any way?

[halfded]

Well, I just found out that it is illegal to keep piranhas in Virginia. Is there any kind of permit or some other way to circumvent this little problem, really want some piranhas!

 

[NoDeltaH2O]

just don't tell anyone who would have a reason to turn you in. Even if the police were to ever come into your house for any reason, do you really think they would know a piranha from an oscar?

 

[halfded]

I'm ordering them through the mail, so I imagine that the postal carrier would want to know what kind of live animal was in the package. Don't want to tak the chance of ordering them and then losing them... and my money. Anyone else?

 

[NoDeltaH2O]

I strongly doubt the postal carrier would care. I ordered live fish through the mail, and they simply came in a box labeled "Live Aquarium Fish". no muss, no fuss, and most inportanly, no questions asked. I'd say give it a try. The law is probably on the books because some fool let his loose in the wild because it got too big for his 2.5 gallon tank and it bit some little girl in a local pond. Just don't throw yours out into the wild, and you'll at least be obeying the spirit of the law, if not the letter of the law.

 

[halfded]

Well, if no one else knows anything about the subject, that might have to be the way it is; hehhehheh. But if anyone happens to know how to get an exotic animal permit or whatever is needed, I'm all ears. Oh and if Virginia Inland game and fisheries reads this, I'm NOT gonna get them without the permit. yeah right

 

[NoDeltaH2O]

I thought you said you were from Washington State? (Quick, go back and edit your previous post!)

 

[halfded]

nope, no washington state, just virginia. Anyone else with any suggestions?

 

[Fruitbat]

halfded....

If Virginia is anything like Texas then your chances of getting a permit to keep piranhas is incredibly slim. They generally only issue permits to accredited educational institutions (and researchers associated with them) who are doing actual research on the fish and to accredited aquariums/zoos. The SMART thing, of course, would be to cancel your order and go with some other fish that is legal. What you end up choosing to do is YOUR decision and you have to do what you feel is right.

-Joe

 

[culinaryartcook]

The same is with baby turtles in Georgia. Illegal to own/buy but if you have "educational" purpose behind it then most stores won't ask too many questions. My roommate's got a couple baby turtles and she just claims them for her bio research. No questions asked. But if you want to stay legal (because those fish police are some hard core dudes) then get a good old silver dollar fish. LOL my girlfriend's mom did this. Bought a silver dollar fish as a baby (barely an inch long) thinking it was a silver dollar and after it reached 10 inches and eaten 4 fully grown (bout 6" fish) we determined that it was a pacu. You never know that could happen to you...

 

[dss2004]

Some places won't send illegal fish and plants to you. If you live in a state that outlaws pirhana's and a store sends them to you they could also be found liable and charged. I doubt you will ever be caught but I would rather have something that was legal to keep.

 

[halfded]

Thanks for all the info. That's probably the case fruitbat. Virginia sucks for ANYTHING related to the law. State police... jerks; local boys... jerks; animal control and etc... jerks. Maybe though, just maybe. haven't ordered them yet, didn't want them to show up with some kind of wildlife authority. That would be bad, especially after paying so much fort he little guys. Might have to go with dollars I guess. Oh well, my severums that I have in the future (dwindling future) piranha tank get to stay with me a while longer. Might finally get those baby severums I've been waiting for. Thanks for all the help guys.

 

[zane1]

if u are really worried about gettin them sent through the mail, you can always go into west virginia, that is where i live and i own a piranha. they sell red bellies for about 7-10 dollars, depending on where you go. But again i dunno how far away you live.

 

[halfded]

From West Virginia? hmmm... I'm in King George about 40 miles directly north of Richmond, so probably at least 6 hours. And if I pick them up, I'll have to run the risk of getting pulled over for whatever reason and then "hey is that a piranha?" Off chance but still a chance. Probably just ahve to find something else or move to Maryland or Wva. Thanks though