Powerhouse Reptiles Truths

Originally Posted by sunshine_angel07

Ok, let's set the record straight. My name is Jennifer Johnson and I am a current customer of Powerhouse Reptiles. I purchased a Black Back Pewter Ball Python and a Bumblebee Ball Python from them in October 5, 2007. Joe Capone is a very knowledgeable and respectable businessman and I do believe firmly Clark Tucker, his partner, to be one as well. Others may have their own opinion on them from other experiences, but it is exactly that, an opinion.
My order was to originally be priced at $2000.00, $1200 for the pewter and another $800 for the bee on a five month payment plan. In the end I only ended up paying $1914.10 by the day of shipment because I had some bank issues. Joe allowed me to pay the other $85.90 on December 6, 2007 using my husband's paypal account. Either way it ended up about $40.00 short of what the original total had been and Joe himself had called me and told me not to worry about it. He still sent the snakes and has not asked for anything more from me.
When the bee and pewter arrived, I did notice a slight head wobble with the bee. I called Joe to ask about housing and was told that wobbles were normal in spider's and bee's genetics. I dismissed it and didn't think much else of it. I called Joe about a week later to discuss the purchase of some het females and mentioned yet again the wobble and was told the same thing, so chose to let it be and allowed myself to be reassured. The condition worsened over the months and I did not call about it, but instead waited to see if it would diminish on its own. However, the snake now wobbles violently, sleeps upside down, drinks and eats upside down and is showing signs of severe neurological damage. I still had decided not to call Joe regarding the snake. Rather than bring it to his attention, I chose to do things on my own.
My father, who also works for a reptile breeder to remain nameless, recently brought it to the attention of both Joe and Clark in a less than respectable manner, as well as posting a few threads about it on fauna classifieds on Monday July 28, 2008. As of this date I have had these reptiles in my care for roughly 7 months if not a bit longer. Once brought out into the open, I have been reassured by both Clark and Joe that things will be corrected and would have been months ago if I had just called and told them about it. It should never have come to my father contacting anyone about anything. I am an adult and should have stepped up and did it on my own. Powerhouse Reptiles has offered me a $700 store credit for a new reptile, so in the end I get my special bee for free plus another snake of my choice. That was both Joe and Clark, not Clark alone. As far as I am concerned, I am getting a fairly sweet deal and the situation has been corrected. That is enough for me. Any other reptile breeder would have told me to deal with the issue due to the length of time in my care. Joe and Clark chose to make things right by doing the right thing. That is something I respect.
I will continue to do business with Powerhouse Reptiles because they have always been decent, respectful, and more than generous with me. Both Joe and Clark are people I would even consider friends. They have always done what they could to give me a good price and a quality reptile. They are the only breeders I am truly willing to purchase from.
As far as those of you that do nothing, but jump on fauna classifieds to bitch about other breeders. I am truly disgusted with each and every one of you who just decide to jump on the bandwagon without any knowledge of who these men are and what exactly they sell as far as quality is concerned. If you are a prior customer, then this is not directed towards you. Did you not stop to think that many of the breeders you may buy from, may have actually bought and used a snake produced by Joe Capone as breeders to help build their own collection? So many snakes are produced by Joe that I am sure you may have come across one before and just not known it. I did have a problem with my bee, but the pewter sold to me is soon to be used for stud because of his beautiful colors and markings. He is a top quality herp purchased for a very good price. How about instead of passing judgement before knowing anything, check things out and decide for yourself. You may just be surprised.
I have not in any way been bribed to write what I am telling you, it is in fact how I truly feel. Take the time out of your schedule, break away from the crowd and make your own opinion. To get respect from any reputable businessman, you have to give respect. If you are just willing to bond with what the crowd is telling you then you have become nothing more than part of the ignorance that is affecting this business. Take from this what you will, but check things out first for yourself rather than just listening to what others bitch about.

Well sweetie if you dont get enough money from posting this bs statement then you should really look into politics because that was by far the worst kiss butt story i have ever heard.

LOL, now you're starting to spout weird stuff like good ol joey does when he gets worked up...nice. Maybe I was wrong about it being unfortunate that you got hooked up with scum like joey, perhaps you are more like him than I thought....or else joey is really the one doing the typing, or playing puppeteer to help you along....isn't it about time to tell me how you are single-handedly going to destroy someone else?

I didn't deny the possibility that you sold snakes to Rick, nor did I call you a liAr. I just relayed what he told me about no longer associating with joey, and being screwed over by him. Perhaps he lied to me, but you have to admit, when folks will go to the lengths they do to hide their association with joey, there has to be a reason.

And heh, jealous of that bald, chubby little scumbag who calls himself a man? That's the best laugh I've had in awhile....

Clark... You've been around for awhile. You worked for many years to earn your respect in the gecko community. I have a lot of admiration for what you have done over the years with your gecko projects, and also your Rhacodactylus diet. Why, for the love of all that's sacred, would you partner up with someone that has made the statement that he wants to purposely cause the gecko market to crash? Why would you support a person that has so little disregard for the hard work and passion and love that longtime gecko hobbiests (such as yourself and me and many, many others) have put into their businesses? Is it just about the money? I cannot for the life of me come up with any other reason that you would hook up with this creep?

Joe is not some small town buy here, pay here used car salesman. His family owns a chain of large dealerships, and Joe entered this hobby/industry investing a half million dollars or so on Morphs.
When his Mojo's were not selling he found out some other large breeders, whom he had been a customer of, were advertising their animals at a high market price, but selling their animals at prices well below market value out the back door, and on the down low. No wonder his phone wasn't ringing.
Joe then advertised his snakes at the prices that other breeders were actually selling theirs at, and was ostracized by the BP mafia. All of a sudden Ralph Davis who was buddies with Joe when he was purchasing a Lavender Albino for $25-30,000.00 from him, and saving him tens of thousands of dollars on a Dodge Viper, had him banned from advertising on KS. Now he is accused of single handedly crashing the market on Mojo's.
I am sure he was upset, and probably said some things that he wouldn't say if he had to do it all over again. However, I am also sure that he did not invest all of that money purchasing the animals, and paying Wes to care for and breed them, just to crash the market and make his investment worthless.
His Breeding Stock came from the biggest name breeders that y'all worship, and purchase from. It is selectively bred and not inferior to any others. I believe it was even brought up in another thread that VPI had some of his animals on a breeding loan. That should say something.
Joe is now partners with my new found Friend, Clark Tucker. Clark is a hard working, honest family man, and a true "Good Guy." I have received a few beautiful animals from Power House Reptiles already, am receiving some in a few hours (that's why I can't sleep,) and intend to purchase many more in the future. I have received nothing but top quality animals, and customer service. They have great prices, but are not just giving snakes away either. I am thankful that they are making top quality, high end snakes, somewhat affordable to common folk like myself. Thanks Y'all.

How did Ralph Davis get Morph King banned from Kingsnake.com?

Originally Posted by RJK890

Joe is not some small town buy here, pay here used car salesman. His family owns a chain of large dealerships, and Joe entered this hobby/industry investing a half million dollars or so on Morphs.

Um, so what? Are we supposed to be impressed that his Daddy was rich?

Originally Posted by RJK890

Joe then advertised his snakes at the prices that other breeders were actually selling theirs at, and was ostracized by the BP mafia. All of a sudden Ralph Davis who was buddies with Joe when he was purchasing a Lavender Albino for $25-30,000.00 from him, and saving him tens of thousands of dollars on a Dodge Viper, had him banned from advertising on KS. Now he is accused of single handedly crashing the market on Mojo's

Wow, where to start on this one, lol....first of all, the crap joey was pulling on people started LONG before the whole incident with the Mojaves. That was just kind of the icing on the cake, so to speak....and in reality, that itself had not nearly so much to do with the price he was advertising the mojaves at, but the fact that he didn't even have the snakes to be selling at those prices.

And as far as the stuff about Ralph Davis goes....well, again, so what about the Viper deal....and the rest of the stuff, I wonder who dreamt that all up?

And yeah, the BP mafia.....*snicker*....funny stuff.

Originally Posted by RJK890

I am sure he was upset, and probably said some things that he wouldn't say if he had to do it all over again.

Minor correction - he wouldn't say those things WHERE PEOPLE COULD READ THEM.

Originally Posted by RJK890

However, I am also sure that he did not invest all of that money purchasing the animals, and paying Wes to care for and breed them, just to crash the market and make his investment worthless

Why not? You already told us how he's almost like a bajillionaire (as has he) and that the losses are nothing to his pocketbook. It's a game to him....simple.

Originally Posted by RJK890

His Breeding Stock came from the biggest name breeders that y'all worship, and purchase from.

Actually, I prefer to purchase most of my animals from small-time breeders who care for their snakes, and/or those who have worked hard to establish their business and collection of animals. I "worship" no human, but do admire some of the big breeders who have worked hard for a lot of years to be where they are today.

RJK - I don't know or care about the specifics of Joe Cs initial investment, or the politics of the BP game (though some would certainly argue that the impact of Joe's effort is much wider spread than the mojave, or even the BP market).
As far as how he came to a decision about pricing, from what I SAW (there may have been more too it) he tested the waters on Reptile Auctions - pricing them at around that year's market, then progressively dropping the price until people took notice and started buying. Now, this all took place pretty close to this time of year....the "market adjustment" seemed to have pretty much stabilized at around $1500 for males + $2000, though there were still quite a few advertised for higher (this was down from about $3k the previous year, I believe). After this "adjustment", Joe's pricing dropped to $800 - basically halving again the price (making it approx 25% of the prior year).
There were links posted to threads on other forums, and quotes being tossed around - you've heard & or read all that...but one of the things that people still talk about was what he did to his customers. Not the ones that bought mojaves for $800 - they were obviously thrilled with him (at least the ones that got them, if the stories are true about him not being able to fill all those orders...and I have no knowledge of that one way or the other) - but the ones that had already purchased mojaves a month or two before for $1500-2000, and the ones that had paid $3-4000 the prior year.

Before that all took place, I had contacted Morph King about a purchase & ended up talking to Joe. He insisted that he could provide the animals that I wanted & give me the best price around, and that Wes ("the guy that does the BPs") would contact me. That didn't happen, so I tried again - got more of the same from Joe, and more of the same from Wes. I shrugged it off & purchased elsewhere, and that was that.
You are happy with the customer service you have received, and the animals - great. While I haven't heard much in the way of negatives about the quality of the animals - noting this thread, and Joe's ugly ass clowns, as exceptions - there were other complaints in the area of customer service.
It's great that you got good deals...but don't be surprised that the people that felt they had reasons to be upset with Joe don't just forgive & forget. And there were people that didn't deal with him directly that were just flat out put off by HIM (his words, his mannerisms, his approach). First impressions die hard, and a lot of people never even heard of Joe Capone until he started with those damn videos/commercials and started running his mouth on forums. Mix those kinds of impressions with watching monetary investments swirl away, and you get a lot of dislike (the kind that people still carry a couple years later, lol).

Originally Posted by RJK890

Joe is not some small town buy here, pay here used car salesman. His family owns a chain of large dealerships, and Joe entered this hobby/industry investing a half million dollars or so on Morphs.
When his Mojo's were not selling he found out some other large breeders, whom he had been a customer of, were advertising their animals at a high market price, but selling their animals at prices well below market value out the back door, and on the down low. No wonder his phone wasn't ringing.
Joe then advertised his snakes at the prices that other breeders were actually selling theirs at, and was ostracized by the BP mafia. All of a sudden Ralph Davis who was buddies with Joe when he was purchasing a Lavender Albino for $25-30,000.00 from him, and saving him tens of thousands of dollars on a Dodge Viper, had him banned from advertising on KS. Now he is accused of single handedly crashing the market on Mojo's.
I am sure he was upset, and probably said some things that he wouldn't say if he had to do it all over again. However, I am also sure that he did not invest all of that money purchasing the animals, and paying Wes to care for and breed them, just to crash the market and make his investment worthless.
His Breeding Stock came from the biggest name breeders that y'all worship, and purchase from. It is selectively bred and not inferior to any others. I believe it was even brought up in another thread that VPI had some of his animals on a breeding loan. That should say something.
Joe is now partners with my new found Friend, Clark Tucker. Clark is a hard working, honest family man, and a true "Good Guy." I have received a few beautiful animals from Power House Reptiles already, am receiving some in a few hours (that's why I can't sleep,) and intend to purchase many more in the future. I have received nothing but top quality animals, and customer service. They have great prices, but are not just giving snakes away either. I am thankful that they are making top quality, high end snakes, somewhat affordable to common folk like myself. Thanks Y'all.

You seem nice enough on the phone, but spewing nonsense you know nothing about is really tiring me.

You WERE NOT THERE when it all went down. You DIDNT see the vidoes Joe posted. You WERE NOT doing this for a living when he intentionally tried to ruin it. I love what i do and wont let anyone take it away from me!

STOP THINKING YOU KNOW, something you really know nothing about!

There is something called wholesale in the world of bussiness, every product industry has it... Wholesalers sell to retailers and retailers sell to the end consumer. They hide this information in books... My father owned a wholesale company, and when i was young i asked him how come we dont open our own store. He told me that would be competing with our customers and when you wholesale you wholesale... Basically he said dont screw your customers. Thats what this "backdoor" of yours is, its wholesale.

I will fill you in... Ralph DID NOT get Joe banned from KS. A LOT of breeders told KS that they would pull their advertising if they continued to let him post... and some did talk to Jeff. And KS decided it was in the best interest of the COMMUNITY to ban him.

And since no one asked ill ask...

CLARK who takes care of all the Ball Pythons???

Additional links involving Joe Capone (formerly Morph King Reptiles):
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/for...ead.php?t=27053
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/for...ad.php?t=105514
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/for...ead.php?t=84876
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...d.php?t=111931

Originally Posted by RJK890

Joe is not some small town buy here, pay here used car salesman. His family owns a chain of large dealerships, and Joe entered this hobby/industry investing a half million dollars or so on Morphs.
When his Mojo's were not selling he found out some other large breeders, whom he had been a customer of, were advertising their animals at a high market price, but selling their animals at prices well below market value out the back door, and on the down low. No wonder his phone wasn't ringing.
Joe then advertised his snakes at the prices that other breeders were actually selling theirs at, and was ostracized by the BP mafia. All of a sudden Ralph Davis who was buddies with Joe when he was purchasing a Lavender Albino for $25-30,000.00 from him, and saving him tens of thousands of dollars on a Dodge Viper, had him banned from advertising on KS. Now he is accused of single handedly crashing the market on Mojo's.
I am sure he was upset, and probably said some things that he wouldn't say if he had to do it all over again. However, I am also sure that he did not invest all of that money purchasing the animals, and paying Wes to care for and breed them, just to crash the market and make his investment worthless.
His Breeding Stock came from the biggest name breeders that y'all worship, and purchase from. It is selectively bred and not inferior to any others. I believe it was even brought up in another thread that VPI had some of his animals on a breeding loan. That should say something.
Joe is now partners with my new found Friend, Clark Tucker. Clark is a hard working, honest family man, and a true "Good Guy." I have received a few beautiful animals from Power House Reptiles already, am receiving some in a few hours (that's why I can't sleep,) and intend to purchase many more in the future. I have received nothing but top quality animals, and customer service. They have great prices, but are not just giving snakes away either. I am thankful that they are making top quality, high end snakes, somewhat affordable to common folk like myself. Thanks Y'all.

Well Robert, I can only say three things, No, No and No. I do see that you fell for his BS, but he is using the used car salesmen speal on you. Joe has a bad habit of telling more than a few long ones about himself and his history. Why not call Wes and ask him for the truth, I think you will find that Joe will be proven to be full of it.

He did not invest no where close to that amount, I know this for a fact. Wes told me with his own mouth that the most snakes they had at any one time was 250, and most of them were normals. BTW. that was right before Wes kicked his sorry drunk ass out because he stopped going to his AA meetings, and was also too sorry to work anything other than his mouth.

The same happen when Joe tried to put Wendy Childs under his so called wing. He gave her the same lines of BS about how he was rich and the best thing that ever walked. However, when Wendy seen he was broke, bald, BS talking mouth, and drunk, she too kicked his sorry ass to the curb. And thats saying a bunch coming from a know scammer and convict like Wendy childs, who I might add Joe had supported knowing all of her history.

So Robert, sorry but you are 110% wrong, you are posting what Joe is telling you, and this is far from the facts in the real world.