Mission Statement

The Wisconsin Herpetoculturists Alliance (WHA) is a science and education based advocacy and trade association for the responsible reptile, amphibian, and arachnid keeping sector and industry of Wisconsin. We support and advocate for sound husbandry practices, quality caging standards, escape and accident prevention/response protocols, and sound, science based approaches to reptile and amphibian conservation. Our primary concerns include ensuring optimal animal health and welfare, public and personal safety, and maintaining continued environmental and ecological integrity.

Position Statements

Keeping Reptiles and Amphibians; Public Safety:

WHA supports and advocates for the responsible ownership, propagation, and trade in reptile and  amphibians. WHA does not believe that the keeping of most nonvenomous reptiles and amphibians presents any significant danger to handlers or to the public. We support the responsible and informed acquisition and ownership protocols of crocodilians, large boa and python species and venomous/medically significant reptiles by knowledgeable and qualified private individuals. WHA is intended to represent the concerns  and voice of all involved members of the Wisconsin herptile keeping and breeding community, regardless of species maintained. We recognize that reptiles and amphibians are currently among the fastest growing segments of the pet industry, and are maintained in captivity for a myraid of reasons including for personal interest or study, private propagation and sale, research, and for academic and educational instruction.

WHA recognizes that keeping venomous reptiles, large boids, and crocodilians can present some level of risk to keepers or handlers, particularly when handled or maintained improperly. However, WHA believes that risks associated with ownership of such reptiles is largely occupational and voluntary in nature, and as such, presents no significant threat or risk to third party public safety or health.WHA actively opposes legislation or regulatory changes intended to outlaw or severely restrict the ownership and trade of reptiles and amphibians based on anecdotal evidence or other false, unsubtantiated claims of risk to public safety.

Keeping Reptiles and Amphibians; Public Health:

WHA recognizes that salmonellosis transmission to humans from captive reptiles and amphibians is a zoonotic disease to be cognisant of in association with maintaining these animals in captivity. WHA believes that practicing fundamental sanitary and hygienic measures, as well as the abiding by of other precautions for individuals with compromised immune systems, greatly reduces the liklihood of zoonotic disease contraction as a result of animal handling or maintenance.

WHA does not believe that salmonellosis transmission from captive reptiles and amphibians constitutes a significant percentage of total salmonellosis occurances. WHA finds that all species of animals hold the potential for zoonotic disease transmission, and that the majority of salmonellosis cases originate from the consumption of raw or undercooked meats, dairy products, and other foods. Therefore, WHA opposes legislation or regulatory changes intended to outlaw or severely restrict the ownership and trade of reptiles and amphibians on the basis  of anecdotal evidence or other false, unsubtantiated claims of risk to public health.

Education; Conservation;

WHA recognizes the greatly increasing prominance of reptiles and amphibians featured or seen in films, television, media, and other popular culture, and recognizes the subsequent interest in these animals by a significant portion the public. WHA supports and advocates for factual, accurate television and media programming, as well as for academic and environmental public education efforts  incorporating the use of live animal "ambassadors" as a teaching tool to enchance and reform public attitudes, perceptions, awareness, and knowledge of reptiles, amphibians, and other misunderstood animals, as well as their biology, ecology, and natural history.WHA does not support or condone irresponsible and sensationalistic television or media programming designed to incite or exploit fear and misunderstanding for ratings or for other special interest purposes.

WHA recognizes that reptiles and amphibians are currently among the fastest growing segments of the pet industry. Therefore, WHA strongly supports and advocates for the proper husbandry and propagation techniques for reptiles and amphibians in captivity to and by members of the public. WHA also advocates awareness of and compliance with all applicable local, state and federal regulations pertaining to the field collection, ownership, and transfer of indigenous and exotic reptile and amphibian species.

WHA recognizes and supports the importance of captive breeding and propagation efforts as a means of providing healthy, well acclimated, viable, and self sustaining populations of "herps" for the pet and animal husbandry industries, and as a species "safety net" and  as viable "genetic banks" in many cases.  WHA does not support or condone discriminatory practices or policies by rescue organizations or other individuals which preclude capable, knowledgeable, and qualified breeders and hobbyists from "adopting out" animals in need of homes, particularly with rare and/or high end species in which no overpopulation issues exist.

To date, the reptile industry has been extremely successful in maintaining and propagating tremendous bloodline, genetic, and overall diversity of many species of reptiles and amphibians. Finally, WHA supports reasonable and scientifically demonstratable and sound policies designed to ensure continued integity and protection of reptiles and amphibians and their natural habitats. WHA rejects and opposes any federal or state of Wisconsin  legislative or regulatory policy not based on scientifically demonstratable data or information intended to prohibit or severly restrict the ownership and trade of exotic or nonnative reptiles and amphibians.

Scope of WHA; Other Animals

The primary scope and expertise of WHA is to address legislative and regulatory issues pertaining to the keeping of reptiles and amphibians in Wisconsin.

WHA recognizes that many individuals also maintain and propagate species other than reptiles and amphibians. WHA supports and advocates for the responsible acqusition, ownership, and trade in these other species, and is willing to serve as assistance in networking, advising, and collaborating with these other sectors of the pet industry on legislative and regulatory issues affecting such sectors.