Attention fellow victorian reptile keepers!

[Amazing Amazon]

Make sure if breeding you put your amount of eggs laid in the book also!
Paul

 

[whyme]

Hmmmmm. More wasted tax-payer dollars. They'd be more useful planting native trees or weeding. Perhaps an activity that actually contributes to conservation!!!

As much as it P@#$%s me off, they can actually help. Illegal things are obviously the BIG one, but wrongly kept or neglected animals is also an issue. As long as they send reptile experts to police the animals there should'nt be a problem. But taking books that belong to them that you have filled in is wrong! Thanks Bushman

 

[Sofoula88]

Any of u guys have any idea of what happens if you've kept wildlife without a current licence?.. I jst sent my application for a new licence in today but haven't had one for a yr or so since it expired.. I'm hoping I won't get into too much trouble and they don't cone and take my pets away

 

[whyme]

Without being nasty, why would'nt they seize them. If you have reps then you need to have a licence, it needs to be current, and you need to do returns. We all have to do it. But on that note, you will probably get to keep your reps as long as you pay your licence fee!

 

[baxtor]

I had three officers here back in May,three hilux utes with one officer to each came hooting down my drive like a law enforcment raid from a TV show. They were here for about 3 hours, one of them even ran my son into work because me and my wife were preoccupied tending to them and the book work. Seems they were acting on interstate leads and chasing down paper trails. All was good in the end but I believe there was quite a lot of checking going on due to person or persons unknown trying to divert attention from themselves by telling porkys.

 

[Sofoula88]

Well that has probably stressed me even more now lol... But yeh I know there's no excuse for not doing it , anyway I sent it in today and paid for another one so guess I'll see

 

[Green_Buddy]

They are welcome to come & see my collection at any time they wish - except when I am about to leave for work or at work.
I don't care if they come back with a warrant or not, they have no right to prevent me being at work on time & I am sure my employer will back me up!

 

[syeph8]

ta brother thanks for the heads up.

 

[dottyback]

They are welcome to come & see my collection at any time they wish - except when I am about to leave for work or at work.
I don't care if they come back with a warrant or not, they have no right to prevent me being at work on time & I am sure my employer will back me up!

Until it happens people have no idea the power the DSE have and what they will and can do! They can get a warrant on a whim! They can pull you out of work and drag you home whilst they pull your house apart!

The entries in that little green book they treat incedibly seriously!

 

[Vegez]

Whyme, you are right, it's just so damn hard for me not to be cynical when it comes to DSE inspections, after 25 years of dealing with them.

In fairness, they probably do achieve some good in their activities, but I can honestly say what Dottyback says in post #29 is very accurate and descibes my last experience with the DSE down to a tee. In 25 years, I have never refused them entry to my premises, but that didn't stop them arriving with warrant & police officers. Be aware, nowadays, the home computer is one of their main targets. If you record herping details, photos, emails etc you can come unstuck.

 

[snakehandler]

Directly from your Private Wildlife Application form:

[COLOR=rgb(0.000000%, 50.000000%, 0.000000%)]Protecting our wildlife resources [/COLOR]
Wildlife Officers (“Authorised officer”) may inspect wildlife held by any person. They may also inspect wildlife record books and any other documentation associated with the keeping and trade of wildlife. Mostly, inspections are conducted by uniformed officers (but not always) and they will show you official identification. If identification is not offered, you should ask to see it.
If you are requested to participate in an inspection it does not mean that you have done anything wrong. Inspections are often conducted to monitor general trends in wildlife licence holders. As a wildlife licence holder you have certain rights and obligations.
[COLOR=rgb(0.000000%, 50.000000%, 0.000000%)]Your Obligations [/COLOR]
If requested, you must:

• give the officer your name and address when asked;
  
• allow an officer to inspect wildlife held by you;
  
• produce your licence or record book for inspection;
  
• allow the officer to search your vehicle, boat or property (or house if the officer has a warrant);
  
• surrender anything the Officer tells you is seized;
  
• comply with any retention notice issued for wildlife
  in your possession;
  
• not obstruct, threaten or abuse an Officer in the course of his or her duty.
  [COLOR=rgb(0.000000%, 50.000000%, 0.000000%)]Your Rights [/COLOR]

• You may ask to see a Wildlife Officer’s identification;
  
• You do not have to answer any questions or do anything if you think that it might incriminate you. If you are to be interviewed about an offence you will be informed of your rights. (You must, however, state your full name and correct address if asked. It is in your best interests to cooperate with officers);
  
• You may request a receipt for anything seized from you;
  
• You do not have to allow an officer inside your house unless he or she has a Search Warrant. If, however, you keep wildlife inside your house, it is a condition of your licence that you allow inspection of that wildlife by an Authorised Officer at any reasonable time for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the Act, the regulations or the conditions of the licence.
  

If you do not allow the officers a reasonable reason for them to make a new inspection time they can come back with warrants, this will then be conducted at any time, with police presence.

When they did an inspection this year with us the officers could not tell the difference between a Southern, Northern and Eastern Blue Tongue, or an Eastern Bearded Dragon from a Central......we had two officers who were very polite, spent over 6 hours with us and left with our record book to verify our transactions.....they are not out to get you, they are simply doing their jobs. People get inspected all the time, 99% are fine, small paperwork errors are often overlooked with a gentle reminder of what should be done.

My advice is to allow them entry, be polite and helpful, ask them questions and be reasonable, they are people too, they are doing a job, they are doing something that you have given them permission to do as soon as you took on a wildlife permit. BTW they do not need you to be present if your animals are not housed inside the dwelling, if they are in a garage or building other than the main dwelling they can enter anytime they please, knocking on the door is being polite!

 

[Sofoula88]

My form dosent say anything about not letting them in without a warrant or anything like that =/.. so say I don't let them in and they come back with a warrant.. Do they literally turn ur house upside down?.. And what exacty can they check,can they check your phone..like mobile?
Well should they come here there's nothing I can do about keeping them without a licence but I have records of everything an even wrote down when she laid eggs in my book which was recently..

 

[JAS101]

My form dosent say anything about not letting them in without a warrant or anything like that =/.. so say I don't let them in and they come back with a warrant.. Do they literally turn ur house upside down?.. And what exacty can they check,can they check your phone..like mobile?
Well should they come here there's nothing I can do about keeping them without a licence but I have records of everything an even wrote down when she laid eggs in my book which was recently..

all the conditions are above , yes they can search anywhere and everywhere. how do they know pepole arnt keeping reptiles or what ever in odd places .

 

[Erebos]

I have only ever found dse helpfull even when they where inspecting.


Cheers Brenton

 

[No-two]

I don't know why anyone sees them wanting to inspect you as threat or anything other than what it is, their job. My only concern would be if they've just come from someone elses house/collection (large or small) the quarantine issues with them now coming into mine.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

I don't think I'm mistaken, but getting a warrant is not something they can do "on a whim..." in any jurisdiction. The seekers of the warrant need to present reasonable evidence of suspected wrongdoing to a magistrate before a warrant will be issued, and refusing to allow them access at a time that doesn't suit you would not be classed as being obstructive or acting suspiciously. I had a visit here from the NSW guys recently, they arrived at my gate (400m from the road) as I was leaving for a medical appointment on a Friday afternoon. They were from the Parramatta office, up here for a few days, so they were happy to come back on Sunday morning, a time which suited us both. They were professional, polite, and did their job in 30 mins and were on their way. That's the way it should work everywhere.

That's quite unlike the DEC in WA however - they can enter your home without your consent (powers greater than the Police), but are quarantined from the bathrooms and bedrooms unless they have a warrant (hence the restriction, in WA, on keeping herps in those rooms - so kids can't legally keep their bearded dragon or Stimmie in their bedroom - bloody ridiculous!). Although I never had any trouble with CALM (now DEC), their inherent suspicion of ALL reptile keepers as being potential criminals has made me think long & hard about the use of bully-boy threatening tactics to keep people nervous, and the actual role these guys/girls play in conservation. In my opinion it's much more simply an exercise of threatening power which has a base in history decades ago, than a useful conservation tool. It is very much linked to the personalities of those wield power in those offices, and their need to be seen as a perpetual threat to reptile keepers.

Jamie

 

[snakehandler]

Getting warrants is not all that easy, however if you refuse them entry, or "are not available" on a number of requests then you are preventing them from inspecting the premises as per the license conditions here in Victoria and hence a warrant can be obtained. If a warrant is served then they can turn the house and any other part of the property upside down searching for anything within the scope of the warrant. When they visited us we insisted on them bathing their shoes in F10 as well as being sprayed with F10 and washing their hands properly...they insisted that we were the first for the day...but they agreed to keep things harmonious!!

 

[Waterrat]

I have never seen a warrant acquired by the fauna authorities but I assume they would have to go trough the same channels as the Police. In Qld, the Police doesn't have to go to the Magistrate, any JP (Qual.) can sign off a warrant. JPs usually don't scrutinize the reasons for a search as much as the Magistrate would, which makes it kind of easier.

 

[Sofoula88]

They can only search what is classified as on tje premises though?.. Like if a computer is in your home..they can't search mobile devices such as your phone and stuff though?.. I find it hard to believe they can do that..not that I'm worried they would with me..I have nothin to hide,all my information has been stated on my application for a licence..

 

[Pythoninfinite]

If they suspect you of wrongdoing the first things they'll do are to take your computer and get your mobile phone records, to see who you've been talking to and what you've been talking about... Clearly, you would be being obstructive if you failed to agree on a suitable time for them to enter your home at the first approach, it shouldn't be difficult to settle on a time. The whole process is intrusive however, having government officials enter your private dwelling.

Jamie