Reptile & Amphibian Forums

how do you know if a rescue is "humane society type" or is just wanting free animals?
Lots of snakes and geckos and other reptiles are very expensive... it would make sense to want to get them at no cost. How do you tell?
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~Sara~
1.2 ball pythons (Scorpio, Dayzee, and Satan)
1.0 Black-lined plated lizard (Lizzy Butt)
0.1 Burmese Python (Pixil)
0.0.1 Pacman Frog (Pudge)
5.2 Pet Rats (Emo, Skye, Siam, Lilac, Manson, Spade, and Zilk)
1.1 Dogs (Ozzie and Mandy)
0.1 Cat (Isis)
0.0.1 Synodontis Catfish (Big Spotty Fish)
0.2 Convict Cichlids
0.0.2 Crayfish

Aside from the very occasional frilled dragon, blue tongue, or carpet python (ive seen one of each for adoption from rescues), all reptiles in rescues are CHEAP. The type of people who dump their animals are the cheap people. Which means they buy burms, iguanas, leos, boas, balls, etc etc. These wouldnt cost much anyway, and most rescues have a 10-50 dollar adoption fee, to pay for the vet bills, care, etc. Rescues that do free animals are NOT real rescues. Those are people who just find a home, whether its good or not, and get the animal out ASAP with no vet care, etc.

Hope this answers the question.

I think you misunderstand me (or maybe I misunderstand you)
I am not saying that the people who adopt from rescues are wanting free pets, I'm saying that some of the rescues themselves may be.

As for cheap animals... around here (in TN) blue tongues are cheaper than burmese, and carpet pythons are only a tad more expensive. In any case, I personally don't consider $200 animals as cheap. $14 iguanas... maybe.

I just want to know how can an average person tell whether a rescue is legit or simply a ploy for gaining animals free?

I get concerned when I see "rescues" advertising their services like they are in desperate need of aquiring animals. I also get concerned when I see the same people who are advertising their "rescue" advertising reptiles for sale. It just doesn't seem legitimate.

How can a person tell?
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~Sara~
1.2 ball pythons (Scorpio, Dayzee, and Satan)
1.0 Black-lined plated lizard (Lizzy Butt)
0.1 Burmese Python (Pixil)
0.0.1 Pacman Frog (Pudge)
5.2 Pet Rats (Emo, Skye, Siam, Lilac, Manson, Spade, and Zilk)
1.1 Dogs (Ozzie and Mandy)
0.1 Cat (Isis)
0.0.1 Synodontis Catfish (Big Spotty Fish)
0.2 Convict Cichlids
0.0.2 Crayfish

I suppose the best way to tell is to find out how many animals they adopt out and whether or not they take the rescued animals to the vet right away. I know the SPCA here does occasionally announce a day or a week in which pets can be given to them for free (to discourage releasing the animals into the streets if they're not wanted anymore), but most rescues charge a minimal fee to help pay for housing, food, vet care, etc.

Ask around. Check out their website. Compare their adoption fee against the typical price in the pet trade.

Katrina
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1.2 Eastern Muds - Fred, Ethel, Edith
0.1 Iguana - Tiffel
Foster turtles: More than I'd like the husband to know about.

You also need to talk to the person. If they have nothing to hide, they will show you the rescues they have. Then you can see for yourself the conditions the animals they rescue are being kept in. In the last 2 years i have saved and personal funded vet care for 1 yellow anaconda, 4 columbian red tails, 1 savannah monitor, 2 aggressive wc ball pythons, and an old california kingsnake named joe.

What do you mean, "show you the rescues"? If you're holding confiscated animals for different agencies, do you really want everyone knowing your address? Do you want people dropping off animals at your door step while you're not home (potentially leaving animals in the heat or cold for hours before you even know their there, or leaving animals that the neighbors won't be happy about, or could be illegal in your state)?

Katrina

Everyone does it different. I rarely charge an adoption fee. Some turtles are with me for months, some for a year. True, not all will see a vet, but if it needs a vet visit, it gets it. What kind of homes do I get without charging a fee?

- Adopter with 7000 gallon pond that adopted five adult female sliders over a year. He drove half an hour to pick up two from animal control for me (which he adopted). Two of the turtles came straight from owners who dropped off their turtles to him, so they confirmed the set-up for me. And he sent me pictures of the turtles basking in his pond the next year.
- Kathy, mom to Harpo the Sulcata. Harpo isn't with us any longer, but he lived his last years on TWO fenced ACRES in the summers, with a hill to dig in (compared to the bathtub he was living in with the original owners). Kathy spent a considerable amount of money trying to save him in the last month of his life. She also educated many people along the way.
- Adopter in Indiana of a three-legged male eastern box turtle. Adopter paid for health certificate, fecal, and microchipping, plus the permit from his state to keep a native turtle. He would have paid for shipping, but we had a transport going that way any way.

This is just a sample. If someone's first query to me is "How much for the turtle?", then I'm more leery and might quote a small fee. Still, a bad application is a bad application. Generally if I write my description of the animal well, I get fewer bad queries.

I work a second job so I can keep doing rescue. That's my choice. Even if I did charge an adoption fee, it would be so little compared to what I spend that I'd probably still have to have a second job.

Katrina