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Bad Guy Bad Business Deal - Mike West - Don't Make the same mistake I did!!

Ok, Let me clarify my quick post. I cut and pasted part of a VERY LONG post I made on another thread about him. In that thread contains the names of the people who made the above statements. Here is the link

http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=130312&highlight=mike+west

The customers who have been to my store that I have quoted. I have collected some names. Others I have not. I also pass that information on to any of them that wanted it for some sort of class action they were thinking of.

Again these people have been quoted.
Julia Andrews
Michael and Silvia Georgia
Lilly Smitter
Angels Brandbury
Travis O'Riley
Brian Barker
Jenna Barnett
Josh Dickenson
Betty Caro
Judy and John Bonnet
Jody Hall
Kari Clemens



People who have posted here that I am aware of:

Golden Gate Geckos
BKDragons
anowen25
Simply Scales
houdini1
Connie


The geckos I received from him years ago came with alex hughs paperwork- no photo id. When I went to list the part of them for sale that survived and thrived, Alex said it was not possible that he had only released the line to one person. I had to reverse track. Mike did buy 2 of the geckos from the person that Alex stated he sold them to. There was no evidence that those were any of the geckos I purchased from him. Also, the timeline did not match the fact that any of them could have been the same bloodline. It wasnt possible. There wasnt enough time between the transactions for any to be produced and raised to the size I had acquired. He back peddled on the details, lost a few friends over it. He promised the seller that he would not resell or release that bloodline until she gave the ok.

2/3 of the collection died in quarantine for unknown reasons. They crashed within 3 weeks of my care. Lost extreme weight, had loose discolored stools. I did deworm them with no signs of improvement. My vet found no questionable things in a (1) stool sample. He collected all the bodies of the deceased as well as took the remainder of the sick ones at the time.. I never kept any for a necropsy. It was his promise to me to replace them with something of equal value.

He never made any attempt to refund me or replace anything. He cut off all communication with me.

Jeane Best - my mother - let him take a lot of dragons for a "show" him and his father were doing. She has signed paperwork for a promise to pay. He never paid her a dime. He cut off all communication with her also.
 
deborahbroadus said:
It's really sad/upsetting that the deal didn't work in her favor and 1 year really isn't enough time to get established (I've been doing it going on 6 years now and am just now getting known!).
Click to expand...

And this is the part that most folks that just see $$$$ signs seem to miss. Just because you can produce something doesnt mean you can sell it. I am a firm believer that is what happend to the ball market. Folks were seeing big money but they didnt have the name to get the big money so they undercut everyone to move the animals.... and the market trend followed.

once again I will just myself as an example...

I was going full steam ahead and planned on quiting my day job (as it were) in 4 years.... but after carefull consideration.... My name isnt big enough yet to help me sell that kind of numbers... and as such I have toned back my operation and will grow it gradually (sp?) just like I will grow my business name gradually. It may take me 10 years vs the 4 years before I can quit and rely on my snakes to support me .... but I will get there, and I wont be setting on 600 snakes because I'm not well known enough to have potential buyers for everything.
 
Wendy, any positive or negative experiences you have had with the Wests are relevant. Any positive or negative experiences you mother has had with the Wests are relevant. If she posts.
Other posts about the Wests (Mike, mostly) that are linked and the names that have posted on them are relevant .. Golden Gate Geckos, BKDragons, anowen25, Simply Scales, houdini1, Connie). Those can be researched easily enough on the other posts already linked.

No others are relevant.
Did Jeane ever post her bad experience? I don't see it ... though I know over the years you have posted for her and related her experiences.

The customers who have been to my store that I have quoted. I have collected some names. Others I have not. I also pass that information on to any of them that wanted it for some sort of class action they were thinking of.

Again these people have been quoted.
Julia Andrews
Michael and Silvia Georgia
Lilly Smitter
Angels Brandbury
Travis O'Riley
Brian Barker
Jenna Barnett
Josh Dickenson
Betty Caro
Judy and John Bonnet
Jody Hall
Kari Clemens
Click to expand...

These are your store customers you are "quoting"? You are their mouth-piece? Where are their posts here? What are you "quoting"?
Half those names look made-up.

Julia Andrews? Lilly Smitter? John Bonnet? Travis O'Riley and Brian Barker?
With the crazy imagination I have I can make connections with all kinds of "known" names - Julie Andrews, actress .. John Bonnet, father of JonBenet Ramsey, Travis Barker, Angela Bradbury). Angels Brandbury? Shouldn't that be Angel Bradbury? Who names their kid "Angels"?

Don't get me wrong ... I do not have a high opinion of the Wests. I would never entertain a moment of my time to do business with them. Any parent that teaches or condones or participates with their child in dishonesty, thievery or fraud is scum. I wouldn't entertain one moment of my time to do business with them.

That said, you can't just post a bunch of names and say "they said it" and make it fact. I think you realize that. Just saying I'm the Queen of England and I say so doesn't make it a fact. (And I ain't saying you are saying you are the Queen of England .. I already made that claim once here! lol)
 
Those "customers" have all been in to buy supplies and or get a vet referal from me, the quotes I used are exact cuts and paste of their direct posts to his ads on craigslist.

Just because it wasn't posted on fauna doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

Yes jeane and I posted our stories on several boards including here, I am not going to go research posta that are 7 to 4 years old. I don't have the time. They are lenghly versions of the same statement I made above.

Jeane used to post here herself and had webslave disable her account, she hasn't posted in several years.
 
I have posted about Mike and Tim West.

Before I knew who they were, we were working out a deal on some cages. I was going to trade a few breeding pairs of cresties and some babies for some cages.

I Contacted James from Reptile Solutions since he was local and asked about them. He told me all sorts of things. I started to get a little nervous about it.

Then if I remember right, Mike kept calling and saying he had an immediate buyer for the geckos and wanted them right away, before me getting my cages I assume. Again, I am only assuming that part because he hadn't mentioned anything about them.

I backed out and dropped contact with mike after reading a thread here. Glad I did.

I can say that I have seen his Co-op ad in the local nickels worth for weeks and weeks. I went to look for it to post it here, but it doesn't appear to be running anymore.

I have seen him vend at the Kootenai County fair, with animals that were very ill, one dragon appeared to have a broken spine and couldn't use his back legs. However I am not a vet, so I don't know for sure. It looked bad though.

My husband who goes to local gun shows, has seen him vend their as well.

Thats basically my experience with Mike west. I did speak with his Dad on the phone, and like I have said before, he talks a great game. He was trying to talk me into a fishing trip in Alaska.

Definitely shady people, I can't tell anyone else what to do, but I'll be staying as far away from them as I can!
 
Since my name has been mentioned I will say my experience with them. I had read the threads posted on Mike and his father Tim on here dating back to 2006. I had also spoke with other reputable breeders here in the area and they all had advised me to stear clear of them. I've never dealt with them myself but one day Tim called me wanting to come visit my warehouse. During our conversation he mentioned a son named Mike and a light bulb clicked in my head. I said, "Oh Mike West? And you must be Tim West?" At that point Tim said he was no longer interested and quickly ended our phone conversation. I can only assume he realized he wasn't going to get anywhere with me. If anyone would like to know what I have heard from third parties after they had bought into the co-op deal they can feel free to pm me if they like. I will say from my view point it seems like they take advantage of local people here in the Inland Northwest that really don't know about sites like Fauna or that the internet is the driving force behind our industry and a quick google search of someone's name typically reveals any skeletons hiding in the closet.
 
JHB1982 said:
Since my name has been mentioned I will say my experience with them. I had read the threads posted on Mike and his father Tim on here dating back to 2006. I had also spoke with other reputable breeders here in the area and they all had advised me to stear clear of them. I've never dealt with them myself but one day Tim called me wanting to come visit my warehouse. During our conversation he mentioned a son named Mike and a light bulb clicked in my head. I said, "Oh Mike West? And you must be Tim West?" At that point Tim said he was no longer interested and quickly ended our phone conversation. I can only assume he realized he wasn't going to get anywhere with me. If anyone would like to know what I have heard from third parties after they had bought into the co-op deal they can feel free to pm me if they like. I will say from my view point it seems like they take advantage of local people here in the Inland Northwest that really don't know about sites like Fauna or that the internet is the driving force behind our industry and a quick google search of someone's name typically reveals any skeletons hiding in the closet.
Click to expand...

Yes, it is really a terrible thing to take advantage of other people's greed and desire for easy money. Schemes like this are all over the Internet.
 
I don't get it. The OP posted a "bad business deal" not a "bad guy" thread. It happens to be about a proved bad guy, and it seems like people are trying to call the OP out for her lack of husbandry skills. :shrug01:

What I got out of the first post was really simple. She ventured into a deal with a proved bad guy. It went wrong. She came here to warn others to be cautious about doing business with them. She didn't do her homework like she should have. It's all there.

And yet, all this discussion over what kind of experience she has. Obviously, she has NONE as stated in the very first post where she "followed their advice to the letter". What difference does it make anyway? What does it have to do with Mike and Tim West and the deal at hand?

She lost some beardies. That sucks, no doubt. But it's irrelevant IMO, and that husbandry subject should be taken to it's proper place.
 
GOOD GUYS MIKE AND TIM WEST

WOW I HAVE NEVER READ SO MUCH CRAZY MISS TRUTHS

THESE GUYS ARE THE BEST THEY FOLLOW UP ON EVERY CALL AND HAVE BEEN THERE EVERY TIME I NEEDED THEM !!!!!!!!!!

PEOPLE WHO DO NOT FOLLOW DIRECTION OR LOOSE THERE ATTITUDE AND DRIVE HAVE ONLY THEMSELVES TO BLAME !!!!!!!!!

THESE GUYS ARE GREAT !



I FIND THAT WHEN I DO EVERYTHING CORRECT ALLLLLL OF THE TIME IT WORKS GREAT .

WHEN I DONT LIKE THESE OTHER PEOPLE WHO WANT TO BLAME !
SOMEONE FOR THEIR OWN FAULTS!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT DOES NOT WORK ! AT ALLLLL .

SO I WORK HARD AND LISTEN ! IT WORKS !!!!!!


MIKE AND TIM WEST ARE GREAT GUYS WHO CARE !!!!!!!
 
Hey Jim,

Yelling on the Internet in all caps doesn't work like it does in person.

Thanks for bumping all these old threads up for comparison.

-Janece Curtis
 
MIKE WEST IS A GOOD GUY !!!!!

HAVE DONE BUSINESS WITH HIM FOR YEARS !!!!!!
 
bow624 said:
WOW I HAVE NEVER READ SO MUCH CRAZY MISS TRUTHS

THESE GUYS ARE THE BEST THEY FOLLOW UP ON EVERY CALL AND HAVE BEEN THERE EVERY TIME I NEEDED THEM !!!!!!!!!!

PEOPLE WHO DO NOT FOLLOW DIRECTION OR LOOSE THERE ATTITUDE AND DRIVE HAVE ONLY THEMSELVES TO BLAME !!!!!!!!!

THESE GUYS ARE GREAT !



I FIND THAT WHEN I DO EVERYTHING CORRECT ALLLLLL OF THE TIME IT WORKS GREAT .

WHEN I DONT LIKE THESE OTHER PEOPLE WHO WANT TO BLAME !
SOMEONE FOR THEIR OWN FAULTS!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT DOES NOT WORK ! AT ALLLLL .

SO I WORK HARD AND LISTEN ! IT WORKS !!!!!!


MIKE AND TIM WEST ARE GREAT GUYS WHO CARE !!!!!!!
Click to expand...




So which one are you? Mike or Tim?
 
Taking advantage of other people (who don't know what they are doing) and animals isn't want I'd consider a "Great guy" or even a "good guy".
 
LOL ... I saw that one. Naturally I couldn't let that one go, either.

PEOPLE WHO DO NOT FOLLOW DIRECTION OR LOOSE THERE ATTITUDE AND DRIVE HAVE ONLY THEMSELVES TO BLAME
Click to expand...
And what exactly does that mean? If I drive with an attitude I can only blame myself?
 
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