Nonnative Wildlife Invasion Prevention Act - HR669

Nonnative Wildlife Invasion Prevention Act - HR669

www.opencongress.org

Nonnative Wildlife Invasion Prevention Act - Requires the Secretary of the Interior to promulgate regulations establishing a process for assessing the risk of all nonnative wildlife species proposed for importation into the United States, other than those included in a list of approved species issued under this Act. Sets forth factors that must be considered, including the identity of the organism to the species level, the native range of the species, whether the species has caused harm to the e

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.scserp.com
www.pijac.org

This would ban the goldfish? LOL
See this link
www.scserp.com...

more explanation
www.pijac.org...

This is a ban on all exotic pets, why would they do this?

What could they possibly gain from such a thing?



www.opencongress.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

Probably because some of them can do lots of damage to the native eco-system if they get loose and make a home in the wild.

There are already pythons in the Florida Everglades for example.

Well, if nonnative species are destroying the habitat of native species,
or killing the native species, then its a problem. As a resident of Florida,
I can attest to this. Exotic Animal Enthusiasts, or whatever you want to
call them, don't always retain that enthusiasm when the animals become
large or burdensome. So what do they do? They let them go in the wild,
where eventually over time, they start breeding, and before you know it,
there's a large population of nonnative species destroying the native
environment.

Why do people find the need to own exotic animals? Some of these
animals belong in their OWN native habitat, and not in someone's house.
I live in Orlando now, but I lived my whole life in Ft. Lauderdale, where
nonnative animals such as- Pythons, Boa Constrictors, Iguanas, Peacock
Bass, and dozens of other nonnative species run amock. If exotic pet
owners can't properly facilitate the animals they purchase, then they
shouldn't be allowed to own them.

"CatterpillarGiraffe" has removed her video..
which is a shame because I didn't get to watch it.

But I would like to add one more thing-

Think about the exotic animal trade. Just the entire business of capturing,
containing, distributing and selling these animals. It must be damaging to
the animals and native environments as well. More and more I'm finding
myself totally against exotic animal sales. Dogs and cats are a different
story, they're domesticated, and kind of need us.

After a quick Google search, check these out-

Illegal Animal Trade at $6 Billion Annually

Illegal trade in wildlife is a $6 billion-dollar-a-year global industry that is detailed in a new report by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).

In "State of the Wild 2006," the organization puts forth what they know about wildlife populations.

“Today, anything large enough to be eaten or lucrative enough to be sold is hunted on a massive scale for its meat, skin, fur or feathers, for the pet trade, or as an ingredient in traditional medicines,” said Elizabeth Bennett, director for WCS’s Hunting and Wildlife Trade Program. “Wildlife populations are crashing, and wild areas increasingly are losing their wildlife, becoming devoid of vibrancy and life.”

livescience.com

U.S. Smugglers Hot for Exotic Animal Parts

Tigers are among the most fearsome predators in the wild. They are also among the most lucrative commodities for even greater predators — traffickers in the worldwide trade in endangered and exotic animal parts.

Two of those alleged traffickers, Todd and Vicki Lantz, of Missouri, are set to go on trial today in a case that sheds light on the multi-billion-dollar business of selling rare, beautiful animals.

abcnews.go.com

Humane Society -
The Whims and Dangers of the Exotic Pets Market

[...]
- In early August 2003, I found several tiger cubs available to the public via the Internet from a dealer in Arizona. Other cats, primates, small mammals, birds, and reptiles were available for sale, too. Tigers were priced from $900 to $7,000 each, depending on sex and color type. A baby chimp, however, would cost $50,000.
[...]
- Right now, 26 tigers in New Jersey await relocation to a sanctuary in Texas after lengthy legal proceedings against their owner. In California, 39 tigers await placement in as yet undetermined locations after the state filed 63 charges against the animals' owners, including 17 counts of felony animal cruelty.
- In the last five years, nine people have been killed by tigers. Each year, 90,000 people are treated for salmonella infection contracted from reptiles. Since 1975, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has banned the import and sale of turtles under the size of 4 inches because of the salmonella threat to small children. This July, the Department of Health and Human Services indefinitely shut down the import and sale of African rodents for the U.S. pet trade after an outbreak of monkeypox, a human health threat traced to Gambian rodents that subsequently infected native prairie dogs being sold as pets.
[...]

Sickening, really.

I also posted in the other thread on the issue.
Anderson Cooper. Planet in Peril. Look it up. Do some homework, if you think this bill is a waste.

Here's what I posted in the other thread:
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Originally posted by ravenshadow13
Good. It will make everything go black market, but the idea behind it is awesome. Invasive species are a HUGE problem, it's completely not okay to take species from outside one area and introduce them into another without considering... like... okay you get a python in the northeast USA and it gets out, it reproduces, it feeds off the rabbits and mice and squirrels and chipmunks and then you have a python population. Not okay.

Purebred domestic felines and canines are ridiculous and should be illegal. They are linked to tons of genetic problems, like hip problems, hearing issues, eye problems, all sorts of things.

It's an agenda, yes, but it's the right agenda... ecologically.

But some people don't care about ecology

They care that their hound has the longest ears possible, no matter the harmful effects.
Or they care that they can get a housepet that looks cool but is not accustomed to the climate, or being a housepet, that could come from a protected area illegally and you wouldn't even know.

China and the USA are the top two spots for illegal animal trade, often from protected areas. Like, you may think that your Madigascar star turtle is completely awesome now. But when there are none left in it's natural habitat, and their food sources explode, and their predators die off, it's like... oh... getting that animal wasn't worth it. It's like that for everything from certain types of geckos, to chinchillas, to flying squirrels.... chameleons... many of these animals have such a reduced lifespan in a domestic habitat that is completely not worth it.

Ugh, people make me mad. Like, good for you that you can keep your dachshund and bearded dragon and jellyfish pets. Because it totally doesn't mess up ecosystems and the health of your actual pets when you do that.

[edit on 4/13/2009 by ravenshadow13]

Originally posted by ravenshadow13
Anderson Cooper. Planet in Peril. Look it up. Do some homework, if you think this bill is a waste.

Anderson Cooper is a piece of #$%^#

He heavily supported the bailouts and promoted them to the audience in such a way man
in such a way that his audience would dislike those who opposed the bailouts
and the audience would think that the opposers to the bailouts were the corrupt ones

there is no excuse for that!

reply to post by ModernAcademia


I know you're the OP and all,
but what does that have to do with the topic at hand?

Do you have any other response to what has been brought up?

Are you "ok" with the illegal animal trade and conflict around it?

All this will effectively do is make everything go black market. That being said, something has to be done with the exotic animal explosion in the United States. In Florida, boas and pythons are threatening large amounts of native species. There are more Tigers in private hands in Texas than there are left in the wild in Asia.

reply to post by aecreate


me being the OP doesn't mean I am immune to staying on topic

I only mentioned that because of the credibility factor

reply to post by ModernAcademia


Oh gosh. I'm so sorry. I did not -realize- that this was a thread about bailouts.
You're right. Let me go rewrite my entire argument.


The sad truth for you is that Anderson Cooper is a well-respected voice in the scientific community because of a large amount of research that he's done.

But, I mean, if you're interested in bailouts and arguments and politics and not so much into the fact that thousands of species are being illegally exported and imported everyday, that's cool too.

Lots of threads on this website.

reply to post by FSBlueApocalypse


Yep, only five thousand ish left in Asia. The tigers.

But as for Texas, a lot of them are in rehabilitation centers because they had been mistreated as pets or in zoos (aka funcages.)

I like what they're doing in Africa. Introducing tigers there from zoos or rehabilitation centers to teach them to hunt with the end goal of reintroducing to Asia.

But as long as people are poaching them for Chinese medicine or food or fur, it won't do much good.

reply to post by ravenshadow13


Umm for your information, even in a court of law you can even bring up irrelevant events in a defendant's past for... once again, the purpose of credibility.

Perhaps you just feel offended that I said something about Cooper you didn't apreciate it. I'm sorry didn't know you had a crush on him.

nehow back on topic, some form of regulation is fine
but some animals listed to be banned is just a complete joke
I've read that goldfish is to be banned

[edit on 13-4-2009 by ModernAcademia]

coming from some one who owns and Exotic Pet, I am some what on the fence about this issue, Because While they can be a great experience, Idiots get their hands on some animals that pose dangers to People and eco-systems. every summer our local pet shop sells baby alligators, I live in WV! so once the animal grows to a large size what do you do with it? they get killed is what happens down south they get released.

I will also say this the exotic pet I have is a ball Python and they are not trouble makers, it is the Burmese Python which can grow to around 20 feet that are presenting a problem in the everglades, this is because the climate, both temperatures and humidity are perfect for this species. also there is an abundance of prey not used to dealing with such predators these pythons have been known to even kill and eat crocodiles! its unlikely this will stop any thing however!

reply to post by Verd_Vhett


Even ball pythons.. I mean, yes they're better. But they can still mess up a local ecosystem.

What bothers me about the snakes is that if you have a pet snake, you feed it mice (usually). Those mice are bred and sold and live fairly horrible lives, as opposed to a small rodent in the snake's natural environment. But, I mean, ball pythons are ALMOST typical domestic pets. It's still not great, but it could be a lot worse, you know? It's not like you've got... a cobra or something. Lots of people that I know have ball pythons.

And for the record I do have a crush on Anderson Cooper because I think he is a really, really smart man. And I think he is cute. And if all you know about him is his political views, I would not expect you to comment on his scientific views.

Goldfish (carassius auratus) don't really naturally exist anywhere, I don't think. And they can readily spread disease to other fish in a freshwater tank. Probably billions of goldfish a year die in pet stores before they are bought. And putting goldfish in a small pond could affect the natural plant and insect life around that pond. They were domesticated from a carp in Asia and I doubt they could really naturally survive anywhere without human intervention.

[edit on 4/13/2009 by ravenshadow13]

Ban them. Anyone who studies our ecosystem knows how bad these invasive species are. Look at kudzu in the south. There are plants you can buy at lowes that absolutely take over forests, I know this first hand. They are called INVASIVE for a reason, and need to be eradicated.

Sad thing is, in a state like Texas, you can get a Tiger cub cheaper and easier than some breeds of dogs. Personally, I think a good way to cut down on exotics being sold in pet stores is perspective owners have to have a 48 hour wait period to reconsider and also make them take some kind of class.

It would cut down on the impulse buys of "Hey, that would be awesome to have as a pet."

I really wish we had that over in the UK before someone brought those ugly grey squirrels over and infected our beautiful reds. Non indigenous wildlife are a threat to any country and quarantines should be harshly enforced to prevent any damage to the eco-systems, it's kind of a pity that the bill doesn't recognise industry as a destructive organism.

You can scoff this post off if you want to but here's my take on yet another outrageous bill that has no point beyond this...

Try looking at the bigger picture.

What if you were monstrously rich and could effect an area or a whole nation by passing legislation that preserved the beautiful areas for your incestuously conceived young at the expense of the serfs.

Wouldn't you?

Try looking at the bigger picture.

Remember the spotted owl? We have to save that endangered species blah blah...

Try looking at the bigger picture.

It ruined the logging industry in Oregon where I lived at the time. Their economy is the worst in the nation.

Try looking at the bigger picture.

Ever been to Oregon? Ever been to the Sierra Madre, Halfdome or Lake Tahoe?

They are awesome areas.

Wouldn't you want to minimize damage to these areas and in fact the whole country by the serfs. Mindless serfs enjoying themselves or being productive at the expense of the environment.

Wouldn't you just want to kill them and take the whole thing for your bastard offspring? How ever many lifetimes it takes?

Try looking at the bigger picture.

Also, Where would all of those people that make 6 Billion a year off of exotic animals etc... go for work? Why the government can absorb some or most of them. They don't care. It's only worthless serfs.

[color=gold]Look at the bigger picture. What is in it for the monstrously rich people? Then look at it again.

As my wife has observed countless times; I'm usually right.

EDIT : Like they care about our environment or any other rats butt about anything but themselves.


[edit on 4·14·09 by DrMattMaddix]