Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Anyone have thoughts on whether we should continue to import monitors?
The problem seems to be the more imports we have the less captive breeding takes place(they are "disposable pets"@150 for say a peach throat). When you look at a doreanus or peachie you certainly would not think they are some cheap import. No breeder can produce them for a profit(it seems...heck most can't even keep them alive). Yet if we shut down imports we would soon have no stock to work with...OR the remaining stock would get the attention they deserve mainly due to the rising prices. Another point could be there are sustainable populations in the wild and the "harvest" is acceptable(and drives some local economies). I would have a hard time believing "locals" are decimating wild populations of the black tree monitor(through deforestation yes,not collecting).
I am certainly not an advocate for anymore laws,regs ect...But the flip side is that may be the only way to make it profitable to work with monitors. On the fence, big ears.

I imagine with the present cost of feed and electricity, you can no way produce larger monitors for any profit what so ever.

Of course you can produce them for the love of doing so and get a little payback for your efforts.

That is not even mentioning caging. Which would be massive for such an undertaking. That space would pay much more if you bred crickets or worms or mice or rats. Heck almost anything else but monitors.

When you mention a price for those peachies or doreanus, like $150. That price is not based on cost. Its a nearly bottomless base. That is, if they would not bring that price, they would simply lower the price, as their have very little into the exports. A couple bucks and shipping is their hard costs.

But I do not think that or competition has anything to do with folks in the states not breeding them. In fact, I think they do not want to breed them. Its not that hard, so I cannot understand why its not done. Considering how many are out there.

I think, and surely its only thinking, they do not want to give anything to get anything. Also it has something to do with control. People think they are in or have to be in control of monitors. It appears they are not. Thats what I like about monitors, you work WITH them, not control them.

Oh well, next. Cheers

I was watching the Thai satellite channel the other day, and they were talking about water monitor and the other monitor species that lives in the tree...very similar looking to the water monitors but they live in tree...and they were talking how poor people are in the North East Thailand that were eating anything they can catch including monitors over there and even cats and dogs. That's how starving they are! They said you don't see a lot of monitors in the North East anymore for this reason...because people eat them, so the government decided to protect them from hunting and try to find a better alternative for the locals to eat and make a living. A suggestion about farming monitors came up. They said they can farm these guys and export them to countries in Europe and North America for profit. I don't know if they are doing it in Thailand, but they said it wouldn't be that hard.

That's the reason why I don't breed monitors. There are too many that are import, so as a result there are too many unwanted monitors and other large reptiles like iguanas, and large constrictors. People don't realize how big they get because pet stores don't give out the correct info...they just want to sell them and make profit, and they do take quite a bit of your time to maintain their enclosures and feeding them. Only the really commited people should get these reptiles.

>>That's the reason why I don't breed monitors. There are too many that are import, so as a result there are too many unwanted monitors and other large reptiles like iguanas, and large constrictors. People don't realize how big they get because pet stores don't give out the correct info...they just want to sell them and make profit, and they do take quite a bit of your time to maintain their enclosures and feeding them. Only the really commited people should get these reptiles.

Okay, now you got me....how do you judge this committment? Some legislative body? Reality check....
This is largely garbage.....People don't realize how big they get because all they see is an animal that will eat something and be big and tough and cool. They have no concept of the power of a 20# animal let alone a bigger one. When I took my 4.5-55# savs in to work to weigh them and show them to a coworker people asked if they weighed 30#. My old 120# Bullmastiff regularly got accused of weighing nearly 200#.....secretly he wanted to I am sure but he had no extra weight. He wasn't a 120 rottie that was largely lard....he was bone and muscle. Impressive.
When the reality of just how BIG big is people dump their dream pet for another. Don't blame pet stores for human ignorance and impulsiveness. There is information out there that they refuse to use.
Of course a pet store wants to make a profit....HELLO! it is a business and pet stores wouldn't exist if they didn't make money somewhere. But to insinuate they lie and hide information to sell things is just silly. (though I know a puppy selling store that had a customer complain 8 months after buying a GREAT DANE that they wanted to return it because it got too big.....Yeah.
There is a whole missed information segment of humanity.....ever meet a cow in person? If you have do you remember thinking....crap, that thing is huge! If you have never met a cow you have no concept.
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Sonya

I'm not mean. You're just a sissy.
Happy Bunny

Actually, its not really that silly of a theory for pet stores to lie, if you think about it. I am sure that there are many of them out there that do. But there are also some good, honest stores (I think you've mentioned working at one). I wouldn't be at all suprised however, if oftentimes the pet store is ignorant of the truth as well, and tells the customer what they 'think' they know.

All I know about pet stores is, I don't like many of them. Trying to make a profit at the terrible deaths of many animals stolen from nature just doesn't make me a happy camper.

Cheers,
Ryan

I don't support it. I mean, look at what happened to ackies without any importation (a few other Oz species aren't really too few here either). Of course some species aren't bred easily enough in captivity to have a cutoff on importation (prasinus complex comes to my mind, as well as some of the really large monitors). Maybe just very limited importation or no importation on some species. But I am not completely in tune with the importation situation, so my opinion may be out of whack.

But I think that the real solution is, take away importation and send a group of every species to FR. And then rely on him to stock the captive bred market. Best plan yet, eh?

Cheers,
Ryan

Strictly hypothetical, if only breeders would be allowed CITES, then first babies would be obtained by serious keepers who would work on breeding second generation, it would take some time before any species become cheep and available to neglectful keepers.

And should a breeder fail he would lose his licence.
Ok who’s singing?

n/p

The last time I imported these species, the price was $40 jobi-$50 doreanus, then I realised these where extremely plentiful species, so they can fill quotas and more for decades to come, no thanks that was it for me.