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Bob Kite & Odyssey Reptiles (BAD GUYS)

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Hi folks,

As some of you may have read in the general discussion forum thread titled "Questions Regarding DOA Procedures," I recently had a pair of Colombian BCI perish in transit to my home from Mr. Bob Kite at Odyssey Reptiles.

When I inquired about the boas and the guarantee that would be provided to me with them, this was his reply.

---------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/7/2003 8:33:54 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: [email protected] (Robert Kite)
To: [email protected] (Lauren Rost)

Lauren,

Sorry for not getting back sooner, But to answere your questions, Yes i will send paperwork and pics for each animal, included in the paperwork will be all info regarding the hets on the female, i will send pics of both animals parents, And my garantee on the het, also included is all feeding, shedding, and defacation records of the animals from time of birth till now, As far as the money goes, i would really like to get the $120 for them, I truly beleive that it is a fair deal considering most people are now selling between $75-$125 each for columbians, I will keep the animals on hold for you, please let me know if this works for you... Also, i ship overnite via airborne, the animals will be shipped in a styro insulated box, with 40hr heatpacks, I gaurantee live arrival on all animals shipped, If in the slim chance a DOA does occur, i must be contacted within 48hrs of arrival, If it does occur i will return 110% of your money, or you can pick out onother animal of equal value, I gaurantee both animals healthy and free of any mites or parasites,.... Let me know

Thanks,
Bob Kite
909 S. 13th Ave. E
Newton Ia, 50208
------------------------------------------------------------

I thought he was giving me a very good price on the animals and and after seeing pictures, I asked that Bob place them on hold. As you can also see, this took place back on February 7th. On February 8th, I sent out a Postal Money Order, as promised, to the address he included in the e-mail via Priority mail. After confirming with him that I had sent the money, I did not hear from him again until February 11th, when I inquired as to whether he ever received the payment from me. He replied with the following:

------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/11/2003 10:42:12 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: [email protected] (Robert Kite)
To: [email protected]

Layren,

I am sorry for not responding sooner, my computer has caught a virus and i have had to wait untill i could get on my Partners, Yes i did receive the money order, and everything has gone as planned, i shipped out today ia Airborne express. if you want to trck the package, all you do is call 1-800-247-2676, push the # for tracking a package and ener this # 8343245481 and it will tell you where the package is, they told me that the package should be there by 12 noon, also, because of my computers demise, it will take a couple of days to get the paerwork sent to you, but I gaurantee the papers WILL be ther Friday, i am sorry for this inconveniance, my dearest appologies to you, but anyway, i hope you enjoy the babies, Email me as soon as you get them, i will ake a run to my partners house to use his comp. to check,

Thanks,
Bob Kite
--------------------------------------------------------------------

The whole virus thing sent the warning bells off for me, but since the money was already sent, there was not much I could do at that point.

I tracked the boas and according to Airbourne, they were sent out overnight and should arrive the morning of February 12th. They arrived at 11:11 AM (and were not checked off for 10:30 EXP delivery, but NAS delivery) and I opened the box immediately. From the cool air inside the box, I immediately had a bad feeling, and when I looked in and saw the twisted bodies of the boas, I knew they were beyond saving. They appeared partially frozen upon further inspection, even down to their pupils being partially blue from the cold. There were two "Hot Hands" inside the box, which, upon looking them up online, do not appear to be the 40 hour heat packs I was promised. They were both totally cold to the touch as well.

Nevertheless, Within fifteen minutes of their arrival, I had sent out an e-mail to Bob Kite with the following:

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/12/2003 11:23:00 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: BrimstoneHunter
To: [email protected]

Hi Bob,

I have to say that I am very upset right now. I just got the package at my doorstep and opened it. Both of the babies were dead on arrival. I will send you pictures of their bodies in a moment. I have them on heat in the off chance that they make some sort of recovery, but they were ice cold to the touch, twisted grostesquely, and with clouded pupils.

Let me know what you want to do about this.

Lauren
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I also sent pictures a bit later on of them, as promised.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/12/2003 12:11:25 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: BrimstoneHunter
To: [email protected]
File: FemaleDOA.ZIP (1462173 bytes) DL Time (48000 bps): < 8 minutes


Hi Bob,

Here are pictures of both DOA babies.

Please get back to be asap. Thank you,

Lauren
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This was the reply I received:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/13/2003 12:15:36 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: [email protected] (Robert Kite)
To: [email protected]

lauren,

First off i would like to say that i am very sorry or this, We have shipped out over a thousand reptiles, and never once have i ever had a reply with a DOA, this is the first, Secondly i would like to say that I am very disturbed as to why these 2 very healthy animals would die like this, I know that i had plenty of heat packs in there with them, But as promised i will PROMPTLY make this right with you 110%. Although the pics that you sent never came through, but anyways, i will need you to ship the animals back to me, send them in the same packing you got them in, and have the shipping billed to me, I will promptly send your money back, but i need the bodies as i will have a necropsy done to find out what exactly happened to these animals. Also what time did the animals arrive, if it was a shipping error, i can get compensation from Airborne, the animals were shipped express and should have been there no later than 10:30am, if it was longer than that, I will have to discusss this with Airborne..But like I said before, I am sorry, and this will be dealt with in a timely manner, Sorry for any inconveniance this has caused.

My sincerest appologies,
Bob Kite
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

My "gut-feelings" were telling me that this guy was a liar, but I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt without causing a big deal to see if he would resolve this. However, I did not wish to ship out my only evidence of our transaction since there was NO receipt, paperwork, or documents included in the package as promised besides his business card.

Here was my reply:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/13/2003 8:03:07 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: BrimstoneHunter
To: [email protected]


Hi Bob,

Thanks for getting back with me. I refrigerated the boas last night, but did not freeze them in case you did want to do a necroscopy so that their tissue did not break down. Could you have possibly mixed up the heat packs or something? I saw that you were using a brand of hand warmer, and I looked them up on the internet.. they apparently only had an 18 hour time limit, unless I was mistaken, not a 40 hour one. When the babies arrived, both heat packs were totally cold with not even a residual warmth, and literally the boas were partially frozen, right down to their eyes, likely from their flight in the unheated section of the airplane cargo. They did appear totally healthy, though, aside from being frozen, and that was very likely the cause of death, even though everything else with the packing was fine.
I am not sure why the pictures I sent would not come through with you, as I have never had a problem before, but I will post several pictures on a website and link you so that there is no doubt about this before I send them back. To be honest, and I am not accusing you of anything, but you are freaking me out a little bit. What I mean is that everything goes smoothly until the night before their shipping, then your computer gets a virus and crashes, but you tell me you will still have access to a computer, but you can't send me their feeding/shed/defecation records and their proof of genetics, even though just a little written note with their last feed date/shed date/defecation would have at least partially solved the problem. Then the animals arrive dead and frozen, and you want me to send the animals back, in the same box you sent them in, when it is my only proof besides the money order receipt that I have that we did business. I looked you and your partner up on Fauna Classifieds, and I did not see anyone post anything good or bad on that big message boad, even though you have apparently done so much business in the herp community. The only thing I did notice was that you have had some sick ball pythons in your care that have died without apparent cause, which also makes me somewhat nervous about my animals, even though the boas did not come near them. I want to protect myself from any problems, as I am sure you wish to do the same, but I don't entirely feel comfortable with this transaction right now. Is the usual protocol to ship the animals back in the same box they arrived in? And is it possible to get some sort of receipt or something? I am not accusing you of anything, and I am sorry if this comes across as harsh, but I am sure you can see where I am coming from.

I will post the pictures in a few minutes and drop you a letter with the URL link. Thanks for your time and take care,

Lauren
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I posted the pictures on a website, and also linked him in another e-mail. He replied:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/14/2003 2:37:05 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: [email protected] (Robert Kite)
To: [email protected]

Lauren,

I can totally see were you are coming from and after thought that probly would be totally stupid of me to ask for the animals back with no money in your hand, As I said before, this will be dealt with promptly, as a buisness and in earning a name for ourselves this matter could totally destroy all the work that we have done to get this far.. As far as faunaclassifieds go, i normally don't do a whole lot of buisness in there, just We have several customers that deal with us on a timely basis and thats were alot of our buisness comes from, I will stand by my word 110% exactly, I am truly sorry for this, i never had any intentions of this happening, those 2 hothands heatpacks are 40hr packs, there were a few smaller ones that were like 12 hr packs, but still it should have been enough for the trip, I will send back a money order for $135 on monday, as promised, Also i had sent the paperwork out yesterday before i got your email, so those should be arriving on monday, There is a receipt of sale in the paperwork alopng with all records that i originally said would be there. You can do with them as you please, I do not want to destroy a buisness realtionship with anyone even if you never got anything else from us again, so this will be taken care of, I will lok at the pics and agin i am sorry.

Apologies,
Bob Kite
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I could keep posting more e-mails with empty promises until the last contact I had with him on the 19th (when he finally decided to not even respond to the several e-mails I sent afterwards), but to state this simply, I NEVER received any paperwork, I NEVER received any receipt, and I NEVER received any refund. To date, he has apparently taken my money and pocketed it. I tried to call him several times without being able to get in touch with him over the course of the past month. Finally, I called one last time on the number he gave me on his business card. It was disconnected. I tried the "new" number he gave me in his final e-mail and a child answered and told me I had the wrong number. Here is his final e-mail:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 2/19/2003 2:03:02 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: [email protected] (Robert Kite)
To: [email protected]

Lauren,

I am sorry for not responding sooner, I have been busy moving to the new facility, but anyways,I sent the receipt and such, just normal mail, i would assume it would be ther by now or in the next couple days, the money was sent out certified, so that I know that you get it it should be there friday at the latest, sryy for the dealays, but it hqs been so busy around here.As far as shipping, send them back as fats as you can after you get the money, overnite will work just fine....Sorry so short, and Thansk again.

Bob Kite

p.s. Also, would like to give you the new address for our buisness,it is
3911 S. 36th Ave W.
Coflax Ia, 50054

also the #'s on the card that was sent are no longer in service, the new # will be wrking by friday and it is, 1-515-770-5431 thanks
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a final try, I called his parner Jeff Terry, that was also listed under Odyssey Reptiles on the business card. He had a different area code, and like I assumed, he claimed to have NO KNOWLEDGE of this transaction ever occuring. I asked him where Bob was, and he told me that he had no idea, but that he thought he was at some sort of conference. I told him that I was planning on posting on the BOI about this transaction, and that I would also take whatever other action I could to assure that others would not be screwed by Bob Kite again.

Jeff Terry seemed like he wanted to help me, and promised that he would keep in touch and try to figure out what was going on. We talked on the phone at least four times in the past week or so. The stories kept changing every time. Bob was at a conference. Bob was here in Florida buying snakes. Bob was not available. Bob said he needed pictures. I told him that Bob had already acknowledged VIA WRITING that he had seen the pictures I sent him posted up on a website. Jeff told me finally that if Bob was not willing to resolve this issue, that he, himself, would. He said he did not want his business reputation ruined due to one bad transaction. He then told me that he would not be able to ship a refund until he had received the bodies. I told him that was fine, but that I required a written receipt in the very least. He promised up and down that he would overnight a receipt to me and that it would be here no later than Saturday, March 1st.

Well, it is now Monday, March 3rd, and I STILL have no receipt, nor refund, nor paperwork. Basically, everything that they told me was a lie, and it appears that they had every intention of scamming me. I am now unable to get in touch with either of them, though I will keep trying. They will also be notified of this thread.

Anyhow, to those of you that made it through this post, it would be most unwise to ever do business with Jeff Terry, Bob Kite, or anyone under the name of Odyssey Reptiles.

I will post images of the dead animals as soon as I can figure out how to do it.

Thank you for your time,

Lauren Rost
 
Hopefully these pictures will work...

MaleDOABOI.jpg


FemaleDOABOI.jpg


Regards,

Lauren Rost
 
Sorry to hear

I am very sorry to hear you are going through this it is sad. The pictures didnt work or atleast I am not seeing them. I hope someone on here will have something to say to help you more.
 
Since the site you linked to apparently doesn't allow the linking of pics, here you go...

Male
 

Attachments

  • maledoaboi.jpg
    maledoaboi.jpg
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After seeing the pics

Wow I feel ever more sorry for you now that I have seen the pics. How long has it been since he has contacted you back?
 
Thanks for the warning, Lauren. I'm really sorry you're having to go through this. It's a completely irreponsible person that behaves as these men have been doing. It makes one wonder if those snakes were not dead and frozen before they were shipped (the heat packs used to thaw them out some before arrival?). After all, why would someone guarantee a 110% refund if they arrived DOA? That just doesn't set well with me . . .IMHO.


:uhh:
 
Thank you for replies. I really appreciate you taking the time to read this.

Also, Ken, thank you very much for uploading the pictures for me. I didn't realize that the site would not allow linking.

Darin, to be honest, the thought that they might have sold me already deceased boas crossed my mind as well once the animals arrived and they were already in a state of rigor mortis. I have never had a DOA before, though, and and I thought it still might have been due to the extreme cold they were exposed to.

If you look at their positions (ugh..these pictures make me so sad), they were still "sticking" in the position they were in when I pulled them out of the box. But why would someone even bother shipping "pre-killed" snakes? They could have just kept the money.

As far as the 110% refund, I did not think it was that strange since it was not a huge purchase price, so then it would not be an exceptional amount to refund should the need arise. I guess to me it just seemed like they were confident when I was reading over their terms. :(

By the way, I forgot to mention that they have a website. Here is the URL:

Odyssey Reptiles

Anyhow, thanks again folks for your support.

Regards,

Lauren Rost
 
The reason I would be concerned about the 110% thing is because, rather than making it look as though they were really confident in their shipping practices, it looks more like they were trying to sweeten the pot by boasting too much, if you know what I mean.

For example, I believe that it was Jesse Underhill that was offering replacements for his "hets" with the mutations the original animals were supposed to be het for, if they turned out not to be hets. So, if your normal ball, het albino turned out to be a simple normal, you would be "guaranteed" an albino ball as a replacement. Well, Jesse had no albinos, hets, or intentions to EVER fulfill that promise. It just made the deal look good, and he suckered people into it.

I got the same uneasy feeling about your scenario when I first read it. Maybe it's just the cynic coming out in me, though.

I also think that sending you previously dead animals is a good way to run you around the mullberry bush for awhile rather than just keeping your money and sending you nothing. Also, it will be hard for you to prove that those animals weren't alive when you got them, if you decided to go the legal route, and he can prove that he sent you a package on the dates stated. So, I would think that there are SOME benefits for a scammer to send dead snakes as opposed to not shipping at all.

Just some thoughts on this. I am sorry you've had to suffer this whole mess! Hang in there!
 
Call me crazy...

Thanks for posting the link to their website.

This may sound like the pettiest statement in the world, but I have to say that when I go to a website that has blatant spelling and grammatical errors, it always sends up a red flag. Carelessness, pure and simple. If someone is careless in how their business is represented to their customers, I always think they're just as careless in other aspects of running their business.

In other words, since they don't spell "guarantee" correctly, I wouldn't expect them to stand by it either.
 
I got the same uneasy feeling about your scenario when I first read it. Maybe it's just the cynic coming out in me, though.

I understand where you are coming from. The one thing that I do get out of having to deal with a situation like this is that I will surely be quite a bit more cautious about who I do business with in the future.

So, I would think that there are SOME benefits for a scammer to send dead snakes as opposed to not shipping at all.

What a horrible thought! At least, while my situation may never be resolved, others will be more careful about the possibility of receiving dead snakes as a scam, instead of an accident, as it is normally thought of.

As far as their website, I wish I had known of it's existence before I purchased the snakes. Unfortunately, I did not even know the HTML until it I received the business card that it was listed on with the box of dead boas.

Thanks for all of the imput, folks. I appreciate it.

Regards,

Lauren Rost
 
I wonder

I wonder if he is going to now take fauna out of the links section on there site. I hope they come here and post about how they are going to handle this or atleast email you back.
 
First I would like to say Lauren, I am truly sorry for what you have been through. How awful!

Now, maybe it is just the evil woman in me, but maybe you should go "sign" their Guest Book :dgrin: You could add the link to this thread as well.

Just a thought. :)
 
Wow!! Unbelivable! I may be a newbie, but it really pisses me off to high heaven to see this type of crap. It's becoming harder and harder to actually trust anyone anymore. ARGH! BTW, could someone tell them they need to go back to their site and spell cheaper properly(not cheeper).

Eric Brokaw
 
Hi,
Just a little story.

My wife sent out some thank you cards on February 17... I think it is a monday. Her parents just got it last friday. the 28th.

Maybe it just got delayed in all the bad storms we are having?
Try contacting him again. I have done business with both of these gentlemen. Actually they bought from me and everything went smooth. Yes I know that someone buying and someone selling are two different things. I just do not think they would stiff you.

Bob if you are out there....I know you will do the right thing.
 
p.s.

they also gave you new contact info on how to reach them.
If they are trying to go into hiding......I do not think they would give you the new contact info.



My gut feeling. They will do the right thing.
 
Have you attempted to notify them of this thread?

Yes, I have. Here is the e-mail I sent them today after I posted the initial thread on the BOI:
--------------------------------
Subj: Re: Boa constrictors
Date: 3/3/2003 5:23:22 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: BrimstoneHunter
To: [email protected]

Bob,

I posted on the Board of Inquiry about our transaction and your business.

http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=13

Regards,

Lauren
--------------------------------
I truly hope they will come here, too, and explain their situation. At least maybe then I can understand why, after so long, this still has yet to be resolved in a professional manner. I hold no malice for them, and I have tried to be calm and reasonable in each and every phone call and e-mail.

My wife sent out some thank you cards on February 17... I think it is a monday. Her parents just got it last friday. the 28th.

That would be understandable, except they told me that they sent me paperwork when I bought the boas back early February, and nothing arrived. They told me they were sending a refund, certified mail, and nothing arrived. They told me they were sending a receipt, and still nothing has arrived. You think in the time period, from February 12th until March 3rd, that something would have arrived, especially when they promised me that the receipt was to be overnighted.

Even when I expressed my fears over this transaction, they did not offer a tracking number, try to find out what happened to their certified mail or other documents, etc., assuming they were really sent. And that is completely ignoring the contradicting statements I have heard from both Bob and Jeff on separate occasions regarding their whereabouts, shipping information, refund information, and even the origin of these two snakes! For example, I was told by Bob Kite that he bred the two boas himself. I was told by Jeff Terry, a few weeks later, that the boas were picked up at a reptile show in Des Moines.

As far as tbe new contact info, I have been told that I have the wrong phone number already. And the previous number is disconnected. Not to mention that Bob Kite stopped responding to my e-mails back on the 19th, despite repeated attempts to get in touch with him.

I hope I am wrong, but it still seems to me that if they had any plans to give me a refund, that something (anything!) would have been done by this point. They have my phone numbers and e-mail address, and not once have they tried to contact me. Everything that has happened has been a result of my attempts to follow through with them.

I hope your gut feeling is right, Ritchie. :(

Regards,

Lauren Rost
 
I don't know either of these two individuals, but I hope Ritchie is right, because that would mean a) They're not bad guys after all, and b) Lauren will be getting her money back. However, I have one small problem with the idea that the mail has perhaps been lost/misplaced/or reshffled due to weather conditions: Why aren't these two guys upset about their money order floating around out there????

Surely, a tracking number could be produced for Lauren to be able to track this down herself, right? Why haven't they kept in better contact with her? If I owed someone some money like these two do, you better believe I would want them satisfied ASAP, and I would not rest until they were!

Honestly, I truly hope Ritchie is right and I am wrong. However, I am getting that sinking feeling that this may be a case of good guys gone bad (or at the very least, gone careless). Ritchie, if you know these guys, maybe you could light a fire under them to do the right thing here?

I'll say this, though, if Jesse James Underhill had done this, we all would have seen it as nothing less than "more of the same." Reputation will cover a multitude of errors, but if the errors are not fixed, they will define the reputation, eventually.
 
IMHO, It doesn't matter whether Ritchie knows them or not. They have been remiss in their duties as a seller. They have not contacted Lauren, she has had to do all the contacting. They have been promising but promises thus far has not come through. I hope this is resolved also. Perhaps since Ritchie knows them they will come through. It still do NOT make what they have already done right. I would have to think twice before buying from them now.
Is this a case where you have to beg and bully for them to do the right thing when they are in the wrong?
 
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