Please Support Our Hobby

This is a subject that is fast becoming very close to my heart, I have seen organisations such as the APA and the RSPCA continually criticise and attack the reptile industry and people who chose to keep exotic pets. Scaremongering seems to be the tactic of choice, with the organisations focusing on the lack of understanding and education about exotics.

Education is the KEY.

 

The APA or Animal Protection Agency

Direct quote from their website

"The Animal Protection Agency (APA) is the UK organisation committed to ceasing the trade in wildlife for pets. Perhaps unbelievably, it is still legal in Britain to sell wild animals captured from other countries. The majority of wild-trapped animals die from the stress and disease that is associated with every stage of their harrowing journey. Next to habitat destruction, collection of animals for the pet trade is the main reason for the decline in many species. Attempts to regulate and control the trade have globally failed. The problem is getting worse, and time is running out!"

If this is the case then why are they focusing on the reptile trade so badly? Very few reptiles kept in captivity are wild caught, the vast majority are bred in captivity and surely they should be supporting this? Habitat destruction IS the reason animals are becoming extinct, and it is the human race that is doing this, surely captive breeding programs, no matter how small, are a good thing.

The latest APA campaign includes what used to be one of my favourite high street shops 'Lush', they are currently selling a soap that will directly fund the APA and you will also receive a handy leaflet about why reptiles don't make good pets...needless to say I no longer purchase my cosmetics from them. A few people have made a counteracting leaflet : Here

Feel free to download and hand out. I personally feel like standing outside lush in the town centre and handing people these, although I'm not sure what the ramification of that would be.

 

Invasive Non-native Species Policy Discussions within the European Union

 

Dear all,

Discussions and preliminary consultations commenced midway through 2010 on the development of an EU policy on the issue of invasive or potentially invasive non-native (or alien) species – both plant and animal but from here onwards this summary will concentrate on animal-related concerns. Previous discussions had taken place between 2005-2010 but have become a lot more important because of the European
Union’s stated intent to enact some form of legislation on the issue as part of their commitments on biodiversity. A consultation – not well publicised – took place over the summer of 2010 and according to EU officials most respondents were British (both from the pro-keeping and pro-trade side and from the animal protectionist & animal rights side of the argument).

A stakeholder consultation meeting took place on 3rd September with attendance dominated by those opposed to animal-keeping and trade in animals. Although the legislation – likely to be either an EU Directive or Regulation – will consider aspects such as who pays for non-native species becoming established and how to eliminate or control species that have become invasive the biggest concern for animal keepers and animal traders is the area that will be covered by the Prevention Working Group.

The heavy area of dispute - not surprisingly – will be focused on whether the legislation should have white or black lists for import and for home possession/trade. Those opposed to animal keeping have strongly demanded the use of very restricted white lists (of species ‘proven’ by risk assessment not to present a potential invasive
species problem) with everything else banned. Those few on the Working Group supportive of animal keeping and trade have argued strongly in favour of a limited and focused black list that would require exemptions or licensing to import/keep/trade and everything else to be kept and traded.

It is clear that at least some Member States support the idea of the use of white lists which, if implimented, would be a disaster for those keeping and/or trading in non-native species. There are also several representatives of Member States who have indicated no great enthusiasm for white lists.

The other main threat – irrespective of whether white or black lists are used – is the EU’s consideration of whether or not the same lists should be used across all EU Member States or whether there could be separate lists by country or by biogeographic area. Having a single list for the entire EU would present keepers and traders with immense problems since clearly many more species could potentially become established in say the Canary Islands or Cyprus than could in Germany
or Finland. Hence a single unified list could easily see the prohibition of a species like the Corn Snake across all EU countries because it might be potentially invasive in southern European areas.

The pro-keeping side of the equation have secured two positions on the Prevention Working Group but it is very important that keepers organizations from countries other than the UK start to actively lobby their Governments (the animal rights groups in several EU Member States were represented at the 3rd September consultation meeting but, noticeably, not the representatives of the equivalent animal-keeping
organizations).

DG-Environment on behalf of the European Commission expects to pull-together the recommendation and option documents from the three Working Groups in the summer of 2011. The consolidated document will then be put out for public comment and any revisions made with the intent of a final recommended document to be presented to the European Commission and Council of Ministers in late 2011 with legislation being enacted sometime in 2012.

This is in my view the single greatest threat to the keeping of reptiles and amphibians within the European Union that has ever emerged. Unless we, keepers, participate and represent our interests we face a very uncertain future!

Regards,

Chris Newman
Federation of British Herpetologists
Reptile & Exotic Pet Trade association

Email: repta@btconnect.com
Tel: 0044 (0) 23 8044 0999
Mobile 0044 (0) 7897 692060


Defra Link

So what does this all mean?

They are worried about invasive species. So say a snake can escape and survive in one of the warmer European countries then it gets banned.....but it also gets banned from the UK where it CANNOT survive due to our colder climates just because we are members of the EU. So just because certain reptiles may survive in the wild in some places in Europe it will also be banned from the UK ignoring the fact we have different climate.