I do not know Bill Cagle, I tried to do business with him once about a year ago and we did not hit it off. Personally, I have never understood the hype that surrounds his business. People in the forums brag on getting an animal of his as if it is something special and unique, a brand-name almost. My understanding is that he is a reseller and that more than a few people who have a good relationship with him have been pleased with what they got. But as this current affair illustrates he (and all resellers) has limited control over the qualiity of his stock. Even assuming his set-up is perfect, he only ships, good or bad, what someone else has already passed on. This grading by health, size and appearance and deciding who-gets-what begins when the animal pops out of the egg or mother or even when it is picked up by a collector a long way and many hands away from most end-customers. "My animals are hand-picked!", of course they are but hand-picked for what and with whom in mind? So was the animal that died of IBD.
Resellers have a place in the market and provide an important service but in my mind there is no cause to place them in the same category as people who spend years to produce exceptional-quality animals. Of course, breeders, dealers or resellers, any of them can please you by providing what you want and any could really screw you over if they are dishonest.
It would have been best if he could have settled his problems with the guy who had the sick animals outside the public forums. The way this dispuute has grown speaks as much about stubbornness as it does about the issues of IBD and a seller's responsibility when an animal turns out to be very sick, contagious or both. What should he do? If he or anyone has sold an animal he knows to have been exposed to IBD or another devastating contagion they should own up to it and follow through with their customers to make it right.
Should he or anybody with IBD in their animals freeze or burn all their animals? That depends... is this (following) a description of your collection?...................
Animals are caged in groups and the enclosures are rarely cleaned thoroughly. You use the same cages (many of which are low-tech and cannot be disinfected even if you try) for the next animal, or ten animals that come your way. Mites are a recurring problem. Food items not consumed by one animal are given to another. Shift-cages are rarely disinfected. Bags and boxes are reused without being cleaned and disinfected. Your buddies and customers bring stuff into your animal rooms and you pass them around and admire them, sometimes you lend out or borrow each other's animals for breeding or whatever. You buy and sell and trade animals at a whim with anybody or even if you just need a few bucks to party this weekend..............
If the above describes you and your set-up then yes, you should euthanize all your animals. Probably you should not be allowed to keep animals except as a pet and be ostracized from the entire herping community too.
As for everybody else who is now holding one or several animals that came from Bill they have a tough decision to make. They can either trust that he uses the proper care in handling and housing his stock and sleep well or they can take the needed steps to protect their stock and that of their friends and customers. Both sides need to calm down. I feel many are using this to attack Bill for reasons other than this current incident. It also seems true that many are supporting him and his response to this situation for personal reasons of their own, not taking into account the seriousness of the problem.
Thanks for letting me share my thoughts.
A. Rentfro
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