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Cerastes cerastes
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by LongDucDong on February 21, 2006
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Hello! I have not kept any venemous but have had some experience with them in the wild, if that amounts to anything. haha Somewhere down the road I would like to acquire a permit here in Illinois to possibly obtain one of these lovely snakes. I would first like to immerse myself with some hands-on (or should I say 'hooks-on) training before I ever considered keeping a hot. My questions are basically a)where or who do I contact in the state of Illinois for information pertaining to permit acquisition and b) has anyone kept these before on this site? If so, could you share some experiences? I would most definitely like to make sure Im well trained in keeping a venemous before I ever decided to get one. Id like to do things right the first time. If someone could point me in the right direction I would greatly appreciate it!
Sorry for all the questions, but I have been browsing this site for about a year now and believe that most of you are probably the most knowledgeable folks around regarding the keeping of hots.
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by Rob_Carmichael on February 22, 2006
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If you live in IL you will not be able to own a venomous snake...you might consider Wisconsin. I am fortunate in that I operate my own wildlife center so I am allowed to keep venomous species. A cerastes is a super cool animal (we've got a big beast on display) but you might want to concentrate on harmless species as long you live in IL. Good luck,
Rob Carmichael, Curator
Lake Forest, IL
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by LongDucDong on February 23, 2006
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Are you sure about that? I believe I read on Mardy Snipes' website (www.coastalreptiles.com) that a permit was required to own venemous in the state of Illinois.
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by Rob_Carmichael on February 23, 2006
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I work very closely with the IDNR, USFWS, and many local and state authorities and I can tell you with 100% certainty that you cannot get a permit to own venomous reptiles in Illinos; Mardi was mistaken. If you want validation of my claim contact Scott Ballard with the IDNR at 618.993.7023.
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by LongDucDong on February 23, 2006
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I appreciate your input Rob! Thanks for answering!
I have emailed a contact at the IDNR to see if they can clarify this once and for all...
BTW, what wildlife center do you work for and how did you obtain the rights to own venemous? And is your center open to the public to view your animals?
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by Rob_Carmichael on February 23, 2006
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My wildlife center is under the City of Lake Forest Parks & Recreation Dept; a government municapality. By state law, that allows my facilty to keep venomous (emphasis on the center, not me). I'm sure Scott will give you a much more thorough reply.
We are located in Lake Forest, IL; approximately 35 miles straight north of Chicago.
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by sballard on February 23, 2006
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Rob is correct. In Illinois, private individuals may not legally possess venomous reptiles. If Mardi Snipes' website says that a permit is available, that information is wrong. If you'd like to give me a call, I can explain this further to you. Sorry about that.
Scott Ballard
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by LongDucDong on February 24, 2006
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Ahhh, the wonder that is the state of Illinois. Well doesnt that just put a damper on the day!?!? believe that people who consider owning a venemous should be required to spend a determined amount of time doing an apprenticeship with either a local wildlife center or a zoo or whatnot so they can obtain a permit to legally own a venemous snake (kinda like the state of Florida). I dont understand an outright ban. I understand the legality and liability issues involved in owning a hot snake, but like I said, at least a permit should be required with some kind of proof that you have worked with and understand how to properly keep a venemous in captivity.
Well, my two favorite hobbies (car modification and keeping venemous animals) are pretty much banned in the state of Hellinois... Wisconsin is looking better and better everyday...
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by Rob_Carmichael on February 24, 2006
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Your comments pretty much validate why Illinois should not allow private ownership of venomous species (and by the way, please learn how to correctly spell the word VENOMOUS!!...if its really that much of an interest to you, it might be nice to at least know how to spell it correctly). Your obvious lack of respect for the legal process of this state, and to those like Scott who are willing to intrepret the law for you, is certainly evident. You would be suprised to know that certain key people from the state would actually be open to the idea of entertaining a permit process to keep venomous, however, due to the many idiots that abound out there from the private sector, they are very hesitant in enacting such a program because every incident involving a venomous reptile brings a TON of bad press to the state; and it only takes one incident to bring this on. As much as I hate to say it, I find myself supporting such restrictive action despite my passion for working with venomous reptiles (but I do it legally at my facility that is owned by a city government). The more I am in the field professionally, the more interactions I have with conservation officers, local law enforcement, herpetologists (on the academic level), the private herp community, etc I feel like I am well versed on both sides of the issue. Many of the interactions I have with private individuals wanting to keep hot stuff, or, already keep them, entail dealing with highly irresponsible hot herp owners who have no business keeping a corn snake much less anything beyond that. It truly amazes me as to the abundance of inept and unqualified people keeping venomous reptiles; they are in it for the wrong reasons (the "oh look how cool I am" factor) and have no business messing with these animals, and, unfortunately, ruin it for the responsible private keepers who are people I have the world of respect for. I will confess that my comments are hypocritical because I do know private individuals who responsibly keep venomous herps and I feel that there should be some sort of mechanism to allow them to do it legally (I am not referring to folks in Illinois just to avoid confusion that I am encouraging folks to break the law). But, in Illinois, which has an all out venomous herp ban, if I were the person with the DNR making that big decision, I would probably have a very difficult time instituting a permitting process because there is so much room for error with the private community. When I retire, I will most likely move to a state that will allow me to continue to keep a few venomous species...most likely, somewhere in the S.W. If Illinois is "hell" to you, please do us a favor and move to Wisconsin...but you'll be overjoyed to know that there is a lot of talk of starting restricting venomous bans in many parts of Wisconsin. Milwaukee county already has a full ban on hots. Texas may be a better option for you. Sorry for the harsh words, but Scott Ballard is someone I have a lot of respect for and you should be very thankful that he took the time out of his busy schedule as the state herpetologist for the DNR to answer your question.
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center
City of Lake Forest Parks & Recreation, IL
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RE: Cerastes cerastes
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by LongDucDong on February 24, 2006
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Woooah, wait a minute there Robby... NEVER ONCE did I say anything bad about Scott. And Im VERY HAPPY that he did explain this in slight bit more detail. However, I dont know how you can sit there and say these things to me when I never said anything bad about the laws. I admit I dont agree with them (which I clearly stated) whats wrong with that? Its called I have my opinions and you have yours. Im glad that there are laws in place that prohibit owning venomous snakes and I DO RESPECT THEM. I dont agree with them however. An outright ban on them in rediculous! You know that and deep down inside Im willing to bet that youd give your left arm to keep a Naja nivea (or whatever specie you enjoy) in the privacy of your own home legally. I know I would (with proper training)!! Im sure most of us could agree! And YES, I think it is rediculous to ban ALL venomous snakes in this state. Some of us arent as privaleged as you to work with them on a daily basis, and the hopes and dreams of owning a venomous one day are completely shot. Thats all I was saying. And dont preach to me about Illinois. I love this state (even though coping with its somewhat rediculous laws---which I wont get into here) and Im not going to abandon it when I retire unlike yourself. Please refrain from putting words in my mouth from now on. Im sure Scott is a great person and Im very thankful that he took the time to visit this board and is willing to answer my questions. Just because I dont agree with lawmakers banning the keeping of venemous snakes in this state DOES NOT mean I have anything against you or Scott. Laws are laws and while I dont agree with this particular one, I have to agree that they are nice to have just so little Bobby or Sue cant own a Sistrurus catenatus. I DONT agree with the law on the fact that they dont offer an option of acquiring a permit to own a venomous. Its an outright ban and I think that sucks. End of story.
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