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Zoo Licence I learnt something new

Discussion in 'United Kingdom' started by garyjp, 26 Apr 2015.

  1. garyjp

    garyjp Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Today I took a trip to Van Hagues in Ware,Herts. It is a large garden centre with what I can call a pets corner with a few exotics there.It is also free to acess but I saw they had a Zoo Licence.
    I was just wondering whether fellow Zoochatters could enlighten me as to why they would need one? Would it be because of public access or because they held a few exotics or both or ather reasons ?
     
  2. mrcriss

    mrcriss Well-Known Member

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    Anywhere that has animals and is open to the public for more than 7 days a year needs a zoo license. There are different degrees of license, so they wouldn't be able to have elephants or anything.
     
  3. garyjp

    garyjp Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    So are there different levels of license the ?
     
  4. Davef68

    Davef68 Well-Known Member

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  5. Jurek7

    Jurek7 Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Because UK law set definition of 'a zoo' too low, so a petting corner is 'a zoo'. Actually, a big aquarium in a restaurant also might qualify as 'a zoo'.

    Possible way around would be to become a pet shop and offer some small animals for sale - rabbits, guinea pigs, aquarium fish etc.
     
  6. garyjp

    garyjp Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Dont think as a this was a garden centre
     
  7. Macaw16

    Macaw16 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Last edited: 27 Apr 2015
  8. matthew

    matthew Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    Displaying your licence

    You must display your licence or a copy of it at each entrance to the zoo.

    Fines and penalties

    You could get a fine of up to £2,500 if you run a zoo without a licence or don’t follow the conditions of a licence.

    You could also get a fine of up to £1,000 if you:
    stop a zoo inspector doing their job properly
    don’t display your zoo licence properly

    (https://www.gov.uk/zoo-licence)
     
  9. tetrapod

    tetrapod Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    I don't believe that it is true that all places with animals on display in the UK need a zoo licence. Anywhere that only keep domestic species are fine without one, otherwise all farm parks would need to go through the licensing procedure. Obviously some farm parks do have a zoo licence because they keep some exotics. Van Hage has skunks, coati, raccoon, meerkats, barn owls and marmosets on permanent display, thus they do require a zoo licence. As for where that fine line on what is a 'domestic species' it can be difficult to gauge. Some parks with primarily domestics have had to get rid of certain species such as emus because they would have required the licence or be shut down.
     
  10. Brum

    Brum Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    So how does this affect domesticated or farmed exotics? I'm thinking of the four species of camelid, bison, yak and ostrich. I'm sure that somewhere even tried crocodile farming during the BSE crisis but that may be a false memory.
     
    Last edited: 30 Apr 2015
  11. Davef68

    Davef68 Well-Known Member

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  12. Macaw16

    Macaw16 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    A farmer on his sheep farm still farms Crocodiles, I think they are Nile Crocodiles, but I can't be certain.
     
  13. stubeanz

    stubeanz Well-Known Member

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    Van hages displays it's zoo license just on the first enclosure by the ferrets. Any establishment with has exotic animals ( i.e. Non domestics) requires a of license if it is open to the public for more than 7 days in a year.

    You can get a dispensation but that is usually only if you have a handful of exotics e.g a farm with wallaby or meerkats.

    Bison and ostrich etc are kept under DWAL
     
  14. Pacu

    Pacu Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    I think this has probably been clarified now. However, there is a degree of interpretation by the Local Authority too. About ten years ago a local natural history museum looked as though it would have to close. On behalf of my school, I offered to rehome some perch, a medium sized pike and an elderly piranha, as well as some common tropical species. We were all set to go but the LA then decided we would need a zoo license. Fortunately the museum remained open and no rehoming was needed.