Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Heya everyone,

I live out in Kalamazoo MI, and they had their first annual reptile and exotic animal show...and of course I attended! lol, anyways, I had to fight the urge to buy a baby reeves turtle, and an adorable crested gecko (I actually wound up going home with only silkworms ) but when I was there I saw two flapnecks that looked to be just a couple days old. I questioned the vendor and he said that they were 3 months old! He said they hadnt grown much, and they were seriosuly the size of a penny.

I took a closer look and realized both of their eyes were closed, no humidity at all in the little CUP that they were in, and they looked to be very thin! I felt terrible, and I knew I couldnt do much for them, as they obviously hadnt had proper care and husbandry...so what Im getting at is should I go back a attempt to "rescue" them, Im almost positive they wont make it, but its really sickening to see them like that...thanks in advance...

Michele

Hey Michele,

Well, in my pinion you should not. If they are as bad as you explain, the best experts in the world may not be able to save them. Once a cham, espeially one that small, starts heading down hill, its VERY hard to turn it around. It is not feasible to give them meds when they are too small, and force feeding is near impossible. Don't take me wrong, but you are better off saving your time and money, and buy a healthy one. Just my opinion.

Ank-Inc.
Adam.

as difficult as it is to "let them die", which is probably what will happen, I have to agree with Adam. The other reason not to buy them is the message sent. If you buy them, the seller will figure "well, I got rid of those, I can get rid of more." You would only be condoning his practice. You might consider reporting him to your local herp society and/or the coordinator of the show. Considering it is the first show in the area, the presenter wants it to be seen in a positive light and should know now if there are unscrupulous sellers who are "using" the show to off their sick animals.

I know many of us have a done a rescue at least once and it is tough not to, but outing this guy's practices is a better way to go.

lele
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Unless they are given to you at no cost, I would leave them their.
It may sound cruel but if you bought them you would only be contributing to that company buying more and treating them the same as those two.
The best you could do is let them know you don't appreciate them selling sickly and suffering reptiles and you won't ever buy from them and will let others know about what you saw and who was selling them.
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0.0.42 Ambilobe Panther Chameleons

Sounds a little too far gone to me. They might not even be there when/if you call back. If you have even close to the same problems I have with my rescue, they won't survive either way.
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I agree with you all. What sickened me even more was how desperate he was to sell them, and everyone kind of caught on to his little scheem. I do feel terrible, but I will do ALL I can to report him the the show coordinator, and hopefully we can get everything straightened out. Thanks for the support though, guys!

Michele