New Lincoln County exotic animal ban puts local man’s business at risk

Putnam fears commissioners will pass the changes when no one is paying attention. He said the fight against this new ordinance is life or death for his business, The Viper Farm in Maiden.

“I’m done. I’m done. If this goes down my whole way of life is shut down,” he said.

Putnam currently has a permit to operate the business with 274 snakes. He said he sells them in zoos and their venom that’s used for research.

“My reptiles are in cancer research. Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s,” said Putnam.

He said he moved his operation to Lincoln County because of their process of granting permits for exotic animals.

“I’m moving animals in and then I get a call from my mentor,” Putnam said. “They are banning snakes. They are banning exotics.”

Last spring a father told commissioners a monkey at a Walmart store hurt his daughter.

“Unprovoked, the monkey came out of the shopping cart swinging at my daughter, breaking the skin on her arm,” said Ryan Hutchinson, a resident.

The new ordinance bans all animals considered “inherently dangerous.” The animal services director said the changes are to ensure public safety.

“Animals that are not usually in a person’s home and an animal that will typically make a human fear for their life or property,” said Animal Services Director, Jana Aviles.

Putnam wants them to grandfather his business and others with permits.

“Without that we can file an injunction and that would shut down their ordinance until a judge decided,” Putnam said.

Putnam said he has already talked to attorneys about taking on his case. He said he will be at every commissioners meeting trying to convince the board to say no to changes in the policy.

Exotic Animals Ordinance:

§ 92.12.2. PURPOSE AND STATUTORY AUTHORITY.

The purpose of the Lincoln County Exotic Animals Ordinance is to protect the general public from the inherent risk posed by dangerous exotic animals. These risks included, but are not limited to, public health risks associated with the spread of disease and safety risks of the general public that may arise from the allowance of inherently dangerous animals for private ownership.

Pursuant to N.C.G.S. §153A-121, the County is authorized to regulate, restrict or prohibit the possession or harboring of animals which are dangerous to persons or property.

§ 92.12.3. DEFINITIONS.

For the purposes of this Lincoln County Exotic Animals Ordinance, the following terms, words and their derivations shall have the meaning as defined herein, unless the context clearly indicates that another meaning is intended.

INHERENTLY DANGEROUS EXOTIC ANIMAL. Any mammal, reptile or arachnid which is a member of a species that, due to the inherent nature of the species, may be considered dangerous to humans. Inherently dangerous exotic animals specifically include, but are not limited to, any or all of the following orders and families, whether bred in the wild or in captivity, and any or all hybrids thereof (all animals listed in parenthesis are intended as examples and shall not be construed as an exhaustive list or limit the generality of each group of animals unless otherwise specified):

(A) CLASS MAMMALIA, which includes

(1) Order Artiodactyla (such as hippopotami, giraffes, and camels)

(2) Order Carnivora, which includes:

i. Family Felidae (such as lions, tigers, panthers, leopards, jaguars, ocelots, and servals)

ii. Family Canidae (such as such as wolves and jackals)

iii. Family Ursidae (all bears)

iv. Family Mustelidae (such as weasels, martins and minks)

v. Family Procyonidae (such as coatis)

vi. Family Hyaenidae (all hyenas)

vii. Family Viverridae (such as civets, genets and mongooses)

(3) Order Edentatia (such as anteaters, armadillos, and sloths)

(4) Order Marsupialia (such as kangaroos and wallabies)

(5) Order Perissodactyla (such as rhinoceroses and tapirs, but not horses, donkeys, or mules); (6) Order Primates (such as lemurs, monkeys, chimpanzees, baboons, gorillas, and all other non-human primates);

(7) Order Proboscidae (all elephants);

(8) Order Rodentia

(B) CLASS REPTILIA, which includes:

(1) Order Squamata, which includes:

i. Family Varanidae (only water monitors and crocodile monitors)

ii. Family Iguanaidae (only rock iguanas)

iii. Family Boidae (only those whose actual length exceeds eight (8) feet)

iv. Family Colubridae (only boomslangs and African twig snakes)

mambas) v. Family Elapidae (all species, including but not limited to coral snakes, cobras,

vi. Family Nactricidae (only keelback snakes)

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