Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Im here just to say that its really sad when people sell a reptile to someone just to make a buck. I believe its the store owners responsability to sell the right animal to the right person. Im not gonna mention any names for now, but my little cousin was sold a savannah monitor, the kids 11! That [bleep] is wrong! Leapord geckos, bearded dragons, fat tails, their are alot of other option to steer a young kid in the right direction. Just one mans opinion. I'm open to opinions, so feel free to post what you think.

Many places will not sell anything to that age group. This should be regulated as a standard practice.

Well, I don't think anyone under 18 should be able to buy a pet of any kind without a parent present, and I think pet shop employees should do all they can to educate the potential buyer about what all will be involved with caring for that pet. It's sad that so many employees at pet shops don't even know what reptiles they have; once saw a columbian rainbow boa being kept on sand and without a hide box!
That said, I don't like pet shops that are NOT willing to sell to anyone (who is old enough). I don't believe they should be able to judge who they think would make a good owner or not, too much room for personal prejudices, stereotyping, etc. They can't tell from a 5 min. conversation who will or won't properly care for the animal. I once saw an employee deny a black man a pet, then looked at him in discust as he walked away...anyone who saw that knew the only reason he denied the man was because he was black!
And then you have the SPCA; you have to jump through hoops with all the paperwork and information...they won't let you have a dog unless they are sure about it, then they tell you what you can or can't do with it after you get it...then complain that no one wants the 100 dogs they have so they euthinize them! Several of the shelters where I live have kill rates as high as 90 percent for dogs, and yet, they still make it hard to get one from them. They are so worried that a few might go to bad homes, that they deny way more the oppertunity of a good home and simply kill them!
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-David

Check out my pet pics at:
http://www.myspace.com/obx_fisherman

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 normal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 snow corn snake (Valkyrie)
1.0 amazon tree boa (Pegasus)
0.0.1 colombian boa (Athena)
0.0.1 albino san diego gopher snake (TBD)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
0.0.1 fire skink (Phoenix)
1.0 dog (Luke)

the wife's pets:
1.0 bearded dragon (Leonidas)
1.1 ferrets (Ares, Enyo)
0.0.1 betta fish (Captain Morgan)
1.2 cats (Galahad, Ripley and Sassy)

I disagree with this comment. For example, I have been keeping herps since I was 7, starting with Hemidactylus sp., and by 10 I had close to 10 herps, at 15 my herp room had over 100 individual herps, and now at 18, I have bred over 30 different species and kept hundreds of various lizards and geckos in my herp room successfully. I have seen this with other kids my age, so age does not directly relate to responsibility. Yes, I do not aprove of varanids, large constrictors, hots, or crocodilians for the young or average hobbyist, but by 9 or 10 I am sure everyone is capable of enough responsibility, depending on the species of course, to maintain proper love and care. We need to get more teens involved in the hobby if we have any chance of ensuring it's survival for the future.
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2.3 Phelsuma klemmeri
2.3 Pachydactylus(Palmatogecko) rangei
2.6.7 Rhacodactylus ciliatus
along with various other species.

looking into Sceloporus orcutti and Holaspis guentheri

There are laws regarding this. I am also sure he had a parent with him. It's not like an 11 year old is gonna hop on a bus, ride to the pet store, buy a lizard with dimes and quaters. A pet store has to make money. They are a store, none the less... That is like a liquor store not selling to people who look like transients or people with dui's. Pet stores are shady in their own right. If a person buys something from a petstore it is their responsibility, or their parents responsibility to research what they are buying... petstores expect this. They probably sold it to his 39 year old parents rather an 11 year old. What is so bad about a savanah anyway? They are better than iguanas and are easier to care for then most other animals. I'm not flaming, just making other aspects available.

Clay