A Seminole man with a passion for exotic animals says bring your reptiles of concern to him.
He'll take them.
Vernon Yates runs the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Rescue Center on 82nd Avenue in Seminole. His compound houses everything from Burmese pythons, to tigers and even a baboon.
Yesterday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issued an executive order that will allow owners of exotic reptiles who do not have permits to turn their pets over to a permit holder with no questions asked. The amnesty program will run indefinitely.
Yates said he feels like the program will help.
"If it stops one from being set free or set loose, it's a good thing," Yates said.
Even though he believes that statistics about the number of Burmese pythons on the loose is exaggerated, Yates said that it's irresponsible for owners of these pets to just let them go free when they become too much to handle.
"One of them loose in our environment is one too many," he said. "However, I don't believe it's up in the 100,000 range."
In many cases, pet owners who let their reptiles go free feel like they have no other choice, Yates said.
Have a 12-foot python you want to get rid of and think no one can help?
Yates has a simple answer:
"We'll hold it," he said. "We're not going to euthanize it. We're truly a no kill shelter." Yates said. "I don't care if I end up with 500 pythons in here. We're not going to kill them. We'll try to find someplace else for them to go."
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