In New Jersey, it is illegal to keep a venomous snake as a pet unless you possess a permit stating that you have, among other things, "working knowledge and expertise in handling and caring for each of the species desired." And though he may have known how to properly care for cobras, 25-year-old Eric Bortz didn't seem to have working knowledge of his own pet. Bortz was rushed to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx after his pet albino monocled cobra bit him and he discovered that its venom sacks had not been removed, as he had been told by the dealer.
Bortz bought the cobra, as well as an eastern diamondback rattlesnake and a copperhead snake, on Monday in Pennsylvania, where there are "no state requirements for a person possessing non-human primates and reptiles." The snake bit him last night as he reached into its tank, and as of today he is still having difficulty speaking. And this is why we reserve our animal rescue efforts for fuzzy, non-venomous puppies.
