Investigators for the charity found ball pythons at the meetings, held at Doncaster Racecourse, in “tiny” boxes. Their report, Suffering in Silence, states that in the UK the exotic pet trade is dominated by reptiles, with anestimated 200,000 snakes kept in British homes. It said that ball pythons have complex needs – including the ability to extend the full length of their bodies – and that the only place these could be met properly was in the wild. “Ball pythons are sentient wild animals that feel pleasure, distress, excitement, fear and pain. A spokesman for Doncaster Racecourse said they “always require any external organisations to meet all of the relevant health and safety and animal welfare standards that apply to them.”

Source: Daily Mirror March 29, 2020 21:54 UTC