COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS, Utah — Dozens of residents packed a Cottonwood Heights City Council meeting Tuesday night to talk about snakes. Some are demanding the city force resident Thomas Cobb to get ri…Another update. No final decision has been made by the city.
His local Fox13 news is looking for comments on the situation over on their page:
https://www.facebook.com/fox13newsutah/posts/10151644575890586
Lots of great supporters, lots of ignorant people. If you can spare a few minutes, please leave your thoughts there.
Click on the above for an update to Thomas’s situation. He was allowed the permits and has been allowed to keep the snakes.
From his FB:
Newest news story regarding my situation. They are going to obviously attempt to modify quantity in the future. Whilst this may have been a small event in herpetological favor… we MUST stay prudent… we MUST continue the education vs. intimidation… The onslaught is not over… Stay vigilant, become the best keeper possible and prove the stereotypes incorrect.
I venture to guess this is NOT over and do not plan to let my guard down in any sense. They are spying on my family and residence constantly. It’s never a good feeling to feel like a prisoner in your own home. Now I know a bit of what many Americans had to suffer via bigotry, hatred and blind ignorance before I was alive….
http://kutv.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_4960.shtml
I ask that we continue the petition outlet as this will speak VOLUMES national and even internationally… from Malta to Australia to Dubai… this story is viral… Whilst I am glad it was me, I appreciate all the support. This has been one of the most uncomfortable and stressful situations of my entire life. I appreciate all the support past, present and future and will not give up on our rights to our passion as OUR NATURAL RIGHTS AS CITIZENS are just that… our RIGHTS. You take that away, we are nothing but a tyrannical society, not America as we hope her to be.
Sinc,Thomas Cobb
Thank you for your help guys, it’s been asked that we keep this petition going to send a clear message to everyone:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/215/983/918/help-thomas-cobb-keep-his-snakes/
Hey guys, so as you’ve probably heard a few times over the past couple of weeks Thomas Cobb, the guy I got my baby Slice from, is fighting an ongoing battle to keep his boas.
You can get the initial story here. He was washing brand new bins in the yard (for the boas) when a neighbor called the cops with suspicions that ‘he must be growing or breeding something’. Animal control and the cops showed up, and as he had nothing to hide he invited them in and showed them around. His basement is built specifically to house his collection. He has the best caging and materials money can buy, his set-up is top notch, secure, clean, and professional. The animals are VERY well cared for. The cops left saying all was well and it was noted how clean everything was. Shortly after that incident the city turned around to tell him he had to get rid of all but one animal, citing the city’s exotic animal law as a reason when in fact they were caving to the pressure of the nosy neighbor and her sympathizers.
Thomas is a stand up, honest man and a responsible herper. He had just moved to Salt Lake recently and was unaware of the need for a permit. The exotic law in itself does not state a limit to the number of animals that can be owned, and vaguely encompasses all non-native animals (turtles, sugar gliders, guinea pigs, etc. - the things you usually find at pet stores). As you can imagine this law is not enforced and people still own exotics. Nevertheless, they cited his lack of a permit as a reason and attempted to get him to remove the entirety of his collection down to one snake while denying him the ability to actually apply for a permit.
Thomas fought back and thankfully, he was granted a little more time to work things out. This is the current situation. He has been been meeting with the city council in order to work things out.
Now just yesterday, the nosy neighbor submitted a petition to have Thomas’s snakes forcibly removed. Her reasons were that she is ‘worried for her kids’ and she touted that a neighbor that owned snakes would ‘bring the value of the neighborhood down’. The ignorance displayed by both her and the people supporting her is astounding, and reflects the incredibly poor attitude many uneducated people have about these animals. In response, Thomas’s supporters have put up a petition to counter hers in order that he can keep his snakes in peace.
I ask that you guys take a minute to sign the petition above. We all love our animals and no one would want to be forced to part with any of their beloved pets. Please help Thomas keep his boas.
