Inquiry General Exotics / GeneralExotics.com?

[MikeCurtin]

Mr. Endsley, you're dealing with live animals, not silly bands and cosmetics a la Ebay. What about customer support? Who helps the inexperienced buyer that needs husbandry advice? You? One of your drop shippers? Nope....your buyers will be stuck doing the legwork on their own.

You claim to guarantee quality animals at good prices, but don't have the animals and don't have pictures. Sounds more like a disaster waiting to happen.

Don't let the door hit ya.......

 

[generalexotics]

Guarantee

Mike,

I understand what you are saying. Support can come from a variety of places, myself included via email. People can also receive support from their habitat supplier, online forums (including this one), other great websites and any of a number of great books that are available on nearly every animal available for sale.

I guarantee my orders because I trust the suppliers I work with, each of which has many many years of experience. If I start getting an abnormal amount of claims, I can work with the supplier on the issues or switch suppliers. It is obviously in my best interest to supply only quality specimens.

No disasters here, it is actually working out quite well. Thanks for your concern.

Mr. Endsley, you're dealing with live animals, not silly bands and cosmetics a la Ebay. What about customer support? Who helps the inexperienced buyer that needs husbandry advice? You? One of your drop shippers? Nope....your buyers will be stuck doing the legwork on their own.

You claim to guarantee quality animals at good prices, but don't have the animals and don't have pictures. Sounds more like a disaster waiting to happen.

Don't let the door hit ya.......

 

[Will0W783]

While your business may be working out well for the time being Eric, I think people here are trying to help you see the weak points of doing things the way you currently are. When you are brokering animals you are putting a lot of faith and fate in the hands of your suppliers- who may make mistakes and then there is that much more legwork to figure out what happened and how to fix it. You cannot possibly keep track of everything from everyone, unless you personally have the animals in your possession and you yourself are in charge. Guaranteeing animals that are coming from other people is a recipe for disaster, and I am afraid it will come back to bite you at some point.
Furthermore, individual pictures of the exact animals for sale are important to almost any serious collector or breeder. I can give you an example of my hunt for quality salmon hypo boas. They are my favorite boa morph, but there can be extreme variety- some have that deep, orange-red base color and nice mahogany saddles, but others have a lot of brown and dustiness to them, and still others are very pale orange and tan. I have 1.1 and they are two very different animals. I have also looked at probably close to 50 specimens before deciding on the two I got. Why? Because individual pattern and coloration can make or break a deal. I could never have known what I was getting had a ordered without first seeing. Likewise, there are potential problems, such as stumpy tails, nipped toes, spinal kinking, etc, and signs that an animal has not been kept properly such as stuck shed, retained or wrinkled eyecaps, dry scales, thinness or obesity, that as a buyer you cannot possibly know unless you see a picture of the exact animal you're ordering.
I hope for your sake you take our advice to heart and think about possibly reorganizing certain aspects of your business. Best of luck, but until you have actual pictures of animals in your personal possession that you are selling, you won't be getting my business.

 

[Southern Wolf]

Please allow me to respond to the criticisms.

First, thank you Wendy for your business and I am glad we were able to provide you with what you were looking for.

Secondly, I removed the boa image at the request of Gus and sent my apologies. I will do likewise for any other errors I may have made. I do ask for permission or I try to use public domain images. I plan to someday get all of my own images but we all have to start somewhere.

Just something to consider. The moment someone takes a photo it is copywrited to them by law. You (and those like you) are the reason I have had to start plastering large logos all over my images. I have spent alot of time developing and improving my photography skills just to have someone come along, steal it, and try to pass it off as their own. You want to start somewhere... go buy a camera and take your own photos. Then you can say they are representative. Or maybe get permission from one of your breeders to use THEIR photo.

I don't do phone because I have a hearing loss. I try very hard to keep up with emails.

That is understandable... and I for one wouldnt have any problems working via email. I only offer my phone number to my buyers anyways because Im working two jobs (real and reptile) and there are times with time is at a premium.

I don't provide individual pictures because I am a broker and not in possession of the actual animals. It says on every page that the picture is a representation of the animal and not an actual photo of what you will receive. Not trying to decieve anyone with misleading pictures.

There are sooo many things that can go wrong with this business model dealing with live animals. So if I buy from you.... and there is a problem with the animal. Who makes it right? You... your supplier..... or am I just SOL.

I wasn't necessarily "hiring to build reputation". Maybe I used the wrong wording. I was hiring to get classifieds posted and spread the word about the animals available.

If your just a broker... then your not taking care of the animals because they are in someone else's possesion. You should have plenty of time to place your own ads. I work 40hrs at a real job, come home and put in prolly around 25-30 hrs with my animals and I still get my ads posted.

My business is not for everyone. If you need to speak to someone on the phone, there are vendors that gladly do that. If you need to see what you are buying, there are local vendors and shows for that. But if you want a quality animal at a good price with a good guarantee, found where it is easy and secure to shop online, GeneralExotics.com can help you out.

Actually there are several reptile breeders that do this.... not just local venders and shows. I personally take photos of EVERY baby that I have for sale. There are no representative photos. Yes it takes me alot longer.... but I for one like to see what I am buying, and if I like to see photos... then chances are others do as well. I call it customer service.

I will say this (and I promise Im not trying to be rude).... with your business model and by stealing images off the web.... you most likely will not get any serious breeders to buy animals from you. I have only once bought breeding stock sight unseen. And that was from our very own Rich Z. I have seen the quailty of his animals in the past and his rep for quality is what had me make that large purchase with him.

Most of us care about what our animals will look like. What might be a good looking animal to me may be an ugly animal to someone else. Thus the reason alot of the serious breeders take photos of their animals they have for sale.

If you plan on drop shipping from the breeder then maybe you should look at just wholesaling to pet stores. They just want the animals to be healthy and dont care about individaul traits.

 

[Will0W783]

If you plan on drop shipping from the breeder then maybe you should look at just wholesaling to pet stores. They just want the animals to be healthy and dont care about individaul traits.

Very good idea, Southern Wolf!

 

[bgirard]

I ordered three legless lizards (and I've been looking to add another one ... or three, to my collection for quite a while now!) and a black rat snake from General Exotics early last week. A small problem did arise because of a one day delay (my fault) but they stayed in contact via e-mail and the snake and lizards arrived late last week. They are beautiful! The largest Sheltopusik looked rather shabby when it arrived, but that was because it was in ecdysis. I soaked it for about 30 minutes and it turned out to be a spectacularly beautiful lizard! The young black rat snake ate four pinkies this morning, soI am a very satisfied customer!

 

[generalexotics]

quality specimens

I have 100% confidence in the people I deal with. That's why I offer the guarantee I offer.

As for these conditions:

such as stumpy tails, nipped toes, spinal kinking, etc, and signs that an animal has not been kept properly such as stuck shed, retained or wrinkled eyecaps, dry scales, thinness or obesity, that as a buyer you cannot possibly know unless you see a picture of the exact animal you're ordering"

You can know for sure that we do not sell these animals because we have a BOI Good Guy Certification and surely we would have a couple of knocks against us if these issues were found and we did not stand behind our guarantee.

Thanks for this well-written post. I understand your quest for exactly what you are looking for. My service is not for you obviously. For those that are just looking for a HEALTHY well cared for boa or any other animal, my service is one choice for them. And they have other choices, we all do. That's the great thing about it. We all get to make the choice.

Along the same lines, why would I sell to pet stores? Why can't I provide a wider online retail selection to those same individuals who might visit a pet store, or what about the people who do not live near a great pet store or would like a nice animal that the pet store does not provide?

While your business may be working out well for the time being Eric, I think people here are trying to help you see the weak points of doing things the way you currently are. When you are brokering animals you are putting a lot of faith and fate in the hands of your suppliers- who may make mistakes and then there is that much more legwork to figure out what happened and how to fix it. You cannot possibly keep track of everything from everyone, unless you personally have the animals in your possession and you yourself are in charge. Guaranteeing animals that are coming from other people is a recipe for disaster, and I am afraid it will come back to bite you at some point.
Furthermore, individual pictures of the exact animals for sale are important to almost any serious collector or breeder. I can give you an example of my hunt for quality salmon hypo boas. They are my favorite boa morph, but there can be extreme variety- some have that deep, orange-red base color and nice mahogany saddles, but others have a lot of brown and dustiness to them, and still others are very pale orange and tan. I have 1.1 and they are two very different animals. I have also looked at probably close to 50 specimens before deciding on the two I got. Why? Because individual pattern and coloration can make or break a deal. I could never have known what I was getting had a ordered without first seeing. Likewise, there are potential problems, such as stumpy tails, nipped toes, spinal kinking, etc, and signs that an animal has not been kept properly such as stuck shed, retained or wrinkled eyecaps, dry scales, thinness or obesity, that as a buyer you cannot possibly know unless you see a picture of the exact animal you're ordering.
I hope for your sake you take our advice to heart and think about possibly reorganizing certain aspects of your business. Best of luck, but until you have actual pictures of animals in your personal possession that you are selling, you won't be getting my business.

 

[MikeCurtin]

You can know for sure that we do not sell these animals because we have a BOI Good Guy Certification and surely we would have a couple of knocks against us if these issues were found and we did not stand behind our guarantee.

Certifications have been pulled in the past. When choosing a dealer, I look at their actions before I look at their certifications.

 

[Southern Wolf]

Certifications have been pulled in the past. When choosing a dealer, I look at their actions before I look at their certifications.

Exactly...


This is one reason that I havent tried to get mine. I wont folks to deal with me because of my actions not because of something I can flaunt (like certifications).

 

[FFSTRescue]

Everyone has very valid points on here. What really frustrates me is when a company doesn't communicate. It makes me, the customer, feel very unimportant. The thing I like about dealing with Eric (General Exotics) is that he responds so quickly and answers all my questions no matter how annoying and long they can be, and that is one thing I really appreciate, and he is very polite in doing so. I just purchased some reptiles from him and I will let everyone know how it goes, and I think it will go well given his 7 day guarantee if there is a death or a problem. I will post back on here after I receive them. I haven't done business with him yet, but he has been, by far, the most polite reptile broker/wholesaler I have dealt with yet, which means alot to me

 

[Lucille]

Everyone has very valid points on here. What really frustrates me is when a company doesn't communicate. It makes me, the customer, feel very unimportant. The thing I like about dealing with Eric (General Exotics) is that he responds so quickly and answers all my questions no matter how annoying and long they can be, and that is one thing I really appreciate, and he is very polite in doing so. I just purchased some reptiles from him and I will let everyone know how it goes, and I think it will go well given his 7 day guarantee if there is a death or a problem. I will post back on here after I receive them. I haven't done business with him yet, but he has been, by far, the most polite reptile broker/wholesaler I have dealt with yet, which means alot to me

After your first post, when no one responded immediately, you said you would go ahead and buy from them. Your posts have red flags all over them. In my opinion, you are either an alternate persona for General Exotics (since your last post reads just like an advertisement), or, even after hearing all the cautions you are Little Red Riding Hood and sister, you're gonna get ate by the wolf.

 

[rjarosek]

After your first post, when no one responded immediately,

I don't know your definition of imediately but the op did wait well over 24 hours for a responce before the second post.

 

[Lucille]

I don't know your definition of imediately but the op did wait well over 24 hours for a responce before the second post.

I don't know your definition of smart, but no one said anything one way or another for 24 hours, and then plenty of negative things were brought out, and the OP agreed that those points were all valid, and then ordered.

Unless the OP is a spokesperson for General Exotics she is just gambling that his sweet talk might possibly be true, even after agreeing with the validity of the negative comments. That is just not smart, when there are so many vendors with sterling reps, pictures (real pictures of their own stock) and their own produced animals, not brokered ones.

 

[rjarosek]

I don't know your definition of smart.

Not sure what this has to do with anything. I am not trying to judge anyone or put them down. I was only pointing out that she waited well over 24 hours to post again. You called that immediately. I thought it might be possible you thought it was the same day. Thats all

If she wants to deal with them or not is her problem. I agree with you and I wouldn't do business with them. At the same time I am not going to jump on someone for making a choice that only affects them. Its a personal decision. She may learn the hard lesson.

 

[Lucille]

Not sure what this has to do with anything. I am not trying to judge anyone or put them down. I was only pointing out that she waited well over 24 hours to post again. You called that immediately. I thought it might be possible you thought it was the same day. Thats all

If she wants to deal with them or not is her problem. I agree with you and I wouldn't do business with them. At the same time I am not going to jump on someone for making a choice that only affects them. Its a personal decision. She may learn the hard lesson.

Ryan, I agree with you also. Wasn't jumping on you, I apologize if I came off that way.

 

[FFSTRescue]

But you were sure jumping on me! Why don't you get your facts straight before throwing off the wall accusations. Lol, do you have a personal vendetta against general exotics and you verbally accost anyone that wants to do business with them? I really don't appreciate the insults, so you need to back off. I got a really good deal on a specific thing I am working on, and I even said that I would let everyone know how it goes. No one has been screwed over by these guys, in fact, people have gotten their money back when they didn't receive their order. They are the only company that has the species that I am trying to work with and they have been great with communicating with me. I feel bad for you that you are so angry that you have to insult someone for doing absolutely nothing wrong, thats what therapists are for, not BOI.

 

[FFSTRescue]

I don't know your definition of smart, but no one said anything one way or another for 24 hours, and then plenty of negative things were brought out, and the OP agreed that those points were all valid, and then ordered.

Unless the OP is a spokesperson for General Exotics she is just gambling that his sweet talk might possibly be true, even after agreeing with the validity of the negative comments. That is just not smart, when there are so many vendors with sterling reps, pictures (real pictures of their own stock) and their own produced animals, not brokered ones.

Ok, so since you are so nosey and automatically assume someone is up to no good (I seriously feel very sorry for you), I will explain what I am doing. I am trying to promote captive breeding of Senegal chameleons because I think they are wonderful species, but they are very difficult to raise to adulthood, almost all of them end up dying. I am currently raising a clutch to try to see what will contribute to their vitality. I am interested in purchasing a large number of Senegal chameleons so I can work on my breeding project, and those that I don't breed, I am going to acclimate them and sell them to people who will hopefully breed them. I contacted many people, and no one has Senegals, especially "reputable breeders", which I am attempting to become, and therefore don't appreciate your defamation of my character. General Exotics is the only company right now that has a large number of Senegals imported, and though I don't agree with importation of these animals because of the horrendous conditions they go through, I have to start with WC before I can get to CB. Eric gave me a great deal on a large amount of Senegals, so I am hoping it pans out. This is something that I am passionate about, and if I lose some money because of it, I don't really care, because not only do I have plenty of it, but putting it towards something I am passionate about is well worth it to me. I am hoping to do the same thing with other commonly imported chameleon species such as Gracefuls and Flapnecks, because the conditions in which they are exported/imported are atrocious.
Now that you wrongfully accused me of doing something horrible instead of thinking that I am a good person doing my part to help species I am passionate about, I thing I deserve an apology for being called an "alternate persona for general exotics" as well as calling me "not smart". I'm not a brain surgeon yet, but a "not smart" person doesn't get accepted into medical school.
All that aside, I would really appreciate an apology as I am doing something to assist in the well-being of the reptiles that you supposedly love, since you are on this forum, unless you are just on this forum to insult passionate people like myself due to your anger at the world.

 

[Lucille]

, I would really appreciate an apology

You came on here, asking for feedback, and you got a fair amount of negative feedback on this company yet ordered anyway. No apology is in order for you, in fact, you claim to want to find a particular species and you have not developed enough connections so you have to go to a broker who has those connections, by their own admission that do not have critters, they are a broker. [/QUOTE]

if I lose some money because of it, I don't really care because not only do I have plenty of it

There's one of the problems with you and your posts. The BOI was established so that people would not get taken and lose their money to thieves, scammers, and bad deals. It is a wonderful business tool for the 99.999% of us who DO care whether we lose our money in a deal.

I'm not a brain surgeon yet, but a "not smart" person doesn't get accepted into medical school.

That's funny. You appear to be a rich, spoiled medical student used to getting her way. You get cautioned about a company after initiating a thread where YOU asked for feedback and got it, and it wasn't good. You ordered anyway. That is not smart.

 

[FFSTRescue]

Anyway, negative person who attacked me for no reason (I didn't bother looking at your name) I didn't bother reading your thread after my last post, I'm sure it had something to do with your jealousy and anger for me, probably involving more name calling and wanting to control my decision making, blah blah blah blah blah, I have more important things to do and more educated and intelligent people to deal with, so respond all you want, you aren't worth the energy it takes my eyes to read what you post. You really do need to get that anger under control, life will be so much happier for you.

Anyway, lets stick to the point of this thread, which is to help people decide whether or not to buy from General Exotics. I waited so long to purchase because I was hesitant. And to the genius who quoted me when I said everyone had valid points, that is because EVERYONE HAD VALID POINTS, GOOD AND BAD, but the bad points people made were not dissuasive enough. So I told people on this thread that I was going to order from Gen Exotics to test the waters, I was hesitant, but I am glad I did. I ordered 12 Senegals from General Exotics and they were shipped out the next morning and EVERY single one of them was in good condition, well given the fact that they are Senegals and they are imported in horrible conditions. Some were more fair than good, but they were all alert and eating. I am pretty happy with my purchase, if people would like me to post some pictures of the Senegals I will gladly do so. Also, Eric didn't know me from Adam, I have never purchased or contacted him before, and he still talked me through it, gave me a discount as he knew I was doing this to help these chameleons that I am so passionate about, and he sent me a great supply. I would love to have bought these Senegals from breeders, but guess what... THERE ARE NONE! I am one of the few people trying to breed these little gems, and a broker is the only way to acquire them.

So people who are angry at life and positivity, take a break from your game of dungeons and dragons in the basement and tear this post apart and have a ball ... calm down, that was supposed to be funny...

 

[hhmoore]

There is no obligation to follow advice, even if it is solicited....which, in this case, it wasn't. What the OP asked was if anybody had experience with General Exotics. The point that General Exotics is a broker has been made, and people can consider whether that is a sticking point for them. I realize that brokers are often considered one of the lower life forms, but they offer a service. In this case, people not liking the idea of doing business with a broker are free not to use them. I personally don't see much sense in criticizing somebody that seemingly went in with both eyes open. Not all animals are available as CB gems; and, until a species is readily available in that form, people that want them get them from whatever sources they can.
A lot of people will be turned off if they have to wait - I'm one of those...but, if it is the only way of acquiring something that I really want, I suck it up & wait (grumbling the whole time, in all likelihood )

I understand that most of the attempts to dissuade in this thread are founded in good intentions...but unless/until General Exotics fails to make good on its guarantee, or starts showing its ass in replies here, is there anything to substantiate steering people away (other than group disapproval of brokers)? Have there been a bunch of negative threads/posts that I've missed?