Posts tagged "pets and kids"

Introducing your dog or cat to a newborn can be the start of a wonderful friendship, but it is a significant event that requires some planning. With new scents, sounds and little people in your home, you'll need to work with your pet in advance to create a safe environment. Animal behaviorist and master dog trainer Sarah Wilson and cat therapist and author of The Complete Guide to Understanding & Caring for Your Cat Carole Wilbourn shared their advice with Paw Nation on how to prepare your pet for the arrival of a newborn.

A pet albino Burmese python strangled to death a two-year-old girl in her Oxford, FL. home last week. After the python's owner, Charles Darnell, awoke to find the snake's terrarium empty, he immediately ran to his girlfriend's daughter's crib to find the 8-foot python wrapped around the child. He stabbed the snake in an attempt to pry it from the girl while others dialed 911. Unfortunately, the girl was already dead when emergency crews arrived at the scene. The snake apparently had escaped and attacked the child during the night.

Darnell did not have a permit for his pet python as dictated by Florida law for all pets classified as "Reptiles of Concern" by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), nor was the pet housed under lock-and-key conditions as required. The necessary permit entails an annual $100 fee and an application that demonstrates the applicant understands the requirements for care of a Reptile of Concern. Darnell may face charges for child endangerment as well as FWC violations.