Get your licenses first, fish second...

[thebiggerthebetter]

Thank you all so much.

I'm still just disgusted at how the environmental agency handled this whole thing. This crap is why I don't share my location, much info at all about my fish, or anything identifying online.

same. ain't nobody monitoring me

Thank you guys. Suit yourselves but I thought I'd repeat again that I only blame myself.

Yet, I am also learning thanks to this experience that the government can be an indifferent, heartless machine and its representatives either can't or won't talk with you as a human to a human but everyone (except my local FWC officer) in Tallahassee (FL capital) and in our municipal court system seems to be afraid and speaks like a lawyer to you or just stonewalls you (I can't tell you, I am not authorized to tell you, I can't give legal advice, I can't speak on behalf of the government, hire a lawyer if you need these answers, etc.) not answering the simplest and most innocent of questions that can save me much time, money, work, and anguish right now and in the future (more on that later).

Hey, that's good news. Could have been a lot worse. What sort of community service will you have to do?
You should see if you can cut a deal and show school groups around your set up or something, similar, would be better than collecting rubbish.

I can't do what I'd want. The diversion Program collaborates with a number of other agencies and businesses and one can pay their societal debt only with them. I should have asked for the worst and the filthiest job but I love and think of myself too much. So I chose a local volunteer and a ministry hub St. Matthew's House. They do a ton of great work - shelter housing, senior housing, medical assisted housing, soup kitchen, thrift store, classes to learn a trade, religion, work with the addicts, you name it.

Im surprised you avoided capital punishment, being the devious criminal mastermind that you are. I can rest assured my taxes are well spent on government agencies relentlessly pursuing and prosecuting people like you out there who would dare to care for and keep fish with such flagrant professionalism and dedication.

Yeah. They should have given me the chair and I'd become the world's first fish keeper martyred for the fish keeping freedom. You could dedicate the MFK to my name after that and wear t-shirts with my mugshots. The world would have definitely become a better place.

 

[Fishnerd360]

It would be funny if your community service is rescuing fish.

 

[Dloks]

Man viktor I thought they woulda gave you the death penalty for your fishes. Glad you got off easy

 

[MatteoTheEnder22]

So I just read this whole thread and so are there any updates on the license and also I have another question how did you get the tiger fishes and the wolffish into the state I can understand the others but those two are the ones I can't put my head around.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Thank you for reading. I had applied a few months after and was denied. Was advised to wait out 6-12 months and try again. Haven't yet.

The only state border control I know of is on highways and even that is only for large cargo vehicles. The FWC probably monitors large shipments of live animals too. USPS, UPS, FedEx, airport-to-airport cargo no one checks, it is impossible.

 

[MatteoTheEnder22]

Thank you for reading. I had applied a few months after and was denied. Was advised to wait out 6-12 months and try again. Haven't yet.

The only state border control I know of is on highways and even that is only for large cargo vehicles. The FWC probably monitors large shipments of live animals too. USPS, UPS, FedEx, airport-to-airport cargo no one checks, it is impossible.

Oh too bad you didnt get accepted looks like your not getting any arapaimas anytime soon And I thought the government always checked those things but I guess not.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

2+ year update.

Since then, I applied for the license with the Florida Wildlife Commission (FWC) to keep Conditional and Prohibited f/w fish species 3-4 times as an Educational Public Exhibitor and the last time was successful. After an inspection, I've just been granted the license to keep any of the Conditional species, & these are the ones we applied for and their yearly quantities we applied for:

Annual Quantity ​	Common and Scientific Name of Each Species ​
5​	Dorado (Salminus brasiliensis)​
5​	Dorado (Salminus franciscanus)​
5​	Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus)​
3​	Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella)​
3​	Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix)​
3​	Bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis)​
3​	Black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus)​
1​	Blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus)​
5​	Walking catfish (Clarias batrachus)​
3​	Barramundi (Lates calcarifer)​
3​	Nile Perch (Lates niloticus)​
3​	Black Arowana (Osteoglossum ferreirai)​
2​	Indonesian/red-tailed golden arowana (Scleropages aureus)​
2​	Green Arowana (Scleropages formosus)​
2​	Australian bonytongue (Scleropages jardinii)​
2​	Red arowana (Scleropages legendrei)​
2​	Spotted bonytongue (Scleropages leichardti)​
2​	Silver Indonesian arowana (Scleropages macrocephalus)​
3​	African Arowana (Heterotis niloticus)​
3​	Northern largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides salmoides)​
5​	Arapaima (Arapaima gigas)​

Prohibited species, however, I was denied on the basis of our property being registered as residential with the County Appraiser office (even though we have a legal and valid Conditional Land Use Permit for a Commercial Educational Aquarium on our property too). According to the current Florida Code, the Prohibited fish can be exhibited only commercial properties.

We are thankful to the FWC and this is a great start.

 

[deeda]

Congratulations on at least getting the Conditional permit.

 

[phreeflow]

That took forever. Congrats!

 

[Leonardo_CH]

Great news, congrats! Cant wait to see you keep some of these, especially some of the Scleropages species.