Heterozygous traits, how much would you pay for 100% reassurance?

Originally Posted by The BoidSmith

Lucille,

Regrettably I was asked not to disclose any more information at this point. But I can say one thing though, Marjee had an excellent idea...

Regards.

I do hope that if this project involves lab testing, that whoever is in charge of the company will make sure that the testing is high quality and does not involve error rates that plague some of the companies doing tests in people.
Great idea. If they sell stock, let me know...

Again, IF this idea works out it will be done with a company with an established name in the market and whose results are accepted in a court of law. But there's nothing we can do with 19 votes at this point. There's no doubt about it that there will be people who will not want this to happen as their days of selling animals of dubious lineage could very well be over. Then of course there's always those that will not want to pay for the service and go the "inexpensive" route. That one which has provided time and again to be the most costly one!

Regards

I see what you're saying now, at least I think I do. You're not asking about insurance at all, you're asking what we'd be willing to pay for genetic testing to determine if in fact a gene was present. You should have just said that in the first place.
I can see how that would be a useful service. I'd consider using it as a breeder myself. Say I breed my het whatevers and want to know which female 66% hets to hold back. No breeding trials and wasted time.

I can also see how it will seriously impact the herp market. At that point someone can actually buy one male het snake and have a straight path to produce the morph with no hold ups from dealing with 50% hets.
That's not even considering the double and triple recessives that we're just starting to look at. Everything would be put on the fast track, new morph production as well as the decline of prices.

"Insurance", or some kind of guarantee that can be purchased so that if hets don't prove out, there is some compensation or easily available recourse. In a perfect world maybe, but from a legal and business standpoint, impractical as heck and unfortunately fraught wth the same problems a buyer now faces. The big breeders with a proven track record don't need it, and who is going to underwrite the smaller, under-capitalized breeders? I'm with Clay and Cathy and Sammy on this one.

Originally Posted by Chameleon Company

"Insurance", or some kind of guarantee that can be purchased so that if hets don't prove out, there is some compensation or easily available recourse.

The way the conversation is going though, it is not insurance at all, it is better: it sounds like it's to be an idea to test the genetics of the animal so you KNOW when you are buying it, what you have. That's an astoundingly good idea. And it will change a lot in the herp world.
What an exciting idea, and to think we heard it first, right here on Fauna!!!

So what would I get for my 150 if the animal doesn’t produce? My original amount paid?

Ok now I’m confused. Insurance or genetic testing? It sounds like insurance until Marjee made her post.

So what would I get for my 150 if the animal doesn’t produce? My original amount paid?

You have a proof that will be admisible in court. What this will do is have the bad guys think not twice but three times before even attempting to scam. In fact, except for those that are unwilling to pay the price, for the rest the "possible" animals will disappear. They will be either normal or 100% hetero, and we are closer to this than one might think! Waiting years to make your name in the herp world would also be over. It won't matter if you breed 10 or 1,000 animals or if your name is Mr. Bigsnake. Keep on voting, we need a critical mass! There is now enough topic for discussion.

Regards.

(Me and anyone else who wants to make a claim), are we talking about identifying a genetic marker for a recessive trait, and then being able to test a purchased animal for that trait? If do-able (it is possible that the research necessary to identify that genetic marker could be cost-prohibitive), and affordable for the buyer, it would be a wonderful option. That would be more in line with the "reassurance" that Dan mentioned early on. The phrase "kind of insurance" was also used, and I think that is what led me and others to view it as impractical, if it was similar to insurance models we all are familiar with. Not to be the party-pooper here, but the value of all the ball morphs, and het-balls, will continue to trend downward, and so will all things that flow from that value. But if an genetic test "assurance" could be done affordably, it would be a wonderful option, and I agree with you Dan and Lucille wholeheartedly on that point. It might not get money back from a scammer, but would at least save time (and money) for the new buyer-breeder. I only wish chameleons were as easy as ball pythons.

The more I read the more confused I get about exactly what it is you are proposing Dan.

Are we talking genetic testing?

Are we talking compiling evidence AFTER the sale to use in court to sue someone who lied about a het?

My head hurts...