Louisiana breeders hope to open pet turtle sales

Louisiana breeders hope to open pet turtle sales

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THE TOWN TALK (Alexandria, Loiuisiana) 27 August 05 Louisiana breeders hope to open pet turtle sales in U.S. (Ana Radelat)
Washington (Gannett News Service): Recent generations of American children have been denied, by law, a pleasure their parents once had -- ownership of tiny pet turtles generally kept in plastic bowls, complete with an island and plastic palm tree.
A ban in the mid-1970s on antibiotics that control salmonella led to a ban on U.S. sales of baby turtles, which are about the size of a quarter when born. Salmonella, which turtles can carry, is a bacterium that can cause several severe intestinal diseases, including typhoid fever.
Barred from selling the tiny creatures in the United States, breeders found a market for the turtles overseas, especially in China.
Owners of turtle farms, which are concentrated in Louisiana and Mississippi, say the United States still has a strong demand for pet turtles, fostered in part from black market sales that flourish on the Internet.
Bolstered by recent scientific studies, they argue that new government-approved antibiotics allow them to breed turtles that are salmonella-free. They've launched a new political campaign to change the law and restock U.S. pet stores with the little reptiles.
George "Sonny" White has been breeding turtles for 12 years on a farm in Jonesville. Female turtles lay their eggs on artificial beaches that ring several ponds on White's farm.
During the spring and summer, White harvests hundreds of thousands of turtle eggs, puts them in metal trays until they hatch and keeps the babies in a 65-degree room so they'll hibernate until they're sold to dealers in Singapore, China, Japan, Mexico and other countries.
"It's just like a big chicken hatchery," White said of his operation, which produces about 400,000 pet turtles each year.
U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-Quitman, has responded to the desires of turtle breeders like White who live in his Central Louisiana district -- an area with the largest concentration of turtle farms in the country.
When Congress returns after Labor Day, Alexander hopes to introduce a bill that would allow U.S. sales of turtle hatchlings that are certified salmonella-free.
"This legislation will address the recent changes in the American turtle industry," Alexander said.
While turtle breeders are amassing local political support, they may face resistance from the politically powerful American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
"We do not endorse having 'exotic' animals as pets," ASPCA spokesman Eric Rayvid said.
Alexander predicted demand for baby turtles in the United States would reach 30 million a year, about double the 15 million bred here for overseas markets.
American turtle breeders hope U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-Metairie, introduces a Senate bill similar to Alexander's bill.
In Mississippi, farmers like Walter Davis are trying to drum up political support for the cause among members of the Magnolia State's congressional delegation.
Davis, who has a farm in Concordia Parish that produces about 75,000 hatchlings a year, just started a second farm in Adams County, Miss.
"Scientifically, we've been able to prove ... that baby turtles can be born salmonella-free," Davis said.
He said his biggest overseas buyers in China pay him 18 cents for every baby turtle. He contends the value of a turtle would soar to more than $1 if the U.S. market opened up.
Louisiana state Rep. Bryant Hammett Jr., D-Ferriday, has predicted the legalization of turtle sales would result in a "$50 million infusion into the state's economy."
David Waide, president of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation, wrote Davis last spring that he supported the breeders' efforts.
"The turtle industry offers an opportunity for producers in Mississippi to have an alternative income source," Waide said.
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