Timmins news: Reptile fanatic seems to be to open exotic pet retailer in Timmins

Robert Boucher suggests his dream of opening an exotic pet retail store has taken him on a wild journey.

It commenced with choosing up a pet reptile for the duration of the pandemic. And then two far more — and then diving into the business enterprise facet, as soon as he found that desire and selling prices ended up soaring.

“Bearded dragons made use of to be $80, now they’re nearly $300,” stated Boucher, who phone calls himself ‘Reptile Rob.’

“Not a lot of individuals are breeding them and they were not expecting a massive inflow of men and women stuck at residence, likely, ‘Gee, I desire I had a little buddy to pet.’ A person that doesn’t need 24/7 notice.”

On a mission to open up his possess keep, Boucher claimed he observed resistance from business landlords. He explained they consider pet merchants to be substantial-upkeep and risky.

Out of other alternatives, Boucher ordered a residential studio that used to be a business house in hopes of rezoning it to open a retail retailer.

He crammed it with the contents of a closed-down pet retail store that he purchased previous calendar year.

Rescuing turned down reptiles

That’s when Boucher’s journey received bizarre.

He stated the defunct retail store experienced many animals that have been malnourished, injured and seemingly abandoned.

“The issue of the store was extremely questionable, the affliction of the reptiles was questionable,” Boucher explained.

“I just did not know how poor some of them have been when we got them.”

Expending months aiding them get well, he said quite a few of the animals ended up in a position to regain substantially of their health and be sold by means of his website.

One lizard experienced metabolic bone sickness, he stated, owing to its subpar living problems. Its legs are deformed and may perhaps under no circumstances totally get well, he stated.

“He’s actually the sweetest lizard you could ever imagine,” Boucher stated.

“It was just astonishing that anyone left him to get that terrible.”

Robert Boucher says his desire of opening an exotic pet retailer has taken him on a wild journey. It commenced with finding up a pet reptile for the duration of the pandemic. And then two more — and then diving into the business enterprise aspect, as soon as he observed that demand from customers and price ranges had been soaring. (Sergio Arangio/CTV Information)

Animal welfare concerns

These situations are component of what prompts backlash from animal activists.

World Animal Protection Canada’s placement is that folks shouldn’t possess any exotic animals, which include reptiles.

Even in which it is legal to very own them, which is dependent on the municipality, the firm instructed CTV that persons generally do not place in the dollars and investigation essential to thoroughly care for them.

“We’ve noticed, no make any difference how hard people consider, that they aren’t in a position to satisfy the desires of these animals,” reported the group’s wildlife marketing campaign supervisor, Michele Hamers.

“Reptiles have not evolved to live in captivity … we often don’t have an understanding of particularly what their wants are.”

Hamers stated this frequently qualified prospects to premature loss of life, disorders the animals would not in any other case get in the wild — or even abandonment. That could suggest surrendering exotic animals to shelters or rescue centres that are not geared up to manage them or releasing them into the nearby atmosphere, which they’re not created for.

As nicely, Hamers stated pet shops frequently never just take suitable treatment of them, both. Lots of never have the products and supplies to simulate a pure ecosystem for them, she said.

Robert Boucher states his dream of opening an unique pet shop has taken him on a wild journey. It started with buying up a pet reptile through the pandemic. And then two far more — and then diving into the business side, the moment he recognized that demand and costs have been soaring. (Sergio Arangio/CTV Information)

Promising a healthy natural environment

Boucher reported he is also been troubled by how other pet outlets handle reptiles, amphibians and fish.

His aim is to give the animals he sells almost everything they need to have to are living perfectly and make confident their long run owners are prepared for the accountability.

“They need UVC (light-weight), they need to have warmth lamps, they will need fastened temperatures … it is not anything you can just go up on,” Boucher mentioned.

That’s why he helps make sure his animals have sufficient area — and even allows the larger sized types roam around.

He has been putting up movies as Reptile Rob on YouTube, showing off his animals’ antics and his journey to open his possess retail store.

It would be the future step in a lifelong hobby, he reported, stemming from his childhood.

“I have often been into reptiles, spiders, snakes. I in no way experienced a panic of really substantially just about anything and it drove my mom insane,” Boucher reported with a chuckle.

“She would come in the residence and there was a giant spider in my aquarium and she’s like, ‘I’ve never seen nearly anything like that!’

“And then two days later, she’s like, ‘where is it?’ I’m like, ‘oh, I guess it is absent.’ Yeah, that’s the life she had to reside.”