Problem with Ravens Reptiles

I'm posting this message to alert reptile buyers about a problem I had with a dealer named Paul Coleman who runs a business called Ravens Reptiles. He posted an ad on kingsnake.com last month about 2 female Prehensile Tail Skinks for sale. I had lost my female PTS and her baby a week before to a dystocia and was looking for a female to keep my male company. I responded to Mr. Coleman's ad and asked him to send some pictures, which he did (one picture of each animal). He told me that he had recently purchased the skinks from a "distinguished breeder". A friend looked at the pictures he sent and noticed that one of the animals seemed to be missing a toe. I emailed Mr. Coleman and asked if that was the case, and he responded that she was indeed missing a toe, but that it looked like an old injury that was completely healed and that "Other than the toe they are excellent animals." I emailed asking lots of questions, some of which were answered and some of which were not. Because it's so difficult to find these animals these days, I was afraid to miss the opportunity and decided to buy the skinks.

Mr. Coleman told me that he was going to ship them to me Airborn Express overnight. The next day they arrived via USPS with no indication on the package that live animals were contained within the box. When I opened the package, I was shocked at the condition of the animals. They were both extremely thin, with very prominent pelvises and spines. The larger of the two had three wounds covered with black scales, 2 on her flanks and one large wound on her knee. The limb with the injured knee was extremely swollen and she dragged the limb behind her when she walked. She was missing a toe on one of her front feet as well. The smaller of the two skinks was also missing a toe on one of her front feet, and the limb with the missing toe was markedly swollen (at least twice the size of the other limb). Both animals had areas on their bodies with several layers of retained shed. I began soaking them twice per day to try and remove the shed and rehydrate them, and they are slowly improving. I took both animals to my veterinarian (at the Veterinary Hospital at UC Davis). Both animals had markedly elevated white blood cell counts and other evidence of acute infection. X-rays showed that neither had any apparent fractures on the swollen limbs, so I'm hoping that with time and treatment, they'll improve. They're both currently on antibiotics and are slowly gaining some weight. The larger skink with the multiple wounds is still dragging the leg with the knee wound but is starting to move the digits in the affected foot, so I'm hoping that she'll eventually start using the limb normally.

I emailed Mr. Coleman after I received the skinks and told him how shocked I was at the their
condition. His reply was :
"I am sorry. I have never even seen PHS before. When I bought them I was told
they were in good shape and that the scars were from breeding. They both ate
a lot for me(bananas,pears,apples) they really liked the bananas. That is
the last time I house a species that I am unfamiliar with.
Thank you for your time"

I was shocked that he knew so little about their husbandry (fruit should make up NO MORE THAN 5% of a PTS diet, the majority being dark leafy greens). I emailed him again the following week after taking the skinks to the veterinarian, telling him that the problems were even more serious and that I had already accumulated over $250 in veterinary bills. I told him that I felt that he had not been honest with me about the condition of the skinks and that I felt that he should pay for at least part of the veterinary bills. It has been a week since I emailed him and he has not replied. He has, however, posted several more ads for animals for sale on kingsnake.com.

Before I purchased these skinks from Mr. Coleman, I did a search on the web and on groups.google.com to see if anyone had posted any negative comments about him. I only found posts *from* Mr. Coleman about animals he had for sale. I am posting this to warn those who might potentially plan to purchase animals from him in the future so that they at least know about my experience. I realize that it may have just been an unfortunate circumstance, but I don't feel that he has acted in good faith and he has refused to even respond to my email. I was also angry when I noticed that he has my skinks listed on his current web site as "SOLD" for $500 (I paid $450). I'm afraid that he is trying to establish a record of selling these animals, which he clearly does not know how to care for and does not know how to assess.

I realized when I purchased these skinks on the web that I was taking a chance, and unfortunately, I made out badly. I am glad that the skinks came to me, as I at least have access to excellent veterinary care and will give them the best chance possible. I'm not convinced that the larger one will recover from her problems, but I'm hopeful that she'll pull through. I would STRONGLY recommed that anyone considering purchasing animals from Paul Coleman at Ravens Reptiles investigate the health of those animals thoroughly before purchasing and INSIST on a health guarantee before purchase. Ideally, I'd look for a local breeder or dealer so that you can evaluate the animals in person before purchasing.

Best of luck to all, and thanks for reading,
Dan Fletcher

Dan...That's a shame! Dealers like that really make my blood boil! That's why the "PET STORE" will NEVER go out of business! People SHOULD want to SEE the animal FIRST before purchasing...to avoid EXACTLY your problem! You can see as many pics as he's got...but, IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE DEALER...YOU WON'T KNOW IF THE PICTURES ARE ACCURATE!! If I put a pic up on KS...you can come INTO MY STORE and see it IN PERSON if you wish! That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard of...to send pics of a heathy animal and then send out something just the opposite, and via USPS no less!! Thanks for the heads-up on this lugnut! I, for one, will NEVER do business with this guy...NO MATTER WHAT HE'S GOT FOR SALE! ....Neil

Well said Neil <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> &nbsp;also the person who is selling the animal or even keeping them should have at least a general knowledge on how to take care of the animals. I mean even for pet shops too. you know how bad it would look if you walked into a pet shop and saw them feeding iguanas mice (just an example). so I believe that if a person is selling animal they need to do some research on the animal care of the animals they are selling <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''>

Thanx

Winston

Winston...Iguana's DON'T EAT MICE?<img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='???'> YOU SURE??? Oh well, I guess no more Chinese food for THEM!! hahahaha

Winston...you're right about the fact that the "pet shop" has to know what they're doing, too....but, at least you can SEE the animal for yourself! And, I really don't think that a pet shop owner is going to put a picture of a "sick" animal on the internet??? That would just be INSANE!! ....Neil

Yeah More Chinese food for me <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> ..........Yeah your right that you can see the condition of the animal at a pet shop better, my friend has told me where he has been to a pet shop where the walking tree frog has been dead for days and it was still in the tank. sounds bad huh. <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='???'> (and no it was not in Gainesville, this happend elswhere)

Well Dan We'll watch out for this Coleman Charc.

Thanx

Winston <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''>

Hey Dan just wondering how the Monkey Tail Skink's you bought are doing and if you ever got the situation resolved. &nbsp;Give us an update.