Caiman captured in Toronto pond

[Catherine]

I can't really call it a rescue because the little guy looked very much at home in a Toronto pond. Of course winter would be another story.
Think of it more as rescuing the city from the caiman.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/07/..._pond.html

It has been exciting listening to the story develop. They had enough sense to bring in a reptile expert to grab him. They do have very sharp teeth.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ca...-1.2698981
Sadly the caiman is someone's pet that was released into the pond. It could have ended badly for him. Hopefully he ate a lot of the carp that shouldn't be in the pond in the first place.
For some reason people think of High Park as a good place to release unwanted pets. There are always pet bunnies and guinea pigs and of course turtles being rescued. The caiman is a first and I do hope the last.

[Cibach]

Wow. How exotic!!
We had an Indian python, I believe it was, that somebody released into the wild a few years ago. It seemed to gravitate to the river. It was reported to be about 8 ft. long and was spotted at regular intervals throughout what was a very warm summer.
It certainly discouraged the school kids from playing in the river, which was a shame as there are several very safe spots around where we live, where over the years paddling areas have developed.
Of course it wasn't seen again once the cold weather set in.
I wish they could have caught it, or at least the fool that let it out.

[LPC]

The trouble is that people buy such creatures when they are very small, but when they grow it is difficult to keep them any more, so they get dumped and pose a threat to humans in public places. There are two things needed to remedy this situation:

Much harsher punishments for the irresponsible people who buy dangerous pets and then let them into public places;
Much stricter restrictions on the buying of such dangerous creatures - perhaps including the signing of a legal undertaking not to release into public places, the breaking of which undertaking would result in a very heavy punishment.

Many people keep reptiles safely and responsibly. They realise that releasing them is a danger to humans and to the reptile (which might even have to be shot in extreme cases). But the irresponsible will only listen if they fear harsh penalties.

[Tobi]

I am inclined to agree with LPC. People sometimes, have no idea what the animal will be like when it grows up! One very happy ending to a similar tale, was the story of Christian the lion. But in that case, the two men who were caretakers had an acute sense of responsibility, and contacts, to make sure the lion got what he needed, or as close as they could get.

Animals are living things, with feelings and individual needs, and yet the laws about keeping them are nothing like as strong as they are for owning a car! I think an 'exam' would be a good idea for anyone considering adopting/buying a pet! At least a written exam, which would show the potential owner's ability to care for the animal of their choice.

And stiff penalties for treating an animal incorrectly.

[Catherine]

It was a rather exciting and exotic event. However, the Caiman is not legally allowed in Toronto. We have very carefully thought out rules about size etc. Owning local wildlife is totally forbidden. Things like monkeys are not allowed. Chickens are being debated and it could go either way.

My first question before I get any pet(usually a reptile pet) is "How big will it get?" Columbian Red tailed Boas are within the legal limit, but they are out of my personal range. I can't lift an adult without help.
My second question is "How long will it live?" I am a little too old to take on a pet with a 50 year life span.
Then I start asking about food and habitat.

Any pet is a commitment, but I think reptiles need more from us. We have to meet their food and habitat needs if they are going to thrive.
Like any animal they deserve to have security for their whole lives. It is not okay to just ditch something because it is just a reptile.

Quote:Given that there are so many 'pets' that are released after years in captivity and they are able to survive and fend for themselves, it makes me wonder why Seaworld and some zookeepers are so against releasing whales and dolphins with the flawed argument that they wouldn't know how to survive...

Good point!

[Catherine]

You are right. Whale and Dolphin shows make money. So the real solution is to get people to boycott the places that have whale shows.

That is going to take work. Most people do not see a problem.

When you compare the number of stray cats to the number of stray caimans, reptiles are not a big problem. It just makes the news because it is exciting. Ten stray cats living in a back alley scrounging for garbage does not even get noticed even though the story is repeated a 1000 times. Actually it is because the story is repeated a thousand times that it doesn't get noticed. One kitten in a dumpster gets noticed. That is human nature for you. We are selectively blind.

I just found some good pictures of the rescue.
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/07/08/...park-pond/
He is a beautiful little caiman.