Panel Votes to Rein In Sale of Exotic Animals

The Los Angeles Animal Regulation Commission voted unanimously Monday to advance reforms aimed at improving control of exotic animals.

The move was spurred by the highly publicized case of a San Fernando Valley boa constrictor that swallowed a Chihuahua last August.

“We want to assure as much as we can that buyers [of exotic pets] are getting good information about the care of these animals so that cruelty is prevented,” said Commissioner Gini Barrett.

The five-member commission has recommended a proposed ordinance that would require people who sell exotic animals--defined as any potentially dangerous, nondomestic animal--to inform buyers that they are required to obtain a permit from the city.

In addition to informing buyers of permit requirements, pet shop owners under the proposed law would have to post information about exotic pets on cages: what kind of care they need, for example, and how large they might grow.

“That’s a huge issue--people get a little lizard and in two years it’s 4 feet long,” Barrett said.

Pet shop owners would also have to provide names of exotic animal buyers to permitting authorities, she said.

The recommendation must be approved by the City Council.