City bends bylaw to allow banned animals at Little Ray's

It still has some hurdles to clear, but Little Rays Reptile Zoo in Hamilton is on its way to bringing back some 30 banned animals it had to get rid of last year.

The citys planning committee voted 4-3 on Tuesday to amend its responsible animal ownership bylaw to let Little Rays display large pythons and other banned animals at its Barton Street East indoor zoo.

It still needs council approval next Wednesday. And Little Rays still needs to be accredited by the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA), which will likely happen in September.

Steve Featherstone, owner of Little Rays on 869 Barton St. E., said hes pleased with Tuesdays vote. Last year, he had to move around 10 arachnids, 11 crocodilians, eight snakes and one lizard from his Hamilton zoo to comply with the city bylaw.

Were happy with this, absolutely.

• RELATED:City plan would see exotic animals return to Little Ray's

The new bylaw amendments say that organizations that house exotic animals for educational purposes can be exempted, provided they meet conditions, such as:

• Pet stores wont be allowed to keep, let alone sell, exotic animals such ascrocodiles and some types of pythons
• Businesses that share a heating, cooling or ventilation system with a neighbouring tenant may not keep banned exotic animals
• To qualify for the exemptions, a facility must be certified withCAZA, an industry-run organization that sets health and safety standards for commercial animal enclosures across the country
• The facility not be attached to any residential structure, or share a heating and air conditioning unit with another facility.
• That staff do annual inspections.

The meeting drew about seven speakers against allowing the exemption. While the vote only dealt with displaying animals, speakers expressed concern about images and video of Little Rays staff wrapping large snakes around children at parties, and letting dozens of people handle them.

Snakes also carry disease and can bite or constrict, even if they havent over hundreds of appearances, said Rob Laidlaw, executive director of Zoocheck Canada.

City bylaw staff is looking into "putting parameters" around temporary exhibits in areas such as schools and malls, said Marty Hazell, head of parking and bylaw.

The Little Ray's location opened last fall. Shortly after, it learned that it needed a bylaw amendment or exemption, and has been trying for it ever since.

Featherstone removed the animals late last year to comply with the bylaw.