Weekly Update ArchiveWeek Ending 03/08/04 I apologize to all the people who enjoy checking out my site. I had to take a long break from reporting our activities for quite some time now. I just want to say that our hobby, our passion, and our "businsess" (ie. regarding everyone that deals with herps) is under fire and is being looked at closely. The people doing this are not our friends but foes who want to cause us problems. On July 3, 2003, I went to the airport to make a shipment to the Ukraine. I was making a trade with a snake farm there. My shipment never made it out as it seems I was lacking a measly $50.00 commercial permit from the State of Texas for non-game animals that have not been "removed" from their list. I had every license that I thought I should have, but not having this permit caused me to have 27 snakes seized by U.S. Fish & Wildlife. The FEDS wanted to pin two counts of a LACEY ACT violation on me and proceeded to raid my home at 8:30 a.m. on July 17, 2003 -- exactly two weeks to the day of the seizure. They were in my home for 6 hours and subsequently caused me to miss a whole day of work as they pillaged through out every room in the house. I have kept the weekly updates quiet as a result of this. At this time, the Feds have "cut me a deal", as they say. They are fining me $250 for not having the "commercial" permit, and $50 per every snake that is still "on the list" with the State of Texas which came to 18. I was able to retrieve only six of them that were from other states, but am losing the 18 which were "given" to the Houston Zoo. The rest of the snakes died while in the Zoo's care. The total fines come to $1,150 plus I am losing all of those animals. There is much more I could say about this whole mess, but I am not an isolated case by far. This kind of activity is running rampant in this country. Herper's snakes and other reptiles being seized and people being charged for wildlife violations etc. Since when did USF&W get so damned interested in people dealing in reptiles????? Why now are they treating us all like common criminals? As far as myself, if I knew all of my permits were not in order, do you think I would have called them 72 hours in advance with detailed information if I was planning to deliberately "break the law"? I find it interesting that when a certain USF&W officer was in contact with me during this whole time, no one ever mentioned to me that I was lacking this little $50.00 commercial permit. Is it so hard for these people to say, "Hey, Mr. Howell, you will not be able to make your shipment as you are lacking this type of permit"? NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! They would never do that! That is not their job. Their job is to try and justify, in any manner in which they can, to bust people to justify busting into your home like you're a crack dealer. My point in all of this is to let YOU, the reader, know what is going on with this industry. There is undeniable truth and evidence to the fact that groups like the Humane Society and PETA, as well as a few others I am sure, are pushing -- and have been pushing -- legislation against people owning certain types of reptiles, or reptiles in general. Their goal is to eventually make it to where you cannot even own a dog. They are just starting with the smallest group and will be making their way up the chain. Animal owners and lovers, beware and ban together against this senseless B.S. and make a stand. Unfortunately, most of the herpetological groups do not have high paid active lobbyists to push government officials and sway them our way. It's all about money and control folks and this is all it will ever be about. Now, with that being said, I can move on. Kim, the kids and I went out to Brenham, TX to do a little local field collecting and just to get out of the house. It was a little too early for the Spring flowers, but it was a lot warmer than it usually is this time of year. I saw and collected zero herps this trip. I made a visit to a site that I have been going to since 1982. It always produces, even if it's just Texas Rat Snakes, it ALWAYS produces. I will have to make another visit when the Spring flowers are out in a few weeks and I am sure with the new "traps" that I have set (strategically laying boards out) I will see some herps next go round. It was very nice to get out on a day like this past Sunday (March 7). I do not plan on making near the amount of trips out West as in previous years -- especially since gasoline prices have shot needlessly through the roof. I will, however, be saving up money for the biggest trip of the year, the International Breeders EXPO in Daytona Florida! This will be our big trip of the year and the whole family is going this time. We will herp in every state from Texas to Florida as well as go to Disney World. I have never been myself, but it will be mainly for the kids. I want to collect South of Tallahasee and all below the peninsula. Last year John Wisser and I saw just about all of the snakes we were seeking on our list but, unfortunately, they were all dead. I will strive to see that I do a little better next visit. I am slowly getting ready for the season and will be putting snakes together for breeding soon. If you are reading this update, please drop me a line to let me know just how many people are seeing this! Happy Herping! Wayne Howell
Return to Weekly Updates |