What would you do!??

[Trouble]

Hey guys

What would you do?:
I was talking to a 'friend'* the other day, and she said she 'caught' a jackie dragon, and is keeping it. She doesn't have a licence, and is keeping it in a glass tank with sand, a heat light and only feeds it crickets.
I'm not sure what wattage the light is. I'm only going on what she's told me.
Should I tell the EPA??
Would the EPA do anything??

Also, I've never seen jackie dragons around my area, but she's insisting it's a jackie dragon.

I'd like everyones two cents worth.
Thanks for reading

Trouble


*(not anymore)

 

[Jewly]

I would approach her and explain why she shouldn't keep it, and then maybe say to her that if she's not prepared to release it, then you will have no other option but to report it.

 

[Darren86]

maybe before you go straight to the EPA you should try talking to your friend and telling them that waht they are doing is illegal. try to persuade them to let it go. if that doesn't work maybe then u can talk to higher authorities. if it is a jacky dragon i believe they only eat insects anyway so the crickets will be fine. one issue will be UV tho

 

[Trouble]

I tried talking to her that day about how it's illegal to keep them without a licence, but she wouldn't listen.
There're other reasons (which I can't discuss on here) why we can't go near her.
I don't think she has UV in the set up.
I will try and talk to the son to see if they still have it, if they do, I will ring the EPA this week :?

 

[ClareB]

I think people will say dob her in, but if she is a mate then that may not be the best thing to do I would go around and check out the encloser and make sure it is ok, then I would tell her to do some research on keeping them. She will probably get sick of it in a month or so and let it go. I used to keep lizards all the time when I was little with no license. But if she refuses to take proper care of it then dob her in and if she intends on keeping it for a long time then I would strongly suggest to her that she get a license release it and then obtain one through the proper means. Just an opinion I know you cant keep wild caught animals but thats my 2 cents worth.

 

[Jewly]

In that case, I would go straight to the EPA.

 

[gonff]

i would do what jewly said at first. tell her that u cant keep them without a liscence and stuff

 

[daniel1234]

Yeh I would not go running to the authorities just yet. Especially as she is a friend. Education is proberbly the first line of attack, not only the legal side but also that there is more to keeping reptiles than just sticking them in a box covered with glad wrap and a few holes in it (or even what your friend has done). Dont want to kill the thrill of herping for her if you can help it. A tough call if it gets to complecated. I wonder if it is illgal to contain them in an outdoor pit? I used to do that with common bluey's when I was your age. Kept them in a big tractor tyre then let them go at summers end (school holiday stuff). Again I don't know the legalities of it then or really now. I am of the semi informed impression that I can keep some local lizards without a permit but I am still looking into that one.

 

[antaresia_boy]

im with clare on this one. as long as the jacky is ok, if it's not going to be a long-term thing just let them have their fun and get bored. if she likes it then convince her to buy one legally. they are pretty cheap.

 

[Trouble]

I would let them have their 'fun', but this lady is like 30yrs old... You think she would know better. And the two kids she has are learning these bad habbits off of her.
I will see if they still have it before I do anything

 

[No-two]

This kind of thing happens a lot more often than I think you realise. There's really not too much you can do, besides having a talk to her about it or dobbing her in, but I agree with ClareB, friends don't dob friends in and she probably will get sick of it very soon so may end up releasing it. If she's taking care of it well then the only real issue is the legal one.
Better a Jackie dragon than an exotic anyway...

 

[dragon lady]

As far as i know if you don't inform the authorities even anonymously...you are a accessory
then you could ave more concerns

 

[Daniel_Penrith]

tell her if she has money to buy food for it she has money to get a lisence!!
if no lisence just tell her ur gonna dob her in.....or if you ever go over there take it and jus let it go yourself!

 

[notechistiger]

Call the EPA. If she doesn't care about it, and hasn't researched it, then she won't know how to look after it. If the dragon gets MBD, how will she diagnose it and treat it without knowing what it looks like?

 

[Splitmore]

great to see the do-gooders at it again. Why not just mind your own business? If this is the worst crime you ever see committed then I envy you. The woman in question is obviously making a decent attempt to look after the animal, why the worry? Technically yes it's illegal to pick up a lizard and take it home but really, who cares????????

 

[Snake Catcher Victoria]

It's the end of the world, dont you know Splittie.

 

[Trouble]

great to see the do-gooders at it again. Why not just mind your own business? If this is the worst crime you ever see committed then I envy you. The woman in question is obviously making a decent attempt to look after the animal, why the worry? Technically yes it's illegal to pick up a lizard and take it home but really, who cares????????

Umm, most of us on here care... Reptiles are a protected species, and it is illegal to catch and take them home without a licence.
Now I kno most of us did it as kids, but this is a 30yr old woman that should kno better!
I will be ringing the EPA this week to report her as she is not a friend anymore, as she's done things I can not release on here

 

[Ramsayi]

great to see the do-gooders at it again. Why not just mind your own business? If this is the worst crime you ever see committed then I envy you. The woman in question is obviously making a decent attempt to look after the animal, why the worry? Technically yes it's illegal to pick up a lizard and take it home but really, who cares????????

Agree 100%.......Growing up pre licensing we all used to catch stuff and take it home.We learnt things from trial and error and we are now at the point where information on husbandry is easily accessible as a direct result of that trial and error.

Ok shes 30yo and knows the legalities etc.Would everyone feel the same if the person was a 10yo kid that picked up a bluey or whatever and kept it as a pet?

 

[notechistiger]

Ok shes 30yo and knows the legalities etc.Would everyone feel the same if the person was a 10yo kid that picked up a bluey or whatever and kept it as a pet?

Yes, I would still feel the same if it was a ten year old kid. However, a ten year old can be taught, and MOST ten year olds will realise that it's wrong and let it go, and BEG their parents to get a licence and buy a lizard the legal way. A thirty year old should obviously know better, and yet she still doesn't do the right thing.

 

[Jewly]

great to see the do-gooders at it again. Why not just mind your own business? If this is the worst crime you ever see committed then I envy you. The woman in question is obviously making a decent attempt to look after the animal, why the worry? Technically yes it's illegal to pick up a lizard and take it home but really, who cares????????

I would say most people on this site would care.

It may not be the worst crime ever committed but she is still doing the wrong thing and god help us all if we had your attitude. If the woman can't even provide the animal with a uv lamp then she is hardly making a decent attempt, as you call it, to care for it. It's incredibly easy to get information on how to care for reptiles so there is no excuse.