Exotic animal recommendations coming in March, task force says

New Brunswick's exotic animal task force, struck in response to the deaths of two young brothers killed by an escaped python in Campbellton last year, will release its recommendations in March.

Earlier this week, the newly-formed task force met with the country's top accreditation body — the Canadian Accredited Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA) — to review its best practices, said chairman Bruce Dougan.

"When it comes to keeping animals in captivity they're the first ones we wanted to talk to," said Dougan, who is also the director of the Magnetic Hill Zoo in Moncton.

CAZA's standards are the highest in Canada, he said.

"If you're an accredited zoo, you have to go through a very in-depth procedure in which they look at all of what you do — animal care, veterinary care, education programs, conservation programs, your facilities, your public safety, animal health issues, diets — all of that sort of thing."

The six-member task force is looking at how those procedures can be extended and applied to aquariums, circuses and educational animal programs in New Brunswick, Dougan said.

'New Brunswick can lead the way'

Massimo Bergamini, the executive director of CAZA, describes the process as "very promising."

"We've said this all along, we think New Brunswick can lead the way for the rest of Canada," he said.

Although some municipalities have adopted the CAZA system, B.C. is currently the only province to have done so, said Bergamini.

B.C. "put their system in place in 2009 after the death of a young woman that was mauled by a tiger," he said.

The New Brunswick task force was struck in July, after the RCMP concluded its investigation into the deaths of Connor Barthe, 6, and his brother four-year-old brother Noah.

Theywere killed in August 2013 by an African rock python that escaped from its cage in a pet store located in the same building where the boys were sleeping.

Reptile Ocean was an unlicensed zoo and pet store, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

Jean-Claude Savoie, the owner of Reptile Ocean pet store, has not been charged in relation to their deaths but was a subject of a criminal investigation.

The RCMP turned the file over to Crown prosecutors in July and the Department of Natural Resources struck the task force to review the province’s exotic animal laws and regulations and recommend changes to prevent future tragedies.

The other task force members include:

• Hilary Howes, the New Brunswick SPCA’s executive director
• Nelson Poirier, a retired veterinarian from Moncton​
• Mike Sullivan, the director of the Department of Natural Resource’s fish and wildlife division
• Ken Bryenton, a Department of Environment and Local Government policy advisor​
• Mike Johnston, the executive director of Inspection and Enforcement with the Department of Public Safety