"Bad PR is killing us; all of us need to think about what we are doing from now on. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to someone’s house and they proudly show me their latest pet and they have it in a all glass tank with a screen on it with a brick holding it down and their newest pet is capable of killing half the town. I’ve known people who let their pet python that is 14 feet long have free run of the house even when they are sleeping! It’s time to start thinking about what we are doing other wise the government will take it all away.

Michael Luhrs "



Would that include actually questioning a potential buyer of an alligator or crocodile to see if they realize what they're gettting into when they buy that $75 baby? I've been to a reptile show where the buyer looked at me funny when I started recommending where to buy 300 gallon Rubbermaid stock tanks and which vendors had the best prices on heat lights, water filters, emmiters, and such - he had no idea what he was getting into - he just forked over his money and was handed an alligator. Water filters, heaters, heat lights? The money was the end of the conversation as far as the seller was concerned.



And who's selling hatchling RES to distributors who sell them to the public in tourist spots? Someone has to know that their "product" is going to T-shirt shops on the Strand in Myrtle Beach - and it doesn't make us look good when it happens. I'm not commenting on the 4" reg here, just where the animals are being sold, to whom, and by whom. Most of the sliders in rescue didn't come from pet stores or expos - the majority came from tourist traps. So who's selling the hatchling sliders to the tourist traps?



Katrina

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