Local Exotic Pet Owners Fear New Laws

By Connie Leonard

(LOUISVILLE, November 29th, 2004) -- They're the animal stories that make headlines: a tiger in a New York apartment, illusionist Roy Horn attacked on stage by his 600 pound show pet, and homes where big boas have free roam over small children. Now proposed new laws have owners of exotic pets worried. WAVE 3 Investigator Connie Leonard reports.

The dangers associated with owning exotic pets were underscored this past summer in Shepherdsville when a pet snow leopard escaped from its owner and was on the loose for nine days.

Barbara Rosenman says the bad publicity hurts responsible owners. Due to her love of animals and her license to operate an official sanctuary, Rosenman, Oldham County's animal control director, has her own little "backyard barnyard" featuring turkeys, goats, rabbits, roosters, even peacocks.

You name it, she's got it -- including two African servals. "She came from a divorce situation, and he was a house pet," Rosenman said, pointing to the male and female servals.

The exotic cats are hers because their local owners "couldn't" care for them anymore.

"In Oldham County, we basically prohibit any animal that in its natural state could kill people," she said.

With the proper paperwork, interviews, and cage requirements Rosenman says "owning servals and other small cats is permitted in most cases, but if they're in rental property, a subdivision, a trailer park, it stops right there."

"Usually in Kentucky, the more rural the county, the lighter the laws," Rosenman added. But in northern and western U.S. states, it's a much different story.

"A lot of states have gone to total bans regarding exotic pet ownership," said Pam Rogers with the Humane Society of the United States. Rogers is hoping Kentucky will jump on the exotic-free bandwagon as well. "We have had more animals in Kentucky than we've had in a long, long time as far as exotics, and it's becoming quite a problem."

Rogers is happy about the Federal Captive Wildlife Safety Act passed last year that bans the sale of lions, tigers, and others across state lines.

"Nationwide, we have more tigers in people's homes than we have in the wild," Rogers said.

Now Rogers is watching the Department of Fish and Wildlife closely to see if officials will go county to county to ask local governments for a ban. "We don't think anybody should own an exotic pet," she said. "They're dangerous. They can harbor and spread potentially fatal diseases, and they can kill people."

But Rosenman, and others like her, believe in the right conditions with responsible owners, small exotic cats are much safer to the public than certain breeds of dogs. "How many examples have you heard recently on the news of pit bulls attacking small children?"

Another local exotic owner, who asked not to be identified, says she has several small cats. For years, she has owned ocelots and servals.

She has all the permits needed, but says stories like the snow leopard that escaped in Shepherdsville probably scare her neighbors. "Most people don't realize how many exotics there are in homes," the woman said.

She says she shows her cats at local schools as part of a conservation program in Equador. Like Rosenman, she's worried that changing the law to clamp down on irresponsible owners will hurt those trying to preserve endangered species.

"I think when it comes down to it, and they look at the funding and the regulating, they're probably not going to be specific. They're going to want to do a ban and not have to worry about it!"

The only thing all three agree on? Lions and tigers should not be pets.

But, the owners of small cats don't want to fall prey to some politicians who might lump them all together. "I'd have to agree with Thomas Jefferson," Rosenman said. "Big government is not good, I think the counties can decide on their own."

Rogers says a ban of exotic animals does not mean that people who already legally own them will lose them. She says those owners will likely be grandfathered in.

But, Lynn Culver with the Feline Conservation Federation, told WAVE 3 News that although some laws could be good, she's concerned about people who may need to move out of state. She says those owners might have to give up their animals because of the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, and won't be able to get new animals if states begin total bans.

Related Stories:

• Pet Snow Leopard Captured In Bullitt County

Online Reporter: Connie Leonard

Online Producer: Michael Dever