The Serpentarium- Lodi, Ca

Thanks Wes. I haven't a clue who anyone in this thread is. I haven't been home in years.

Originally Posted by KORBIN5895

Thanks Wes. I haven't a clue who anyone in this thread is. I haven't been home in years.

Then let me give you an update.

GBU, Sam and Naomi, are really good very knowledgeable people. They've got a nice shop in Lodi.

The guy at the Serpentarium sort of wrangled it out from under the previous owner Bill Gillingham, one of the nicest guys you'd ever meet if you ever met him. He's retired now, but was a pioneer in the reptile business, especially FWCs and other boiga, while producing a huge number of colubrids, lizards and various chelonians. I don't know the new owner of the Serpentarium personally, but I DO know he's tried to latch onto Bill's coat tails and claim credit for things he had nothing to do with. That's all well and good, many need to brag and associate with those who not only came before but, to my mind, did it better and the fact that this kid seems to be one of them is not surprising.

The OP seems to have made some mistakes, but so did the Serpentarium.

Originally Posted by ApexPredatorBoids

You made a conscious choice to represent yourself "appropriately", and avoid confusion, by not using a screen name which you just claimed to have forgotten all about? Your reasoning sounds a bit conflicted, to me.

I believe that the site's rules still state that there should only be one account per user.

That old account hasn't been used since 2007. It's not at all unusual for people who haven't been here in years to come back and not remember that they have a previous account, or else remember that they do, but not able to remember their login info. So my choices are to either block them because of that failing on their part, or else let them rejoin the site and not worry about that old registration. I think I make a reasonable and prudent decision when I am faced with an inactive member who wants to become active again.

Quite honestly, unless their IP addresses match both the old and new accounts, I likely won't know anyway.

Wes ,you are obviously in the know ,regarding the situation with Bill and the new owner .For many years Bill ran one of the nicest shops around .I met Naomi there at Bill's shop several years back .Naomi and Sam are dedicated herpetoculturists who have the animals best inerests in mind,no doubt .They have dealt with many a Gonyo ,that I have imported personally ,as I used to supply Bill(Serpentarium)l ,and GBU .

Their desire for the obscure and different led to them gaining a lot of valuable experience with some of S.E Asia's more rare ,and little known reptiles .I feel assured that this animal will get their very best care ,and hopefully pulls through .As far as the OP ,I think you had raised a valid question about misrepresentation(CB or WC) ,but have yet to prove it .You(OP) would also gain a great deal of credibility if you provided the pictures of the skin malady the snake was suffering from .Props to GBU for stepping in to help the snake .

You say you did your research on red tail green rats. Yet you only paid $100 for it. If you had done any research you would have known that was a wild caught as nobody would sell a captive bred for that price. They are way too much work. Captive hatched babies sell for more than that and they are still difficult. You had to know that was wild caught or you did not do any research.

I am not sure if this is kosher or not but here is a link to Brandon's facebook page. I am on a strange computer and will send the rest of the pics we took as soon as I figure things out.
https://www.facebook.com/TheSerpenta...type=1&theater
Thanks
Naomi Berry
GBU Enterprises Exotic Pets

Originally Posted by GBU Enterprises

No he did not lie about wanting a refund but the phone is too unreliable

We all understand that he asked for a refund but the issue is that the basis of the refund was for vet bills but he claims you are helping the animal for free which negates his reasoning. Even if (and that's a big IF) Serpentarium misled the OP into believing the animal was captive bred and played down the snake's medical condition why is the OP deserving of keeping the snake and getting a refund for "vet bills" when he isn't paying any?

He does not want a cent from the Serpentarium now. As soon as he heard Robert's response, he chose to forfeit the refund because he wanted to try to do the best he could for the animal. He made this post to make people aware that he was sold an animal that he special ordered as a captive bred and recieved a wild caught instead. He too is simply appalled by the lack of caring.
People we all started somewhere. We all have made our mistakes. We are all still ignorant.
There is soooo much that I still need to know, want to know.
Hopefully we can truly bring this animal aroound and he will have a pet he can treasure for years.

Originally Posted by Brandonadam209

Beware of this place, bought a Red Tail Green Rat Snake from Robert who owns the "Museum" which was supposed to be "Captive Bred" Instead he is a Wild Caught Snake from Asia. Which means death is likely in his future in captivity. When I got him from The Serpentarium he was covered in red bumpy scabs, Robert said it will go away no big deal. It ended up being a combo of Blisters, parasites, and a upper respiratory infection. I asked Robert to give me a refund to pay for the snakes Vet care, and he said no.

He stopped pursuing a refund because Robert would only provide one if the snake was returned which is fairly standard practice. On top of that, how can the OP ask for a refund on vet care when non had been provided at that point? Was he going to ask for a random sum that he thought was appropriate?

I feel terrible for the snake but I don't see where Robert is wrong unless he clearly told the OP the snake was captive bred which seems to be a "he said/she said" situation with the OP saying Robert told him it was captive bred and Robert stating he never said that and apologizing for not being clear enough.

All in all, I just hope the little guy makes it. At the end of the day, our main concern should be for the well being of these beautiful animals whether CB or W/C..Good luck with him/her.