Please Help Our Animal Friends!

"Buried within the 2,912 pages of the America COMPETES Act of 2022 (HR4521) lie Lacey Act amendments that affect all non-domesticated pet/animal (i.e. all animals except dogs, cats, and traditional farm animals) owners. COMPETES is an acronym for Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology and Economic Strength. The stated purpose of the Act is to strengthen America’s economic and national security but obviously, this was slipped into the massive bill in hopes to go unnoticed.

The amendments would reverse the USARK federal lawsuit victory by reinstating the ban on interstate transportation of species listed as injurious under the Lacey Act. The bill would also create a “white list” (see #2 below) that could affect millions of pet owners, as well as pet businesses. Could your pet or species of interest (not just reptiles) potentially survive in southern Florida or any other location in the U.S.? Then it could be listed as injurious for just that reason! If this passes and your species of interest, even your pet, is listed as injurious, then it cannot be transported across state lines. That means you could not even take a pet with you if you moved to another state or needed veterinary care across a state border. This does not just ban sales but prohibits all interstate transportation and importation into the U.S. This will trickle down to hundreds or thousands of common pet species."- USARK Newsletter, Jan. 28, 2022.

I care for multiple exotic invertebrates- mostly arachnids. They are my tiny family who I love so very much! I've dealt with many wonderful businesses since I entered the invertebrate keeping hobby but they are in severe trouble if this gets passed. While some stores and rescues may be able to continue doing business in their states, this will most likely cause many to shut down due to the lack of profit, imports, and lack of breeding possibilities. Personal pet owners may have to give up their beloved critters or be unable to access adequate veterinary care. Our citizens, especially children, will have less educational opportunities from visiting rescues and expos which can open their minds to biological research and animal appreciation. There are so many troubling side-effects if these amendments are passed! They are not what-ifs, this is information written in legal documents!

I cannot speak for every single pet community out there, but from my experience learning and participating in the reptile and invertebrate world, many of the species we love are captive bred and actually protected from their natural environments which have been affected by pollution, erosion, and human interference. I understand that the people who are trying to pass these amendments believe they have the best interests in caring for these animals but they are doing way more harm than good. Poaching and illegal trade unfortunately happens anyways, but it is going to get much worse if these restrictions are placed on us. States have the ability to determine which animals they think may have a chance to cause problems in their local ecosystems but if this is passed federally, a wave of economic problems, and heightened illegal trades are going put our animal friends at risk.

You can read more about the Lacey Act amendments and the COMPETES Act of 2022 all on the United States Association of Reptile Keepers' website here: https://usark.org/2022lacey/

Please read the entire page to be as well informed as possible and do your own research as well. Contact your state senator(s) about this issue- USARK even has a letter template you can read over and use if you feel so inclined. I have reached out to Senator Kaine and Senator Warren in my state of Virginia, expressing my deep concerns regarding this. Send the USARK information to everyone you believe needs to be informed. We need to work together on this.

This is happening so fast and we need to act NOW. I normally do not ask for help but my pets are my world and I will advocate for them and everyone else who cares for exotic animals. We want to see them protected and thrive, not denied the understanding and care that they deserve.

Thank you for reading. Please enjoy these photos of my dearest friends, my favorite little family:

~Nikolai Sergei Razumov