Learn the exotic pet laws in Arizona
Exotic pets seem like a great idea if you are a person with a lot of unique interests or a unique personality. Sure, anyone can have a hamster, but the kiddie pool in your back yard is teeming with alligators. While this may sound like a great idea, there are some problems with purchasing, owning and selling exotic pets. Exotic pets carry the potential to spread disease, injure people and cause environmental problems if they escape. They also may be threatened or endangered, and keeping them in a private home harms their species. Arizona's laws cover what animals you can and cannot legally own or sell as a pet.
List of Exotic Animals Covered
The list of exotic pets for which a license is required is rather extensive in Arizona. In addition to unrealistic pets like moose and elk, there are also numerous species of native fish on the list, as well as some common animals like squirrels, chipmunks, and opossums. Certain smaller rodents are also on the list as some are carriers for human diseases like the hantavirus, so keeping them might actually be hazardous to local health.
Licensing Requirements
The state of Arizona requires a special license for any animal, bird, or fish on their list of restricted exotic species. These licenses must be applied for and renewed by December 31st each year, and if you do not maintain your license renewal properly, your formerly-legal exotic pets can be seized because of this fact. In addition, by holding a license, you are required to keep detailed records of the care and feeding of the animals, and the location where they are registered is subject to inspection by a state game warden.
Potential Penalties
If you are not in compliance with your licensing requirements, or an inspector believes your facilities are insufficient or there is evidence of neglect and cruelty, you can have your license revoked and subsequently denied for a period of up to five years, as well as having criminal charges and fines imposed. You may also have your animals seized and relocated to a licensed facility, and you may even find that some of them will be put to sleep if they are not in a condition where they can recover from the neglect or abuse.
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