Reptile and amphibian retailers come in a variety of formats, from the traditional pet store to big box mass merchandisers, to small local breeders and hobbyists selling at shows, through the classifieds, or on the Internet. Many retailers use multiple channels to advertise and sell their products nationwide. In doing so they encounter a plethora of sometimes confusing, contradictory, and hard to find -- or understand -- laws and regulations at the state and federal levels. Some become quite expert in navigating this world, and have to in order to keep their business dealings legal.

Exotic Pets' Ken Foose is a good example of one of these retailers. From elephants to mice, cobras to corn snakes, Foose has worked with a wide variety of both native and exotic species. With a masters degree in Zoology from the University of Kansas, he's been both a zookeeper and curator, working for a number of zoological parks including the Topeka, Seattle and Spokane Zoos, as well as opening his own private zoo called Reptiles of the West in 1984, housing hundreds of species.

In 1991 he opened his retail pet store, Exotic Pets, a reptile and exotic specialty store in Las Vegas. In addition to operating his own retail pet business, Ken is a longtime officer and current president of the International Herpetological Symposium, an annual educational event that has brought reptile hobbyists, academics, zookeepers, and other reptile professionals together in conversation for the last 35 years. Breeding his first snakes when he was 11, Ken has been breeding and working with reptiles since the early 70s.

Ken Foose, owner of Exotic Pets in Las Vegas and current president of the International Herpetological Society, will be a panelist at the free National Reptile and Amphibian Law Symposium and Workshop in Washington, D.C., November 8-10. For more information and to register to attend, please click here.