Dave Bethel, owner of the now defunct Reptile World was sentenced for three charges under the Alberta Animal Protection Act.

Bethel appeared in provincial court in Drumheller on Friday, October 23. He faced nine charges. He pleaded guilty to three charges under the Animal Protection Act.

Last February, officers from the Alberta SPCA seized reptiles and amphibians from the downtown Drumheller zoo. Some of the animals were in poor condition and were euthanized. The cost to deal with the animals was more than $14,000.

In August, a number those of crocodilians arrived in sanctuaries in the United States.

The Crown recommended a $5,000 fine, taking into account Bethel's financial situation. Bethel has filed for bankruptcy. The Crown also asked for a 10-year prohibition on owning reptiles.

The Crown submitted that Bethel did not act in bad faith and under the circumstances attempted to care for the animals.

Defense for Bethel, Hugh Sommerville told the court that reptiles were Bethel's life. He came to Drumheller 26 years ago and built, at one time, the largest collection of reptiles in Canada. He accepts he is guilty of the charges.

Judge Gashler imposed a fine of $2,000 in total for the three charges. He imposed a 10-year ban on having custody of reptiles, but that does not preclude him from working in the field. There was no restitution order.

In honour of World Polio Day, the Rotary Club of Drumheller was proud to raise the ‘End Polio Now’ flag at Rotary Park on Monday. This was part of Rotary’s 30 year mission to eradicate the crippling childhood disease.

Joining Rotary Club of Drumheller members to raise the ‘End Polio Now’ flag were; Deputy Mayor, Tom Zariski; Rotary District 5360 Governor Martin Harvey and local Rotary Club president Doug Stanford.  

It has been 30 years since Rotary launched its PolioPlus program to take on the ambitious goal to end polio worldwide. In 1985 polio crippled more than 350,000 children per year in 125 countries – 1,000 cases per day.

Today, the world is 99.9% polio free with only Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Nigeria remaining as polio-endemic.  In 2014 there were only 360 polio cases in the world. 

A highly infectious disease, polio causes paralysis and is sometimes fatal.  As there is no cure, the best protection is prevention. For as little as US 60 cents worth of vaccine, a child can be protected against this crippling disease for life.  

After an international investment of more than $9 billion (US), and the successful engagement of over 200 countries and 20 million volunteers, polio could be the first human disease of the 21st century to be eradicated.

Since 1985, Rotary has contributed nearly $1.3 billion and countless volunteer hours to the protection of more than 2.5 billion children in 122 countries.    

Every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication is matched 2:1 by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation up to $35 million a year until 2018. These funds help to provide much needed operational support, medical personnel, laboratory equipment, and educational materials for health workers and parents. 

Help make history today by donating to the ‘End Polio Now’ campaign at www.endpolio.org/donate.