House File 24 remains in limbo after a Thursday subcommittee in the Iowa House of Representatives. The bill would prohibit a person from allowing any member of the public to come in direct contact with a dangerous wild animal.
Angela Caulk, a lobbyist for The Humane Society of the United States, said the organization gave the bill to sponsor Republican State Rep. Bubba Sorensen after an incident at a West Des Moines business.
A bamboo shark went into distress last summer and a worker attempted to free the animal. However, the shark bit the employee’s hand and wouldn’t let go. Law enforcement and EMS had to respond and they were unable to detach the worker from the shark, which led to the shark being euthanized.
Caulk said Blue Zoo is not licensed or accredited like a typical zoo aquarium would be. The employees, she added, get training from Google, she claimed. Caulk also expressed concern over using law enforcement resources for such an incident.
“Now Iowa is on a list for a shark bite which kind of seems illogical when you think about where Iowa is located,” Caulk said.
She went to Blue Zoo to look around and said animals are not in the “greatest living conditions.” Much of the vegetation is plastic and she said most of the people who work there are probably kids you wouldn’t typically see at a movie theater.
There is also a parakeet enclosure at the location and Caulk said during a recent visit a child accidentally stepped on one of the parakeets and killed the parakeet.
Democrat State Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell wanted to make sure the bill simply adds sharks to that section of code. Republican State Rep. Dean Fisher said as he understands it the bill is just trying to get a shark listed as a wild animal.
Republican State Rep. John Wills, who chaired the subcommittee, said he has a “tough time” doing a bill relating to one business or one town.
“We govern the state of Iowa, not West Des Moines,” he said. “Let me take a look at it and see if there’s something we can do.”
Sorensen said the business would still be able to have the shark, they just would not be allowed to let people get in the tank with it and pet it.
“It doesn’t shut this place down, it just shuts down them having people pet a damn shark,” he said. “I hate to say it’s a common-sense bill, but for me, it’s a common-sense bill. We shouldn’t be petting sharks.”