Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just wanted to vent about a show that I went to recently. I could not believe the number of obviously dehydrated, under nourished savannah monitors and hatchling Nile's that I saw. And with a price tag of a mere $20.00-$25.00 I'm sure that a number of them were sold to inexperienced keepers who have to start off with an animal that is already battling the odds. I will finish by saying that you can definitely tell who wants to make a quick buck and has no respect for the creatures they are selling.

Sorry, just had to let some frustration out

The number of each just change. My favorites are the captive born shows, please, 3/4 of the animals are WC obviously. Those 2 monitors sell to petsores and to the people with those stands for $1.00 each from a middleman who makes some profit on them. Now you know why its disappointing to see those adds that say CBB savannahs and niles for $15-75 each, the scary thing is they actually believe they are CB. I knew a guy that could sell them to me a few years back for $1 each if you buy 10, he was a retailer/wholesaler, but his animals looked great, and those prices were for anyone.

Tell me about it. These Sav's weren't being pawned off as CB, they were 12" plus animals in very poor shape. The Nile's on the other hand were hatchlings. You could probably count the number of bones in their tails they were so skinny.

It is always like that. I love shows because its great to be able to see so many animals, and there are alays some really great vendors there who care emmensly about their animals and are willing to answer all of your questions...etc...etc

but then there are the ones who will sell anything to anyone. The most amazing thing i saw was at a show last year, i was looking at a table with some nice looking hatchling savanahs and there was a girl who couldnt have been more than 14 years old on a cell phone. I overheard her talking to someone (probably her mom) begging them to let her get a Savanah. She whined and pleaded for about five minutes, then got all excited, hung up the phone and bought not one but TWO savanahs. The vendor didn't say a thing.

I later saw the same girl at the pet store where i worked trying to pawn off the monitors on someone else cause they were too nasty!

Poor things
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1.0 green iguana-Deitrich
1.1 Common Boa-Un-Named, Ursula
1.0 Ball Python-Anabell (go figure!)
1.0 Red Tegu-Uteg
1.0 Albino Cal King-Pig
0.1 Mexican Black King-Morticia
1.1 Bearded Dragons-Unnamed, Hanabil
1.0 Albino San Diego Gopher-Unnamed
0.1 Hermans tort-Esio
1.1 JCP-Milton, Medusa
1.1 Reverse Okeetee Corn-Unnamed
0.1 Snow Corn-Unnamed
1.0 Hypo Okeetee Corn-Unnamed
0.1 Motley Okeetee-Unnamed
1.0 Western Hoggie-Wyrm
0.0.1 Rose Hair Taruntla-Unnamed
2.0 Leopard Geckos-Reptar, Pogo
4.1 cats-Tucker,Poe,Abhib,Emerald, Felicity
0.1 Bullmastiff-Asha

Yeah, i saw the same thing down in richmond on saturday, but it is all apart of the trade, just the ugly side, until we can start producing more captive bred, this is what is going to continue to happen.
scott

I don't know which one was worst for me. A vender trying to sell baby niles to a young teenege girl claiming they are very calm and only get around 2 feet. Or was it the last show I went to where a vender was trying to sell 2 juvie rudis as a bonded pair of black trees. Sometimes you just have to step up and tell these people what's up.
The young girl didn't buy the nile, she got a baby corn snake instead, and the vender had to change her sign.
It's a good thing I'm not trying to start a fan club

Scott
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Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

Sounds like you are going to join me on the 'hit list.' I have a nasty habit of speaking up when some parent is being BS'd by a vendor about the facts on the savannah, iguana, nile, etc that his little kid wants him to buy.

I had to laugh at my husband the first time he came to a reptile show with me. He was so disappointed that he did not get to see any really big monitors or iguanas. I pointed to all the little kids with their new savs and iguanas (and, yes, niles)in their new 10 gallon tanks with the heat rocks and pointed out that if the parents had any idea how big the kid's new critter got, the vendor would have never made the sale.

Now he stands quietly at my elbow, all 6'4" and 350 lb (all muscle) of him, as I explain to the little kid and his parent all about their planned purchase. The vendors are afraid to even glare at me. It's nice to have your own bodyguard.

Leslie

Hi Leslie,
Big fella ya bring with you, I take my 9year old son, he loves the shows and is a blackbelt in taekwondo. How's that for a bodyguard? So far he has bought a spurred tortoise for his mom a tarantula and 2 beardies. It's neat when he goes to holding beardies and can tell if they are male or female.
Good thing he is smarted than his dad.

Scott
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Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

Great bodyguard you've got there. It always pleases me when the young ones are so knowledgable. The future is assured that way.

It can get embarrassing though. When my girls were pre-teens, they were in 4H horse judging. The older one's FFA horse judging team represented Florida at Nationals her senior year. But when little kids start commenting on the conformation of some famous breeder's sale stock in front of the potential buyer, pointing out the faults, and, of course, they're right, it can get a little embarrassing. Funny, but embarrassing. Out of the mouths of babes...

Leslie