BIG problem on my hands...

[Zephyr]

I woke up this morning and went outside to get some hibiscus leaves for my beardies. When I went to come back indoors, I saw a citation on our door.
Apparently, our mean-@$$ neighbor, who we've been fueding with for the past God-knows how many years, called the city on us because she saw me outside with one of my snakes. Now I've got a citation because it's "illegal to keep snakes." I'm enraged as ever now. I've lived here all my life, looked up every law and piece of legislation I could find, and have never seen anything banning snakes. Now I have to find out how exactly to combat this; but first, not without calling the city on the trash heap my neighbor calls a yard first.
If you can't tell, I'm VERY angry.

[guidofatherof5]

Kyle,

That's a terrible situation.
Please accept my advise as coming from someone who is not in the heat of battle.
Don't call in on your neightbor's yard(not yet) It will not serve to help you in anyway and may hurt you as this thing runs its course.
Get a copy of the code you were charged with(I don't see how you could be cited with something since they don't have firsthand knowledge that you are in violation of a code.) Findout who you can talk to about the situation. Be as professional as possible. Yelling about your neighbor will only make you look like a complainer and loose canon. You want to make the other person look like that. You're trying to get them on your side.
I wish you the best of luck and hope you can get things worked out.

[Zephyr]

Called them up. Pulled out the DNR papers for my legal collection/possession of eastern garters.
The guy was unflinching.
... HOWEVER...
He said it's fine for me to keep the snakes, as long as they're indoors. So, I know the problem isn't so much a violation of city law as it is our neighbor trying to get back at us. :P
The man was very cooperative, almost sympathetic. I'm sure he understand that there are plenty of people in the city keeping "exotics." (The note said "It is prohibited to keep exotics. It is illegal to keep snakes.")
So, all I have to do is take the snakes out of their outdoor enclosure, and I'm good to go. :)
As far as our neighbor is concerned... I don't think I'll be provoking her anytime soon. She's like... 70 or something anyways, so she'll be dead soon enough. :P

[Didymus20X6]

How can Thamnophis sirtalis - COMMON garter snakes, which are practically in every habitat from Florida to Alaska - be considered EXOTIC? Maybe if you lived in Europe, or if you had boas or something, but garter snakes?

[gregmonsta]

How can Thamnophis sirtalis - COMMON garter snakes, which are practically in every habitat from Florida to Alaska - be considered EXOTIC? Maybe if you lived in Europe, or if you had boas or something, but garter snakes?

It's a mad .... mad world I tell you :rolleyes:

[Zephyr]

How can Thamnophis sirtalis - COMMON garter snakes, which are practically in every habitat from Florida to Alaska - be considered EXOTIC? Maybe if you lived in Europe, or if you had boas or something, but garter snakes?
Yeah, that's what I thought. I grabbed the DNR sheet and gave him the ordinance number and everything; basically exotics are anything that isn't domesticated, like cats, dogs, and guinea pigs.
But I'm not complaining; I think they know that if they actually enforced the law as "NO SNAKES!!!" then they'd get a lot of people fighting it.
I'm not gonna complain; I get to keep my snakes. :)

[Zephyr]

Coincidentally...
It's a good thing they don't know about the cockroaches. lol

[guidofatherof5]

Great news, Kyle. I'm glad it worked out so quickly and in your favor.

[ssssnakeluvr]

their ordinance is...well, stupid.... our ordinance on exotics states that and exotic animal is one that is "not native to the United States" how can a local animal be exotic??????

[guidofatherof5]

Each agency places a different definition on the same word.
The left hand doesn't know what the right hand of doing, kind of thing.
Typical bureaucracy.:mad:

[KITKAT]

As far as our neighbor is concerned... I don't think I'll be provoking her anytime soon. She's like... 70 or something anyways, so she'll be dead soon enough. :P

These days, that will be another 16 years!:eek:

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Wow kyle, that sucks!!! there used to be a little old lady just like that next door to us... she called the township on us for something different every week... and we didn't even know her at first!!!

The neighbors that live next door now though are awesome. Apprehensive of snakes but could not care less I have them. They loved touring the snakeroom!! They are the kind of neighbors that its more like, we all share 2 houses one one big chunk of property... I could walk right into their house at any time of day and they could do the same with ours.... you need to find some neighbors like that!!!

[Stefan-A]

These days, that will be another 16 years!:eek:
Maybe she'll get Alzheimer's and forget about it. :rolleyes:

Some people just can't let other people live their lives, when they themselves already have one foot in the grave.

[prattypus]

She's like... 70 or something anyways, so she'll be dead soon enough. :P[/quote]

I know that this was said in jest, at least I hope it was, but the original statement coupled with the few similar remarks strikes me as bad form.

We love our snakes that may bite us and escape out of their enclosures. Yet we have run ins with other people, and are so quick to jump to thoughts of their demise.

You can argue until you are blue in the face about people having alterior motives, and being evil, but they are still people.

I just can't see the humor in jesting about someone's passing.

[Didymus20X6]

There was a weird old lady living in the house next door. She wasn't really uptight with me, but she often was very annoying. Mostly, she annoyed me because I knew she was annoying the daylights out of my landlady (who is probably one of the best landlords in the city and goes out of her way to make her tenants comfortable).

And guess what the point of contention was: garter snakes. This lady threatened my landlady that if she didn't kill all the snakes in the area, she was going to call the city on her. Of course, with all the different properties in the area, it would have been impossible, even if there was a way to kill them quickly at once. That, btw, was part of the reason I started catching them - partly to keep that lady quiet, partly to help my landlady (as well as the neighbor on the other side - she's a really nice person too, who, like me at one time, just isn't comfortable with the snakes around), and partly to keep this lady from having someone pointlessly kill a bunch of harmless garters.

And even after I caught a dozen and a half, and was fairly sure they weren't coming around anymore, this neighbor still complained to me about them, despite me trying to reassure her I was doing my best to catch them for her.

And eventually, she did call the city. And what did the city have to say? That there was really nothing that could be done apart from catching them individually. (And keep in mind, it had been months since any had shown up in our yard).

Thankfully, she moved out. I still keep patrolling our yard for snakes, but mostly out of my own curiosity. Still don't see too many of them anymore. I kinda wish I had kept a couple now.

This lady gave my landlady hell the whole time she lived here, and thankfully, she's gone now. Hopefully, I'll get some decent neighbors now.

[mustang]

if she doont like garters then sneek into her house and throw her a copper head!!!

[Stefan-A]

if she doont like garters then sneek into her house and throw her a copper head!!!
Sounds like attempted murder to me. ;)

[Didymus20X6]

Besides, I'm only just now getting over my ophidiophobia; I am not handling any crotalids anytime soon.

[jitami]

I just can't see the humor in jesting about someone's passing.

Seriously? Guess I won't share my Micheal Jackson jokes with you then. I'm sure Kyle would never go over and assist this woman with her passing, but come on... this political correct, everyone's offended at everything mentality is going to ruin the world... oh, never mind... maybe it's already too late.

[charles parenteau]

Omg I understand why your angry!Over 10 years ago a neighbor file a complaint against me with the police about my snakes.Useless to say police came in .
I meet A very nice police officer because of him i was able to move my snakes to my friend home.He give me 1 week to move my snake and he take the blame on his shoulder his boss wanted to take my snakes and give me 135$/can for each snake.

Exotic snake are tolerate no more ,its illegal almost everywhere.I don'T go outside with garter snake ,that why i take my pictures outside ,don't want problems.