Posted on 06/11/2006 10:01:53 PM PDT by freepatriot32
TUALATIN, Ore. - They may not be soft and cuddly, but James "Bugs" Brown said his three alligators are beloved pets. He said the gators _ Chomper, Hisser and Snapper _ are like family. And he'd rather move than cave to the pressure from the city to get rid of them.
Brown has lived in the city for 26 years and his oldest alligator has been with him since 1985. But recent concerns from a neighbor prompted the City of Tualatin to push Brown to say "see ya later" to his pets.
The neighbor runs a daycare out of her home and called the city with safety concerns about having the alligators next door. However, she says she didn't intend for Brown to lose his pets.
The city considered a law banning alligators and other exotic pets but has set the exotic pet ordinance aside after enormous community reponse. Instead, they are fining Brown for violating city code.
Brown could have to pay up to $1500 each day his alligators stay there. But a municipal judge will make the final decision on how much Brown is fined.
"We don't believe that it's a 'normal household pet,'" the city attorney Brenda Braden said. "Quite honestly, we just feel like we have to cite him."
State laws regulate exotic pets but alligators don't fall under those rules. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife doesn't restrict them either because alligators _ which can't survive Oregon's winter in the wild _ aren't considered a threat to native wildlife.
Alligators have caused problems in Oregon before. The escape of Al the alligator from his Beaverton home in 2002, prompted the city to create new pet rules.
Brown said he'll look for a home outside the city limits for he and his toothsome pals.
"I won't live in a place that discriminates," Brown said.
Oh brother!
Gotta wonder if the neighbor with the daycare (is it an in home daycare?) -- does she have all her permits?
*giggles*
A dog is never considered vicious until it bites someone.
But all dogs have to have a tag.
This looks like a revenue enhancement opportunity because gators don't have tags and they want to make some new rules.
Hmmm I wonder if the daycare next door is licensed?
It just occured to me if this guy has had his one gator for 20yrs they may outlive him.
20yrs is a long time and he has taken care of his critters with no problems.
Wonder if the City Council took that under consideration.
The daycare provider now says she regrets complaining about the mini gators, to bad she could not have thought about that before.
I am not big on those who keep non domestic pets but this guy was not the avg. "cool to have odd pet" kinda guy.
He struck me as a guy that really cares about his odd creatures.
Just curious, does anyone out there think there should be laws against owning pets like gators? Although the point is well taken that he may have been there long before the daycare...I'm not sure if non domesticated animals should be allowed in neighborhoods.
If the daycare owner displays purple dinosaurs in her daycare, even on TV, she's more of a hazard to public health than the alligator guy.
I think you'd have to take it on a case by case basis (species by species, not homeowner by homeowner). For example, I can't see these mini gators causing much havoc if they get loose, but I wouldn't want full size gators in my neightborhood. Common sense should prevail.
Must be all FSU fans in Oregon.
I agree, Still Thinking, about the case by case basis... i think that's exactly what they're doing, and based on what i read, i do agree with the town. However, the irony is that the daycare is more hazardous to those children than the gators... someone mentioned that earlier. :)
So we're talking hand-sized pets, like perhaps the size of a cat?
Shouldn't be "allowed"?? By whom? The 'monitor everything you do' committee?
C'mon people, are you gonna tell me that riding lawn mowers shouldn't be allowed in neighborhoods because they kill children?
Live and let live people. Don't 'disallow' everything you don't agree with.
Why on earth do you agree with the town in this case???? The man has lived there for years w/o incident; he was there before the daycare; there's no reason to assume there will be a problem in the future based on his YEARS of past history with no problem; etc.
On what, exactly, do you base your agreement with the town?
Do you also agree that people who move next to an airport should be complaining about the noise? Should the airport be shut down? I mean, after all, even though there's never been an airplane crashing into the neighborhood, it COULD HAPPEN. So perhaps we shouldn't allow the airport in the neighborhood. Even though the airport was there first. Right?
"Shouldn't be "allowed"?? By whom? The 'monitor everything you do' committee?"
No, the town, the local government.
"Why on earth do you agree with the town in this case???? "
Because I dont like alligators. Suppose a new person moves into the house next to me. Suppose they own an alligator and it lives in their backyard. I would try to get the government to decide the alligator should not live there, inches from my barbeque. Is this unreasonable?
"Do you also agree that people who move next to an airport should be complaining about the noise?"
Depends on the details of that case I guess.
"Should the airport be shut down?"
No.
"Live and let live people. Don't 'disallow' everything you don't agree with."
Almost always agree with that, but not in this case.
Well at least you're honest.
But clearly this is a case of your own personal phobia coming into play.
If an alligator moves next to you AFTER you have lived there, then obviously you would have reason to be concerned: Concerned with what measures your neighbor is going to take to contain the alligator and ensure your safety.
But in this particular case, this man had lived there for over 20 years, and BEFORE the daycare that was complaining. It's called Due Diligence. If the daycare had done their homework, they would have known there were alligators living next door, just like a person would know they moved next to an airport, and that airports mean NOISE.
Buyer beware. You can't move next to the ocean and then complain about the noise from the surf and require the town, the local government to dampen the surf because of the noise. It's your responsibility to know what you're buying into. So in this case, and in the case I used as an example (the airport noise), the people doing the complaining are in the wrong.
But in the example you give, where alligators move next door to you after you own your home, you have a right to be concerned. But not to the extent that it impacts that person's rights to own an alligator. You ask him to use double containment, you inspect it and make sure it meets your approval, and then you live like good neighbors. If you're still worried, then you install your own safeguards, or you move. But to bring down "the law" on someone just because you don't like what they're doing... c'mon... Like you said, you don't really believe that. So don't let an emotional reaction (your personal phobia) blind you. There's nothing wrong with a personal phobia -- if someone moved next to me with 10,000 cockroaches (we don't have them here), I would NOT be happy because they could escape and run rampant. That's a personal phobia. But it doesn't mean I have to bring down "the government" on them.
You know this.
This happens with Shooting Ranges as well. Once the houses go up next to the Range, the new homeowners complain about the noise.
Yep. And race car tracks. And landfills. And pulp and paper mills. Etc.
Buyer beware.... Due diligence.
Sadly, those complainers often get their way. Heck, the Portland Airport had to reroute planes as a result of complaining homeowners who moved in 20 years after the airport. Sigh.
Well, I'm still not totally sure about the gator owner, but i'll give you the he was there first benefit of the doubt point. i'm trying on the phobia thing really. the irony here is - in all honesty - a gator lives at the end of my street! i live in florida very near a golf course that has enormous water hazards. the golf course property is about a 6 iron from my front door. there is a huge sign that says "beware of gator". i am scared of gators. ill also give you the point of 'sadly, those complainers often get their way' however, in this world we do have to go cry to government from time to time. living like good neighbors doesnt always work.
Like I said, you're honest, and that's a great quality.
I definitely don't fault you for your gator phobia, we all have phobias. But we have to be very careful with stuff like that... It just opens the door way too wide for every miscellaneous thing any one of our neighbors might dislike about the way we are living. Slippery slope and all that.
I hate scorpions, tarantulas, etc. But if I choose to move to the desert where they live, I'm certainly not going to ask "the government" to eradicate them... those animals were there long before I chose to move there.
I just think we have to be very careful with what we choose to cry to the government about. Too much government power and not enough personal responsibility in this country already. :-)
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