Animal Ordinance Now Hippo-Critical

By ANDY BEHLEN  Fayette County Commissioners Court modified the county’s dangerous animal ordinance at their meeting on Monday, May 23.

Of particular interest to local snake owners, commissioners removed language they added last week that would have banned constrictor snakes sometimes kept as pets such as pythons and boas.

“I don’t want to pass an ordinance that’s not enforceable,” Janecka said. “Right now, we probably have a hundred or two hundred people in the county with a boa constrictor or some kind of lizard that might be on this list.

“You want to give people the right to have something as long as it doesn’t hurt somebody else,” Janecka added.

About six people from the Plum area were at the meeting to oppose the now-derailed plan for a snake attraction on State Highway 71 in the Plum area. Commissioners hurriedly amended the ordinance last week to prevent the business from housing exotic venomous snakes. Janecka said organizers behind the business planned to exhibit some extremely dangerous snakes, including a king cobra.

Commissioners Tweak Banned Animal List: Boas,  Big Reptiles Now OK; Hippos & Some Crocs Illegal

The existing ordinance already banned most of Noah’s more rowdy passengers on the Ark, including lions, tigers, cougars, ocelots, leopards, cheetahs, jaguars, lynx, servals, caracals, hyenas, bears, coyotes, jackals, baboons, chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas, elephants and rhinoceroses. Last week commissioners added non-domestic venomous snakes and large non-domestic snakes and reptiles.

Curiously missing were hippopotamuses, considered the most deadly mammal in the world. Commissioners rectified that oversight by adding hippos to the list on Monday. They also removed ocelots at the request of Pct. 1 Commissioner Jason McBroom since the small Central and South American cat is a protected species in Texas.

The discussion at the meeting illustrated the strong feelings on both sides of issue.

 “I don’t particularly care for snakes, and I don’t particularly care for terrorists either, and that’s what I think they are,” said a woman from Plum.

The judge went on to say that the ordinance would only prohibit ownership of non-domestic venomous snakes.

“Snakes play an important part in our ecosystem,” Janecka said.

“Not in my yard,” an audience member said.

“(Animals) are good for public exhibition, because we teach people that you shouldn’t go out there and shoot everything you set your sights on with a gun,” said Ralph Fisher, a well-known animal handler from the Swiss Alp area.

“We’ve got the Painted Churches here and all these attractions,” Fisher added. “One more attraction, to me, would be good. Now, if the man is not dependable or the situation is not correct, then let’s talk about it. But just to ban the whole idea?”

Janecka said the county could consider variances to the ordinance on a case-by-case basis.

County Emergency Management Coordinator Janet Carrigan said she filed an open records request with Texas Parks and Wildlife to find any Fayette County residents permitted to possess any of the animals listed on the ordinance.

“It’s a public safety issue,” Carrigan said.

Janecka questioned how people could sleep at night knowing there are dangerous snakes living in the next room.

“When you work with snakes every day, they’re not a bother to you. I’ve had snakes for over 18 years,” said Schulenburg resident Randy Wick, who operates the non-profit Tattered Tails Animal Rescue service.

“My mother-in-law lived next to me one time and I worried about her too,” Fisher joked, which earned a good laugh from the audience.

Commissioners were going to add all crocodiles to the list as well. They eventually restricted the ban to Nile crocodiles after hearing advice from Texas Parks and Wildlife officials that caiman crocodiles, which rarely grow longer than four feet, are sometimes kept as pets and pose little threat to the public.