RE: NANFA-- large fish

Denkhaus, Robert (DenkhaR_at_Ci.Fort-Worth.TX.US)
Wed, 11 Oct 2000 14:30:10 -0500

Ray,

I agree with everything that you wrote but I want to point out that inspite
of the fact that

<In the reptile trade there is plenty of information, and you almost always
know
when you are getting an animal- where it comes from, what it eats, what its
habitat requirments are and... How large it gets.>

people continue to purchase and otherwise acquire animals that they are not
competent enough to care for. I probably get a half dozen calls a week from
people who no longer want their oversized fish(es) or reptiles or their
suddenly sexually mature and therefore aggressive/territorial/etc. mammals
and birds. The information for many of these animals is indeed available
but people just don't take the time to learn it before (and oftentimes
after) they acquire the critter. Unfortunately, as long as these animals
are available for purchase, people will buy them on impulse and those
animals, in most cases, are doomed to suffering at least until they reach
the hands of some big-hearted, knowledgeable soul who will take them in and
keep them for the rest of their lives.

The solution? Animal purchase waiting periods? Licenses to own animals?
Pre-ownership tests? Won't happen, so it comes down to those of us that
care enough to educate the masses, even if it is one person at a time.

Rob Denkhaus

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