For the first time in Calgary’s history, the maximum fine under the Animal Protection Act has been handed down in connection to a massive animal seizure from a pet store in December 2015.

Riverfront Aquariums manager Wayne Woo has been ordered to pay $20,000, while also being given a lifetime ban from owning animals, with the exception of the dog he currently has and fish.

Owner Michael Chow must pay $4,000, while receiving a 10-year ban with similar exceptions.

Calgary Humane Society Senior Manager of Cruelty Investigations Brad Nichols said it sends a strong message.

“The pet stores in the community need to be seen as the experts that tell you how to properly take care of your animal,” he said. “When their care falls off, it instills in the public a lack of education in how to take care of animals.”

On Dec. 2, 2015, 333 animals including lizards, snakes, frogs and turtles were found in varying levels of distress, with some having to be euthanized.

Before the seizure, Woo had been charged with other animal offences.

It was the second straight day at court for Nichols on Tuesday, following the sentence against a Calgary couple who pled guilty in their care of a severely neglected dog.

“We try not to get to personally invested in the court outcomes,” he said. “But I’m not going to lie, there’s some satisfaction in seeing these charges come through to fruition and with meaningful penalties.”

Heather Anderson with the DAISY Foundation, a local animal welfare group, agreed that the maximum fine will set a precedent.

“Thankfully maybe this man will be stopped this time,” she said. “I hope that he never, ever takes on any animals again.

“He has a dog and they’re letting him keep it, but as far as any other animals, they should never be in this man’s care because he obviously, all he cares about is money.”