. Which is bad news for the animals if said people get caught.

Pros: Yes theres actual postives about this. Ok, eventhough I LOVE to keep exotic animals, this ban will help save a lot of animals. By this I mean...A LOT of petstores buy imported WC(Wildcaught) animals and sell them. The animals are caught, taken out of their natural habitat and sent off to different petstores around the USA and Europe. WC animals are usually stressed, sick and filled with parasites. The trip stresses them out more, and some die along the way, die at the petstore or die when an uneducated person buys the animal, then realizes they cant care for it. So it either dies, or is released into the wild. So I, in some way, would like it to get passed for the sake of all these WC animals. Its better for them, verses being better for us(eventhough we arent the ones causing issues).

I would like to say ALL my exotic animals are CB(Captive Bred) meaning they were bred from animals that were born in the USA, by people. They arent wild. They were hatched/born under the supervision of a breeder. But this bill does nothing for CB animals. It still bans the fact of keeping the exotics, because they arent native.


So I am deciding whether or not I should be FOR this bill or AGAINST it. A lot of reptile enthusiasts are against this bill 100% but they arent looking at the bigger picture. The fact that lots of animals, happy in the wild will not be exported and killed along the way to a pet store.

I want to thank everyone for reading this and please do what you can. If you care, think about it. Think about it from an animals perspective..think about it from a mature EXPERIENCED animal keeper...Thanks again. Much appreciated.



Mike,



04/21/09  12:37am

 #1989756


MikeIsEvil
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   Message To: MikeIsEvil   In reference to Message Id: 1989755


 My thoughts on the HR669 Bill...

Whoops, ment HR669. My mistake.



Mike,
04/21/09  12:38am

 #1994822


JackAsp
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   Message To: MikeIsEvil   In reference to Message Id: 1989756


 My thoughts on the HR669 Bill...

To be honest, I like that bill. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not supporting it. But there is ALWAYS a bill out there gunning for snake owners, and what I like about 669 is that it forces fish owners, bird owners, and millions of business proprieters to take OUR side. It won’t pass, because it is way too broad and stupid, but if it keeps the nannies busy for a while maybe we can get away with a few more decades before the axe really DOES come down. Which it will, eventually. So basically, I like HR669 for the same reason I would like a very, very crappy assault rifle, if someone absolutely insisted on shooting at me with an assault rifle. Ineffective attacks are more welcome than effective ones. Let the crazies tire themselves out trying to push this thing, and please do NOT tell them how to write a better version of it, because if they ever do there is an excellant chance that it actually WILL pass.
04/28/09  09:40pm

 #1994829


JackAsp
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   Message To: JackAsp   In reference to Message Id: 1994822


 My thoughts on the HR669 Bill...

... unfortunately, I just read the other thread, and it looks like a re-write is already in the works. Hopefully it will come out just as garbled and unsellable.
04/28/09  09:45pm

 #1995848


DuckMonster
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   Message To: JackAsp   In reference to Message Id: 1994829


 My thoughts on the HR669 Bill...

Unfortuantely, Jack you seem top place trust in those who see themselves as our Masters. They can and will keep trying till they get it right. Always have, until everything is illegal. It is difficult to control a population of innocent people, easy if they are all criminals.
04/30/09  07:04pm

 #1996078


JackAsp
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   Message To: DuckMonster   In reference to Message Id: 1995848


 My thoughts on the HR669 Bill...

I hardly said I trusted them. I said it’s a fact that they’re gunning for us, and I’m far happier when instead of figuring out how to do it accurately they spend their time fighting over who gets to aim the blunderbuss.



04/30/09  10:55pm

 #1997742


DragonPaw
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   Message To: MikeIsEvil   In reference to Message Id: 1989755


 My thoughts on the PR669 Bill...

The way I see it, this bill is not good idea - not even through the animal’s point of view. As you said, it will open up more animal trafficking and people will continue to keep exotic animals, and perhaps in worse conditions (i.e. in a box in a closet to hide it, as well as the fact that the keepers will not have easy access to proper care and care information). Besides that, how is this supposed to enforced? How are they going to make sure people are not keeping these animals? They almost certainly do not have the human-power for it.

I believe it SHOULD be more difficult for people to obtain these animals - they should jump through hoops; require permits, CB animals only (as is with the Australian animals), etc.. As it is, it too easy for "impulsebuyers" or irresponsible keepers to get their hands on animals they should not have - this goes for dogs, cats, and other domesticated animals as well as exotic animals.

Of course, more restrictions do not completely eliminate the problem of irresponsible animal keeping, but it should help, and definitely help more than a ridiculous, wide-sweeping ban. We can see from history (alcohol) that wide-sweeping bans do not solve the problem. I am completely for more restrictions, but HR669 is not the solution.
05/03/09  04:38pm


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