Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I attend every Reptile Expo in Hamburg, PA. I also attend the Greater NY Reptile Expo in White Plains. I guess what really amazes me is the vast number of vendors showing up who have absolutely no IDENTIFICATION present at their vendor tables. No Names, No cards, No phone numbers. And they are all selling Reptiles. How on earth are they allowed to do this??? Because of this, I will never purchase any reptile from any Vendor at these Expo's who do not have proper Identification, labeling, pricing, etc. on all reptiles being offered for sale, and no information about themselves. Whoever is running these Expo's needs to take a very close look at this!!!

They are required to register and pay a registration fee. If you go to the White Plains site, you will find a list of vendors and their contact information. Not everyone at the Expo's are from larger companies like Sandfire, NERD, or Regal Reptiles. Some are just home breeders who don't have a business name or card. Any vendor will gladly give you their information if you ask. Now, as far as pricing goes, not everyone lists their prices. I know for a fact that NERD doesn't have prices listed on their high end morphs. There will always be disreputable people, everywhere you go. Talk to the vendors before making a purchase, to get a feel for the person selling the animals. I've purchased ALL my animals from Expos with great success. The prices are much more reasonable, no shipping costs, and you get to see the animals and it's owner/breeder before giving them money.
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1.1 Ball Python 0.0.1 corn snake 1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.0.2 fish 1.2 cats 3.1 kids 1.0 husband and now...
0.0.1 Pink Zebra Beauty Tarantula
0.2 Solomon Island Boas

Thanks for the reply, but here is my case in point, I think that the business being conducted at the shows is "sloppy" at best. Vendors who ignore you when you stand in front of their tables, only concerned about stirring their coffee cups and chatting with one another, and could care less about making a sale, let alone answering questions. Half the time, the 'vendors' behind the tables don't even know the answers, and can't tell you if any specimen is 'Captive Born or Bred'. DUH!!!! They make up the answers as they go. It's a joke. Sloppy business at best. Yeah.
Like I said, I go to all of the Hamburg, PA and White Plains, NY shows...and will be keeping an eye on things closely at each show, and taking notes. And posting the results here!!!

“I...will be keeping an eye on things closely at each show, and taking notes. And posting the results here!!!”

I won’t disagree – or agree – with anything you’ve said. But may I suggest that if you wish to play information cop, that you start by posting your full name. After all, fair is fair, right?

-Joan

Get real, Joan, and stop being ridiculous, post my real name.
Your way off the point here, MY name has nothing to do with this
and I never said I was playing COP here. Give me a freakin' break and grow up!!!

Alan,
I agree with you 100%! I was at the Daytona expo last year and some of the vendors were a joke. I overheard a big named company tell a customer that they needed a 5.0 UVB light over their California king cage to keep it healthy.
Also I would stand there looking at animals with not so much as a "can I help you" from some of the same pinheads that write the books and articles about the herp business. Then when you ask about an animal its like you are bothering them. Sandfire dragon Ranch and Agama International as well as MYEXOTICS were among the most professional and friendly people that I met. Oh and so was Kathy Love. Also the Glades Herp guys were cool.

That's nice.Keep up the good work.

Kathy Woodworth
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1.1 Ball Python 0.0.1 corn snake 1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.0.2 fish 1.2 cats 3.1 kids 1.0 husband and now...
0.0.1 Pink Zebra Beauty Tarantula
0.2 Solomon Island Boas

If things bother you so much why don't you host your own show and stop your crying--I don't know which is worse my two year old little girl or YOU!!!

Then save up your money and go to the annual Mid-Atlantic Reptile Show in Timonium, MD, in September - I think I remember everyone having a sign there.

Katrina

I agree if you buy a snake from these no names and it dies a
week later what do you do?

If you are to stupid not to get any information from the person you are buying from then what do you expect them to do! On the other hand if they refuse to give you any means of contacting them then DON'T buy from them--DUH! Most vendors if not all of them will give you some sort of means to contact them if you ask for it--and I might add if you buy small animals/reptiles from a retail pet store and they die ONE day later they will do nothing! If you don't trust the vendors then stay out of the shows!

I have been to many shows over the past 10 years in various states, as a customer (not a vendor). I think there have always been a few shady dealers/vendors at any given show. Do your homework and ask questions, be an informed consumer. You wouldn't buy a car from just anyone, at any price without researching it? Why would anything less be done for a living animal?

Unfortunately, some vendors have drawn attn from local gov't agencies to the point that laws sometimes get implemented. It becomes more difficult for the good guys to sell and provide us with quality herps. As with anything, a few bad apples can always spoil the whole bunch. (the bad ones usually break or find ways around the laws)

Anyway, I think you need an idea of what you're looking for and who is selling it. Also, research the price range if you know what you want ahead of time. Get a list of the vendors ahead of time and look into their reputation by posting inquiries. Its never a great idea to buy on IMPULSE.

As far as vendors talking to other vendors... the shows start at 9am or earlier and people usually line up waiting outside. Some Vendors travel a distance and probably get there with little time to setup. By 9am some are still setting up their tables...so its no wonder that when they finally get a chance to do so, they talk with their neighboring vendors. I have never had a vendor ignore me completely b/c I guarantee that they all keep an eye out for theft, which has become a more common problem. So most vendors probably do see you but sometimes if you speak up and interrupt them, they are happy to help you.

just my 2 cents.
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