john kick reptile addiction inquiry

I am looking at purchasing a Spider Ball Python from John Kick at Reptile Addictions. I ahve read the post on here and still am not sure about the purchase. He is willing to do a payment plan with me which is great as for some it is the only way to get some of the higher dollar morphs. Has anyone done any business with him since the last postings good or bad?

I meant to say Fred Kick sorry about that

The Kicks had animals taken from them by a DEC/SPCA seizure earlier this summer. Higher dollar animals were returned to them after a settlement occurred between the SPCA and their company (neither side "won"), but many of the lower-cost animals that had been taken from their facility in poor condition have since died. Let me find the link that was posted on the BOI at that time.

Here is the link to that discussion.
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...ad.php?t=83419

"Pets Plus" is the retail pet shop located downstairs from their reptile distribution business. Animals in poor condition or of illegal status were found mainly in their distribution/wholesaler area. There are quite a lot of varying opinions about this issue, because those people who see the Kicks at shows seem to see a lot of good animals.

Their shop used to be my favorite reptile pet store in my area. However I had noticed poor conditions in the few months leading up to the seizure/investigation - it's my opinion that the Kicks hired less-than-reliable workers and did not spend enough time supervising the level of care their animals were receiving, which had obviously declined and was not satisfactory. The video aired by local news may no longer be available online, but after seeing the video taken by the SPCA of the facility at the time of the investigation, I will not do business with them again.

Sorry, missed part of your post. I'd be interested to see how transactions with the Kicks have gone since the issues they have had this year as well. I hope they have improved.

Thanks that makes up my mind for me. Doesn't sound to me like it is worth the risk. I will keep looking. I know others that accept payment plans as well. Just got to find them lol.

i have done alot of business with john and never have any problems with his animals. john is a good guy in my book.

thanks
chris
ba reptiles

Jeff,
I have known Fred for several years. He and his brother John have been in wholesale and retail, at shows etc, for well over 15 years. That's a very long time in this business. The difficulties that they had with the animal control folks and their store was well documented, and is fair game for your decision. But they have a huge track record of making their customers happy. If they weren't good at it, there'd be a debris trail a mile long by now.

I bought one of the female spiders from the Kicks and I see them at the Columbus Ohio show every month and have not heard or seen anything bad. Hope it helps
Damian Macioce

I've dealt with John on several occasions at different shows over the years.
All my dealings with John were excellent! I wouldn't hesitate to buy,sell,or trade with him. I've never had any problems with any of the animals I've gotten from him.