I assume that there were/are rules against having things like poisonous snakes in that residence. Most apartments have such rules for a reason, since obviously you're living in such close proximity with other people and it's not as if you even own the land.
I really don't want to see people be disallowed from owning dangerous pets (for a given value of dangerous... monocled cobra's can be pretty vicious from what I hear), but if said pets should escape from your residence and pose a threat to the general public, you should really expect to be held accountable for your negligence.
Kind of like if I should want to have a family and kids and also own a gun in the house. I don't think I should be disallowed from owning the gun, but it's my responsibility to make damn sure that the gun stays locked the **** away.