Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Remember when I was asking about about uv well the dome to the right of the enclosure is a mercury vapor 100 watt and has to be at least 18 inches away so said the directions the one to the left is a 150 watt ceramic heat emmiter I use it to attain the needed day temps I just built the custom hood so itll have to do for awhile she seems to be doing well. You had my mind set on a tree dragon but now you show me something different, Maybe I'll just put my choices in a hat and pick a winner. You seem very educated in herps, do you have a book out on any of the animals you keep or are you a breeder?

I do have an 800 page work on the shelve, however the publisher wants to advertise all kinds of gimmicks like mercury vapour lamps and 150w ceramics, items witch I consider useful to heat fries at you local fast food but never suited for reptiles.

Captive reptiles are killed by the 100.000s every year, mainly from dehydration.
I will never advertise or even advise the use of these, would prefer to stop working with reptiles entirely.

I have been breeding and hole selling reptiles sins 1982, I have produced many 1000s of many species, and have been implicated in the pet trade all these years.

I grew a profound dislike for 80% keepers that simply don’t commit to the animals they keep, for those peoples I have no feelings at all.

Sorry but iv seen far to many of my babies die in the hands of incompetent keepers that iv become very intolerant and irritable.

Seems like time doesn’t change a thing, money talks so the products wins, the animals lose.

I wondered why you didn't have a book. I know you have at least a few in you. To bad it's so expensive to publish your own.

Thats a shame jobi, Ive been thinking of breeding herps and thats my #1 concern too many people buy herps on impulse and never realize the true efforts needed to keep one. Ive been collecting herps for about 7 years and suddenly feel totaly ignorant. The whole uv thing threw me for a loop. The herps that I have aquired have been adoptions becouse I feel they are the most in need excaept for a swift I once had. Keep up the good work and good luck with your writing.

Breeding herps is a personal investment, its emotional.

You start doing it out of passion with animals that are high on your interest list, but eventually economics get to you, realising that reptiles generate very little income breeders turn to less interesting species they can mass produce in rack system, 250 breeders in a small room, they get very little satisfaction out of there work but more income, this is the sad reality of herpetoculture.

Then you have keepers that really commits to there animals, they keep species most have never seen, in relatively good conditions (compared to rack system)
These breeders are way more emotionally involved, they are deceived when the pet shops offer them ridiculous price for there animals because they don’t know anything about them, of course if its not a lep gecko or a ball python common pet trade species, they don’t get promoted and often waste away even before they left the store.

Needles to say the store owner doesn’t want anymore and even gives them bad press, other times they are sold with bad advise and the wrong products to support them, resulting in death and again bad press, I am telling you reptile breeding is something personal, once the babies go you must forget about them, I ship all my cites animals to Japan. In the last few years iv discarded all my varanids eggs without even thinking about incubating them, peoples aren’t ready for such animals, they just don’t commit to them.

Now days I am working with tree dragons and though I really hope peoples will be interested in them, I know that I personally will not produce many for the pet trade, I will produce a fair number to produce color morphs, but all this is on a personal basis. As with tree monitors, been keeping them 15 years and have collected all locality morphs, I don’t care about establishing them in anyway. Personal enjoyment.