fined for pet lynx, Ontario

[Emily]

story about a guy in Thunder Bay who was fined, and the lynx confiscated. The guy had declawed and spayed the female and was keeping it as a pet. Doesn't say who did the surgery...

http://lakesuperiornews.info/Legal/Cons ... fault.aspx

FINED $1,000 FOR KEEPING LYNX AS PET
February 14, 2008 ~ Thunder Bay ~ Justin Storm, 28, pleaded guilty under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act. The female lynx was spayed and declawed before she was seized, so the animal cannot be returned to the wild. Instead she will go a wildlife facility in Wisconsin.

Court was told that in February 2007, Storm contacted the Ministry of Natural Resources Thunder Bay District office and asked if it was legal to keep a lynx in captivity. He was told that it was illegal under both the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act and the City of Thunder Bay bylaws.

In the fall of 2007 ministry conservation officers received information that Storm was keeping a lynx as a pet at a home in Thunder Bay. Officers went in with a search warrant and seized a young female lynx. DNA testing by the Rocky Mountain Research Station Wildlife Genetics Laboratory in Missoula, Montana, determined the animal was a Canada lynx.

Justice of the Peace Marcel Donio heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Thunder Bay, on February 6, 2008.

The ministry reminds the public that, in addition to the safety risks associated with having a wild animal as a family pet, in most situations it is illegal to keep live game wildlife or specially protected wildlife in captivity except under the authority of a licence.

To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll free any time or contact your local ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).