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This article was published 10/8/2015 (1869 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The City of Winnipeg took a bite out of Jeff McKay's wallet as he prepared to host his popular Safari Jeff reptile show at Kildonan Place shopping centre.

McKay, an educational entertainer whose reptile show was held Friday through Sunday at the mall's centre court area, was served Friday by city bylaw enforcement officers with a ticket carrying a $1,500 fine because his show includes animals that are banned under Winnipeg's responsible pet ownership bylaw.

"It's disappointing. I really want to come back to Winnipeg; this is a first-class city," said McKay, who has been touring Canada and the United States for 28 years with his interactive and educational show featuring reptiles such as the tortoise, iguana, crocodile, chameleon and bull snake.

He performs 100 days a year, but doesn't tour during part of the winter for the safety of the animals. It was his seventh year appearing at Kildonan Place mall and he had never had a problem in the past.

McKay said officers told him he had 72 hours to remove the animals.

"That enabled me to finish my final show here just now, under my contract (with Kildonan Place) so I was absolutely thrilled and relieved about that," McKay said Sunday.

McKay said animal services' COO Leland Gordon told him in a conversation earlier Sunday he could have been fined $1,500 for each banned animal.

"I would love to come back. My plan originally (after receiving the ticket Friday) was that if I could come back and get a $1,500 fine and three days notice, I could do that. But, after Leland said I could be fined for every animal, I can't come back and take 10 or 15,000 (dollars) in fines. I'm not going to change my collection of animals just so I can accommodate one city," McKay said, noting he only owns 12 types of animals so he can properly and fully care for them.

In other cities, he is issued a special permit. No such permit exists in Winnipeg, he said.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Deion Liu, 7, and other children get excited when touching a snake during Safari Jeff McKay show at Kildonan Place Sunday.

"There's got to be an amendment to the bylaw, which would allow for a professional show with a reputation such as mine to pass through, with lots of stipulations behind it," he said. "The mayor himself, the guys in bylaw or an opinion needs to be voiced by the community. You don't just shut everybody out."

Some of his show's star attractions, such as his eight-year-old Cuban rock iguana, is on the list of prohibited animals in the July 2013 bylaw, which was amended in July 2014.

A City of Winnipeg spokeswoman confirmed that a ticket was given to McKay.

"As far as the city is concerned, he brought in illegal animals and so he was issued a ticket," she said.

McKay, a Red Deer, Alta., resident, said he's studied, travelled and worked in research in the field of reptiles since he was 18 years old.

He heard talk about changes to Winnipeg's exotic animal bylaw, so he contacted the City of Winnipeg after his 2014 show to find out if the bylaw changes would affect him. He said he was routed to 311 where he was lost in a maze of call transfers and got no information. He called the office of then-mayor Sam Katz, and got a voice mail with no option to leave a message.

"I got absolutely nowhere. 311 needs to be straightened out, if that's where I'm being directed. It's got to be straightforward," he said, noting he had put on his July 2014 show with no problems. "This year, I came back, and I had no idea (his show contained banned animals)."

He said his show shares a message that encourages people to appreciate, protect and respect reptiles.

"It's very important for children and families to have these experiences," he said. "Not everyone has the chance to travel to an exotic destination. Because the animals hold attention, I can deliver a positive message that is inspiring and influential to people to better appreciate nature."

McKay said he was told a local man had complained to mall management about his including an iguana in the show and this individual also complained to the city.

McKay said he will pay $750 under the early-pay option and Kildonan Place offered to pay half.

ashley.prest@freepress.mb.ca.