Rather than dumping exotic pets they can no longer care for, owners in Florida are invited to surrender non-native animals (no cost, no questions asked) at
Florida's Non-Native Amnesty Day. This year's event is March 21, 2009 and will be hosted by the
Miami Metrozoo. The Amnesty Day is an event initiated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to prevent the release of non-native species. Release of exotic pets is a big problem in Florida because many of these animals find the climate there quite agreeable and end up thriving -- and damaging local ecosystems (e.g. Burmese pythons in the Everglades). A few of the surrendered animals in the past have ended up in zoos, but the majority are adopted out to people who have been approved by the FWC as
adopters. (Note this event is strictly for wild animals - domestic animals such as rabbits, ferrets and pigs will not be accepted.)
Even if you don't have a pet to surrender, you might find the event interesting. It is open to the public, with informational displays, live animals on hand, and experts to answer questions. It is billed as a way to learn about being a responsible nonnative pet owner -- which starts with never releasing your exotic pets. Apparently microchipping will also be offered for a fee of $32 dollars (see wptv.com news item) -- microchipping is mandatory for "reptiles of concern" under the FWC regulations (i.e. Burmese pythons, African rock pythons,amethystine pythons, reticulated pythons, green anacondas, and Nile monitors).
I absolutely support the promotion of responsible exotic pet ownership, and I think Amnesty Days such as this are a great way to help combat the problem of non-native invasive species.
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