Snakes and Sh!t

I must say this action is the single most ignorant and intentionally damaging act to be perpetrated on our hobby to date. The turtle farmers of Louisiana in their blind attempt to get the sale of hatchling red eared sliders legalized in the US have simultaneously endangered the entire reptile hobby.
I cannot believe the combination of gall and stupidity displayed here.

What has happened is an amendment has been added to an agricultural bill after it was passed by the Senate. The amendment was introduced by Senator Mary Landrew (D La). I’ll copy the full text of the amendment at the end of this post, read the entire thing, and pay particular attention to the bold text.

This amendment puts the entire reptile industry in jeopardy. The turtle farmers who pushed for this amendment obviously care nothing for the rest of the industry, only themselves, for what they have done is basically attempt screw the rest of us over completely.

Here is the text of the amendment. This is quoted from Herp Digest

9) The Domestic Pet Turtle Equality Act – Or the Louisiana Turtle Farmers Strike Again.

(Editor- Defenders of Wildlife found this snuck into the Senate Farm Bill manager’s amendment that passed last week (page 48). The only information that I have at the moment, that I believe is true, is that necessary hearings between the House and Senate to iron out a single bill that both houses of congress can vote on will take place in February. As I stated I believe this is just another attempt by the Louisiana turtle farmers to legalize the sale of red-eared sliders in the U.S. Thus making it possible to buy turtles not only on the street corners of every major city in the U.S., but your local pet shop, pet chain and even Walmart. Though the Farmer’s representatives got the amendment attached to the Senate version of the FDA bill, it was removed by the House. Now the farmer’s reps are trying to attach it to the recently passed Agriculture bill. I will be sending additional information on this as I receive it.)

The following is the bill as it now stands.

TITLE __–DOMESTIC PET TURTLE MARKET ACCESS
SEC. __. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the “Domestic Pet Turtle Equality Act “.
SEC. __. FINDINGS.

Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Pet turtles less than 10.2 centimeters in diameter have been banned for sale in the United States by the Food and Drug Administration since 1975 due to health concerns.

(2) The Food and Drug Administration does not ban the sale of iguanas or other lizards, snakes, frogs, or other amphibians or reptiles that are sold as pets in the United States that carry salmonella bacteria. The Food and Drug Administration also does not require that these animals be treated for salmonella bacteria before being sold as pets.

(3) The technology to treat turtles for salmonella, and make them safe for sale, has greatly advanced since 1975. Treatments exist that can eradicate salmonella from turtles up until the point of sale, and individuals are more aware of the causes of salmonella, how to treat salmonella poisoning, and the seriousness associated with salmonella poisoning.

(4) University research has shown that these turtles can be treated in such a way that they can be raised, shipped, and distributed without having a recolonization of salmonella.

(5) University research has also shown that pet owners can be equipped with a treatment regimen that allows the turtle to be maintained safe from salmonella.

(6) The Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture should allow the sale of turtles less than 10.2 centimeters in diameter as pets as long as the sellers are required to use proven methods to treat these turtles for salmonella.

SEC. __. REVIEW, REPORT, AND ACTION ON THE SALE OF BABY TURTLES.

(a) Pet Turtle.–In this section, the term “pet turtle” means a turtle that is less than 10.2 centimeters in diameter.

(b) Prevalence of Salmonella.–Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this title, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall determine the prevalence of salmonella in each species of reptile and amphibian sold legally as a pet in the United States in order to determine whether the prevalence of salmonella in reptiles and amphibians sold legally as pets in the United States on average is not more than 10 percent less than the percentage of salmonella in pet turtles.

(c) Action if Prevalence Is Similar.–If the prevalence of salmonella in reptiles and amphibians sold legally as pets in the United States on average is not more than 10 percent less than the percentage of salmonella in pet turtles–

(1) the Secretary of Agriculture shall–

(A) conduct a study to determine how pet turtles can be sold safely as pets in the United States and provide recommendations to Congress not later than 150 days after the date of such determination;

(B) in conducting such study, consult with all relevant stakeholders, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the turtle farming industry, academia, and the American Academy of Pediatrics; and

(C) examine the safety measures taken to protect individuals from salmonella-related dangers involved with reptiles and amphibians sold legally in the United States that contain a similar or greater presence of salmonella than that of pet turtles; and

(2) the Secretary of Agriculture–

(A) may not prohibit the sale of pet turtles in the United States; or

(B) shall prohibit the sale in the United States of any reptile or amphibian that contains a similar or greater prevalence of salmonella than that of pet turtles.

Read those last few lines again, the bold emphasis is mine.
You are reading that correctly, the turtle farmers are taking the stance that if they cannot sell their baby turtles legally in the US then no reptiles should be sold at all.
Talk about a royal screw you to the rest of the reptile industry.

The fact is they are only a part of our industry by coincidence. By that I mean the only thing they have in common with us is we both raise cold blooded animals. They are not herp enthusiasts and care nothing at all about the greater reptile industry. They are obviously more than willing to destroy it all in an attempt to expand their own market.

Look at the potential outcome objectively. The government generally leans toward more regulation rather than away from it. Additionally in cases such as this they all too often take the easier route. The way I see it is if this amendment remains on the bill and is eventually signed by the president, then it is more likely that the sale of any reptile shown to carry salmonella would be banned rather than the sale of hatchling turtles being allowed.

I personally have never really wanted the sale of small turtles to be allowed, not for health reasons but for the sake of both the turtles and our environment.
The simple fact is the vast majority of quarter sized red eared sliders sold as pets will die shortly thereafter. When an animal can be purchased for as little as $2 it becomes an impulse item that parents will buy their children without having done any research.
Of the ones that do manage to survive to adulthood, a percentage of those will most certainly be released into the wild after they become too large to house indoors, or after the children lose interest. Red ears being the adaptable turtle they are, they will colonize most areas in the US and dominate other smaller native species.

Now though I am tempted to become a vocal opponent of these turtle farms with the hope they will be driven out of business entirely. In the past they have merely been a distasteful side of the business to me, but now they have shown themselves to be outright destructive to the rest of the industry. Considering that fact, I’d rather just see them removed from the equation entirely rather than see them tear down everything we’ve worked to build over the last two decades.

Clay :: Dec.27.2007 :: Herp News, Reptile Related ::

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