Bad Guy David Ferguson ( hdavidf309 ) Sold unhealthy animals as RTB and shipped improperly

[Invictus57]

Kristi, here is part of the reply you received:

"Furthermore, she is buying geckos as is when she buys online."


A search of his name here (hdavidf309) shows a number of ads. To me, the above response does not build confidence in the quality of any critters he might be selling.

 

[leftycrane]

"Also, the geckos that you say have floppy tail syndrome have been observed many times on branches and on the glass of the enclosures I have here and I have never seen any sort of flopping of the tail at all."

Im sorry, but this sentence says a lot to me. FTS, as anyone who truly understands these geckos knows, is visually seen, not as a tail flopping around, but as a dip in the hips, or a twist in the hips at the base of the tail. It just jumped out at me as sketchy lol

 

[beballs]

I remember this add clearly, as i too was very interested in the second to the last gecko. IT really is SUCH a shame. She is absolutely gorgeous. All i can say is i really hope you give her a good home, and make her a wonderful display animal, make the rest of her life as comfortable as possible. What i find really messed up, is the fact when i asked he was going to sell her to me for 170 dollars. Yet here he sold all to you for 500. :/ Sounds fishy to me.

Although i'm glad i saw the signs of her having mbd, i just feel so bad that this had to happen to you. D: I would just feel so devastated, not for the money loss, but also for what the animals had to go though. I mean seriously, 22.6 gram gecko laying eggs! Thats just downright wrong. Like i said before..i just really hope you make their lives more comfortable. I know for sure they are much better off in your hands than in his.

As far as getting your money back, i really wish you luck. He doesnt deserve it, especially when now he's only to go and do the same thing to other geckos as he had done to the ones now in your possession.

 

[treeboa]

Thank you Lauren.
Jeff, if you were the seller? What would you do?

Oh, and I was just reading through the post and realized that I left out one of his responses to me, sorry for any confusion. I will repost the one of mine that came right before it and the one that came after it and I will make his bold to help with any confusion.

If I was the seller I would offer you a refund if you sent back the animals with the return shipping on me. Of course I, also, would have never let my Cresties get in that condition in the first place and I would definitely never sell a sick animal. The condition of the animals, the terrible packing, and refusing to offer you a solution made this thread necessary and helpful to everyone.

My response about dictating terms to him and expecting a partial refund with keeping the animals and possibly him paying vet bills is as much a reaction to a trend I've seen lately as to you personally. Even though they are live animals and there is an emotional element for people, this industry/hobby is still a business. People are not in business to lose money. All that said, he should be working with you and not ignoring you.

 

[MissFirefly]

"Also, the geckos that you say have floppy tail syndrome have been observed many times on branches and on the glass of the enclosures I have here and I have never seen any sort of flopping of the tail at all."

Im sorry, but this sentence says a lot to me. FTS, as anyone who truly understands these geckos knows, is visually seen, not as a tail flopping around, but as a dip in the hips, or a twist in the hips at the base of the tail. It just jumped out at me as sketchy lol

He is breeding and selling crested geckos and he doesn't know what FTS actually is? Luckily I haven't seen it in any of my geckos but I know that it isn't actually their tail flopping around...

 

[treeboa]

The responses he did make and the fact that he offered her nothing shows he doesn't know what he's doing, doesn't really care about the animals, and is just in it for a quick buck. We have too many of these kind of people in this hobby.

 

[Samantha12986]

"Also, the geckos that you say have floppy tail syndrome have been observed many times on branches and on the glass of the enclosures I have here and I have never seen any sort of flopping of the tail at all."

Im sorry, but this sentence says a lot to me. FTS, as anyone who truly understands these geckos knows, is visually seen, not as a tail flopping around, but as a dip in the hips, or a twist in the hips at the base of the tail. It just jumped out at me as sketchy lol

If I was the seller I would offer you a refund if you sent back the animals with the return shipping on me. Of course I, also, would have never let my Cresties get in that condition in the first place and I would definitely never sell a sick animal. The condition of the animals, the terrible packing, and refusing to offer you a solution made this thread necessary and helpful to everyone.

Yes, if he had offered that option in the first couple of days instead of ignoring me and trying to pretend the problems didn't exist, this whole situation would have been resolved. I would have found that to be an acceptable resolution. The animals as well as his future customers/victims are probably better off that it did not go that way though.

I remember this add clearly, as i too was very interested in the second to the last gecko. IT really is SUCH a shame. She is absolutely gorgeous. All i can say is i really hope you give her a good home, and make her a wonderful display animal, make the rest of her life as comfortable as possible. What i find really messed up, is the fact when i asked he was going to sell her to me for 170 dollars. Yet here he sold all to you for 500. :/ Sounds fishy to me.

Although i'm glad i saw the signs of her having mbd, i just feel so bad that this had to happen to you. D: I would just feel so devastated, not for the money loss, but also for what the animals had to go though. I mean seriously, 22.6 gram gecko laying eggs! Thats just downright wrong. Like i said before..i just really hope you make their lives more comfortable. I know for sure they are much better off in your hands than in his.

As far as getting your money back, i really wish you luck. He doesnt deserve it, especially when now he's only to go and do the same thing to other geckos as he had done to the ones now in your possession.

The price part isn't fishy, he originally gave me a quote for $200 for the first one. The reason the price was lower for the group is because it was a group deal/discount. I agree 100% with the rest of what you said. It is horrifying that he would breed a 22.6 gram gecko and the consequences for her are going to be awful. They will be well cared for beautiful pets here and I will make their lives as comfortable as possible.


Thank you everyone for the support. I am 99% sure that I will not get any of my money back but the support still helps a lot in other ways.

 

[Lucille]

It is horrifying that he would breed a 22.6 gram gecko and the consequences for her are going to be awful. They will be well cared for beautiful pets here and I will make their lives as comfortable as possible.

My question above probably got lost in all the posts. Are you going to take them to the vet?

 

[Samantha12986]

My question above probably got lost in all the posts. Are you going to take them to the vet?

Oops, yes it did. Two of them have appointments Wednesday at 5 with a reptile vet in Portland.

 

[hdavidf309]

All of you have to know that there are at least two sides to every story. I personally don't see the swollen limbs in the pictures above due to not having a straight on angle to compare against the other like limb. As for the sunken eyed gecko allegation, this might be true that she may have a sunken eye (which was not the way I sent her out) due to dehydration in shipping...but as stated in PayPal emails she was a FREE gecko. This gecko was not a part of the charges...but completely free for her, due to her being a buck skin. I also find it completely funny that she states that they all have tail issues but doesn't picture the issue. She also talks of MBD, which as far I am concerned they don't have... but then again I am not a vet...but if I were her I wouldn't throw that out unless I had total proof from a blood test that they have it.

When it comes to the shipping side of all things I have apologized many times...and have learned my lesson. I take complete fault for the shipping...and she had stated in her PayPal emails that it wasn't her concern. The reason I shipped them out this way was because I have received geckos in the exact same manner from Jon Boone (want to state for the record that I am not bashing Jon Boone in anyway...he is a wonderful breeder). In the end I have learned my lesson regarding the shipping and will not be shipping any animals out that way again. I am very glad that she received them alive.

When it comes to these claims I am very leery of giving anything back to her. She never offered to send them back for a refund. She has completely stated her issues with me and even hit below the belt in her emails. I have tried to not sink to her level...which has been very hard not to do. I had concerns with dealing with her from the beginning. She showed in the above text messages that she wanted to be in control of the shipping time frame of when she received them...which is completely out of my control. I feel like I am being scammed a bit myself. She has posted the majority of my phone number on this thread and now I am concerned about fraud...I never agreed for her to post any part of my number on this thread...THIS IS NOT OK! All it takes is some time and number searching to get my complete number, and additional personal information.

Please remember when judging me that I am not the only person involved. I didn't want to respond to her right away because I have been caught up with my family and job...I am not a store and just breed in my spare time. She also came at me aggressively regarding this issue several days later...it made me wonder what her real reason was for wanting her money back.

 

[Magic]

David,

How are you going to compensate her for the sub standard shipping and animals in poor health?

You've admitted blame on the shipping, that's a start. Now what are you willing to do to save some of your reputation?

How about you suggest something you think is fair? Are you willing to give her some $$ back? You know (and we all know!) what she received from you wasn't worth half a grand. $500 was given in good faith. You need to fix this before your rep is completely shattered.

Buyer has stated she wants to work something out but feels you stopped communicating. So offer something now. What you do from this point right now can break you or be a stepping stone. Think carefully.

 

[Magic]

David,

If she sends the entire group back, will you refund the entire amount?

If she sends them all but the RTB one back, will you refund her back $200 (asking price of RTB female subtracted from purchase price)?

If she decides to keep them, will you offer her something for the botched shipping?

She deserves something David, even if you think she's a PITA. You gotta do the right thing.

 

[hdavidf309]

To Samantha: I am willing to do a $200 refund and you keep the geckos. I do feel that you are taking this too far, however and would like for you to delete this BOI posting, and also any/all claims, ect... If this is agreed upon, then we will be square, you will never mention me ever again, and we move on. You have done enough damage, I do not want any of this anymore. text message sent. Deal?

 

[Magic]

David,

Kudos to you for offering a remedy. I, and others, judge a seller oftentimes by how they handle business transactions-good and bad.

However, I must inform you that these postings cannot be deleted. Not by the buyer, not by the seller. They stay. Please do not punish the buyer because she won't be able to delete this thread. Instead, know that your actions in offering a partial refund will be looked upon as a seller trying to make amends. That's a good thing.

 

[Magic]

David, I will also let you know that once a satisfactory agreement has been reached, buyers often do a "things are okay" update and that essentially closes the thread. Once people know a buyer and seller have come to a mutually satisfying agreement or an agreement that is industry fair, most threads are pushed into Fauna history caves by way of natural silence.

If there's nothing more to talk about on a thread, it heads to the basement, lol.

 

[hallowedone]

I am sorry if I missed something but how come it looks like david has to accounts? Both have different locations but the same name.

 

[Magic]

I am sorry if I missed something but how come it looks like david has to accounts? Both have different locations but the same name.

James!

I totally didn't catch that one. Good eyes you have!! Two accounts, two locations? I feel like I need some geritol and some eye drops.

David, any explanations? I've really been trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, but now I'm starting to have concerns? Why two accounts if you're on the up and up?

 

[treeboa]

To Samantha: I am willing to do a $200 refund and you keep the geckos. I do feel that you are taking this too far, however and would like for you to delete this BOI posting, and also any/all claims, ect... If this is agreed upon, then we will be square, you will never mention me ever again, and we move on. You have done enough damage, I do not want any of this anymore. text message sent. Deal?

At least you offered something. I already have posted what I thought of her demands. HOWEVER... You never responded to her for 2 weeks and only after you became aware she posted here. This post will NOT be deleted. NO BOI posts are EVER deleted. In essence you have ruined your reputation for $500. I hope it was worth it.

I DO see a curve in the back of the first gecko she posted. Don't try to pass off the eye in the gecko pictured second on "minor dehydration from shipping", that is BS! I don't think she is trying to scam you. I think you had a dissatisfied customer (for good reason too) who notified you immediately of the problem. You chose to ignore her, deny responsibility, blame her, accuse her of trying to scam you, claim you've never had a bad transaction, and finally offer her nothing till your back's against the wall. This is practically the Fauna Bad Guy Creedo. Are you related to Dan Scolaro?

The industry standard is not "Internet sales are final." Most high volume dealers and smallest of hobbiest breeders offer refunds or replacement when the buyer contacts them in a timely manner. She let you know immediately. They usually pay for return shipping too. You offered her nothing for 2 weeks. Maybe you no longer had her $500 to return, but that is on you. Again I hope the $500 was worth your reputation because at this point it's ruined.

 

[treeboa]

She has posted the majority of my phone number on this thread and now I am concerned about fraud...I never agreed for her to post any part of my number on this thread...THIS IS NOT OK! All it takes is some time and number searching to get my complete number, and additional personal information

What's with the paranoia about the phone number? All anyone needs is your name and city were you live to find this for free. For about $4, they can find most of your personal info. For $20 they could get a criminal background check and who your mortgage is with and how much you owe. And just what do you think anyone is going to do with this information? You know if you've used this phone number to order at certain sites online or from certain catalogues, you've supplied your number to inmates in prison.

 

[Lucille]

David,

Your customer is not 'taking this too far'.


You sent out sub par animals
You made package labeling errors and then tried to throw SYR under the bus for your errors
And now you are invoking your family and job to excuse your lack of communication.

Don't get me wrong, family and job are important, but if you cannot get back to your customers when issues come up relevant to the sale, you should not sell.
The ONLY reason this buyer is getting a second look from you is that she came to the BOI, and you wanted her BOI thread deleted. How many more dissatisfied customers are there that didn't post here?

Your customer has vet appointments for two of the critters you sent PLUS she had to go though all this aggravation with you over critters which were supposed to be healthy and breedable. Send her the $400 she originally requested, and really give some thought to whether you want to breed and sell in the future.
It is hard work, and your customers deserve good service. If you really don't have the time for that, perhaps this is an opportunity to bow out gracefully.