Looooong day at work. Sorry I was not able to follow the conversation as it developed.

Just like most of us I was chasing reptiles before I could walk. I was chasing geckos an buffo toads in Hawaii when I was crawling. I am still chasing geckos and what ever those rat sized toads are in Florida whenever I make it down there. About a month ago I showed my daughters how to make a pair of anole earrings. Currently I have thirteen boas and have invested a lot of money and time into them. It is a hobby for me and at the same time I am in it for the money. I have no problem admitting it. Just being honest. I also care for my boas exceptionally well with proper husbandry and maintenance, regular vet inspections, and consultation from others with more experience than me. As far as I know the only thing I could do to make there lives better would be to take them back to the jungle.

The reason for my inquiry was to (1) try to find some feed back on why the sunglow market has crashed. Yes I said crashed. I have seen sunglows going for 25% to 50% less than last year. In any other open market this is considered a crash. And (2) see if there is any reasoning for this and possibly a solution. Another thing I have seen is I bought my jungles for $2,500 a piece in 2004. In 2005 the average price for similar jungles was $4,500. Recently, I have seen jungles and jungle salmons paired up for $6,000. Not only do I not have any evidence that this is market driven, I find it hard to believe that it is. That being said, the extent of my exposure to the boa world is the Tinley Park show and what is made public on this forum. So I am not “in the know” about every person producing sunglows, jungles or anything else. One thing I do know which is based on my educational and professional experience is it should take quite a few sunglows to reduce a supply driven price equilibrium to where it is in one season. At which point I would have to believe that to a certain extent people are just dumping there stock as fast as possible. All is fair in love and war…..and capitalism.

I think everyone knows the laws of supply and demand. I know I do. I am in the real estate business. I don't know where everyone is from, but in my market area we have been thoroughly schooled in the laws of supply and demand lol. Actually it isn't funny. I don't recall who discussed how the economy and housing market is affecting the other markets but good observation.

One point I think is valid is that most people who spend a significant amount of money on a single boa (i.e. $1,000 or more for the sake of this discussion) are at some level in "it" for the money. I find it hard to believe that many people would spend that much money on a boa strictly as a pet. I know there are some out there that will, but the majority, even "hobbyists" are looking for some sort of recuperation. If a person is looking to recuperate money it can still remain a hobby but at the same time it is more than just a hobby. At which point market activity is monitored. On the other hand I do know what some of you are talking about when someone is strictly in it for the money. I personally do not think this is always a bad thing. You probably wouldn't be able to convince me that any of the breeders whose income is obtained solely from the sales of their offspring are not in it for the money as well as the for the love of a beautiful boa. My parents always told me to find something I like to do and make a career out of it. Nothing wrong with that. I applaud anyone who has or can.

There is no doubt that quality is the way to go. If you saw the pastel albino produced and owned by Jeff Ronne or the red albinos produced by Matt Crabe there really is no debate to the quality theory. The photos of the aforementioned boas are posted above.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to reply. Great discussion!

Quality!


Thanks,

Steve Ihrig - sdi

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