LA Reptiles

Originally posted by Exotica Reptiles
"Stories about shipments of dc-10 planes specially rented to bring in 2,000 macaws, all sorts of monkeys, hundreds of reptiles, etc are just mind boggling." Mike B.

It`still done that way nothing`s changed except the destination. The buisness hasn`t changed. The animal game has always been dirty. Ernie Eison

Ernie,

You statement above is a blanket statement about the animal game. By this statement that includes all aspects of the animal arena. Maybe you did not mean it as a blanket statement but that is what I took it as in the fashion you posted it.

I appreciate your post but what I have seen in the last 10 years has been a very large improvement on the way things are handled. Now a days here in the US USF&W regulates the importation a helluva lot more than they ever have and here in Florida FWC officers inspect the facilities. Now does this mean that there are not times that overcrowding happens? NO. But with having to be licensed by the State and By the Federal Government to conduct the business it does make things more regulated and controlled. I admit I have seen some other importers not caring for the animals like I would and do but I have also seen them ALL change for the better in the last number of years. Yes they can all do more improvement but they are on their way. Also I have seen some exporter facilities and the ones I have seen have actually been concerned about the animals health and well being. Now does this mean that all of them care and house them animals correctly? No! But it means that the ones that care about the animals do so and those are the ones that I use as suppliers. As for your statement about animals still being loaded into planes and flown to the Netherlands I have no proof and have seen no proof of this and if you have proof then maybe you should present it to the Government of those countries as that type of behavior does violate international laws and should be stopped. If someone does not do everything they can to prevent illegal activity then they are basically condoning it. I have worked a few times with the USF&W in operations against exporters in other countries that try to conduct illegal activity and have been able to stop some of them. I am not saying that I am making a dent in the illegal animal arena but every little bit helps. The more responsible people that get involved the better the animals and the legal animal community will be.

by "the good old days" but I can tell you that most of the wholesalers that we supplied during the late 60 and 70s were more travelers than having a physical place of business. They had routes that they would take to provide their customers with. Most of the bird importers that I knew were in Fla. and I never saw anything remotely related to what you are referring to.

I know from my own experience that we maintained a quality facility because of the volume of animals that were moving through our place. Thats not to say that these things that you mentioned did not occur, but these are exceptions to the rule and not the way the business was handled when I was in it. The animal business was very profitable and everyone did well, at least those who purchased from us.

I think if David Rivers who recently posted will tell you, most of the animals were imported , arrived in good condition and delivered within 24 to 48 hours to their destination. Much of which was delivered by the wholesaler himself. What advantage could we possibly provide by having dead animals. Now I am not talking about what may have been smuggled or illegaly obtained, but I think with the way things are monitored today, the picture that you are painting seems a bit farfetched.

Birds I know nothing about, but I do know that their were quarantine stations set up in the mid 70s and the importers had a substantial amount of money invested in insuring that these animals were cared for a minimum of 30 days before being released and vet certified that they were healthy. This business about shipments going to the Netherlands may very well be true, but I seriously doubt it was intended for the bird market but rather the feather market. I can appreciate your concern, but dont group everyone who is in the herp business as a piriah.

Bruce,
By all means post a threat made to you!!! I sure would like to see it lol.
Rob, Jerry, any thing I have written to Bruce is on this thread, so if you see a threat let me know. If not I will not waste my time here. Thanks.

"the picture that you are painting seems a bit farfetched. "

What part is far fetched tell me and I`ll fetch it as close as I can it get without name dropping . Ernie

My impression was that things were by far worse than they are now.

The only real way to improve the conditions are to demand better quality from your suppliers (whether this is the local pet store, a breeder or an importer) but be willing to pay a little extra for the time and effort it takes to deliver that quality.

There is a retail market out there that understands the term "value" and I have seen an increase in that "value shopper" in just the short time I've been in this industry. As people that buy to supply that need of the value shopper we need to demand that quality from importers or breeders that we buy from (as breeders ourselves we know the time and money it takes to provide quality animals). It is much more cost efficient for me to pay a few dollars more to receive quality animals from an importer than it is to rehab an animal into proper condition that I would feel represents our name properly.

Regulations will only improve quality in the short term as people find ways to manipulate the laws and work around inspectors. Show someone there is money in quality and you won't need anyone to police them, the market will do that by itself.

After a hard week at work at the hospital where I am the supervisor of radiology, I have cooled off and I have decided that there are a lot more important things in life than foolish internet wars. I am inclined to drop the thing and go back to my usual posting on the BOI, unless there are any new developments. Thank you all for my first involvement in an "internet flame war".