Petshop buys

[tcvarlh]

Just as a matter of interest and because I'm not up to speed on the rules and regs, can anyone tell me which, if any, of our British mammals are available legally for sale in a petshop. I ask because a local store offers Harvest mice (Micromys minutus)for sale and the idea rankled. I do not wish to start an argument with the shop owner without knowing a little about the subject. It is illegal to sell wild native species in Austria which is home to me and where my feelings on this matter developed. Therefore, if you could clarify this I'd be grateful.
h

[Kayleigh]

Hi H,
I thought but most prob I am wrong that is was illegal sell any British mammals are you sure they are not foreign ones.
You should ask a few questions and find out who the suppliers are.

It will interesting to see the response to this..

[Lance Morgan]

I wouldthink that it is illegal to take them from the wild but they can be bred in captivity and then sold.

[tcvarlh]

I did ask where he got them and he was a little cagey which I put down to his worry of being cut out. But the more I think about it the less happy I am with the whole thing. And of course he could tell me his great-grandad captured them all those years ago and the family have been breeding them ever since and I could not demand to see proof. I just don't like the idea of Wild Species offered up as kids pets. It's wrong.

[aland]

This is a subject that i Will be watching, as a bird owner i recently went to a bird show & sale, there to our surprise were several song thrushes for sale, I expect if i searched long enough i could find out the laws on this but some times it is interpreting these laws as it is easy to misunderstand them aland.

[Lance Morgan]

Defra site will confirm whether protected. May be OK to import from Europe under licence. They are rare and only on a few sites in UK.
They are for sale online from pet shops etc.

[aland]

Thanks for the info, I would imagine it would be hard to police rules on our native birds, Who could or how could you prove some one stole eggs etc and hatched them out, Perhaps there are licenses available, I suppose it is no different to my having a parrot and a number of budgies they are the wild birds of another country i never stopped to think of this, all of my birds have been rescued for one reason or another from people that lost interest in them, aland.

[eeyore]

bird wise any species (except those covered by the dangerous wild animals act) can be bred in captivity and sold so long as they bear a closed ring of the right size (ie one that is fitted before fledging to prove the bird is captive bred. ) - The other provisos are that the partents must also be captive bred ie not taken from the wild and must be legally imported (ie not smuggled in contravention of CITES). Birds must also be kept in appropriate enclosures etc.

I'm not sure re mammals but i think it is similar - if the harvest mice are captive bred he isnt breaking the law so long as they are also kept appropriately so as not to conflict with the cruelty legislation. If you are in doubt consult with the RSPCA rather than tipping the owner off that you think something funny is going on.

[charlieb]

Originally Posted by aland

there to our surprise were several song thrushes for sale

All native species bred in captivity have to be fitted with a dated closed ring (from a DEFRA approved supplier, e.g. the British Bird Council) that can only be put on the leg when the chick is in the nest, which proves the ringer had access to the nest (i.e. they are captive bred) - much in the same way the BTO fits rings on wild birds.

[Jason Green]

Who else initially thought H was starting a thread about the Petshop Boys? Oh well, just me then...

Anyway, keep us updated on how the RSPCA tip-off goes, H - I hope it isn't wild-stock being sold! These mice are rare enough