Info Erik Strait, aka Eriks Reptiles, Parasites and Misrepresentation

[rhacfiendrva]

You also know from photos and video the the "worms" killed the animal, can you say that 100%? Really ?

 

[Chris Kennard]

Take away from this what you will. An information thread, yes. The OP was a victim, unintentionally, yes. The seller did not knowingly/intentionally sell an infested or sick product, but he did nonetheless. This should be a lesson to the seller, not the buyers. I seriously doubt that, even if the OP took this gecko to a vet, it would have survived. Anyone doubting the OP should put yourself in her place. Would you blame yourself?

 

[Chris Kennard]

You also know from photos and video the the "worms" killed the animal, can you say that 100%? Really ?

 

[rhacfiendrva]

If I didn't take it to a qualified vet? Then yes I would, as that is not taking a measure that may have altered the out come of the situation. Do you not take you animals to the vet should thier health be in question?

 

[Chris Kennard]

You also know from photos and video the the "worms" killed the animal, can you say that 100%? Really ?

Tell you what braincell. If I am ever found dead of a gunshot wound to the head, I hope to God you are not the homocide detective working on the case.

 

[rhacfiendrva]

You said it, that the "worms" obviously killed the gecko. So you know this because you have seen it how many times? Are your animals that affected by parasites that you know what has happened by sight?

 

[Chris Kennard]

You said it, that the "worms" obviously killed the gecko. So you know this because you have seen it how many times? Are your animals that affected by parasites that you know what has happened by sight?

Tell you what. If you are found dead with organisms crawling out of your ears, throat, whatever, I'll assume you died of alcohol poisoning or drug overdose.

 

[reptilebaby]

True. Not relevant at all. lol If one has worms then so does the other I'm sure!

 

[Wilomn]

I'm curious.

How many who have POSTED in THIS thread have actually seen live lung worms?

Not a slide, not a picture, not anything but live lung worms.

I have. Who else that's posted in this thread has seen them in person?

 

[reptilebaby]

I agree with chris on this thread. I don't think it was right to have untreated wild caught animals mixed with captive hatched ones. I wouldn't have TOO MUCH of a problem with it, if they had been treated first, but even so I still like to know whether my snakes are captive bred, captive hatched or wild caught. And I like not having any nasty parasites-coming-out-of-the-head surprises too. I think that video of the things crawling out of the mouth was enough proof for me. Unless I missed it, it wasn't disputed that it was the same one she had just bought. And anyway, if they had come from her collection, I'm sure that she probably would have had others that the same thing had happened to, and she wouldn't have been so shocked.

 

[reptilebaby]

Thankfully I have never had to see anything like that.

 

[Chris Kennard]

I'm curious.

How many who have POSTED in THIS thread have actually seen live lung worms?

Not a slide, not a picture, not anything but live lung worms.

I have. Who else that's posted in this thread has seen them in person?

I haven't. But my guess is, you have. And if i am not mistaken, you think the parasites are not maggots. I agree!

 

[Chris Kennard]

I agree with chris on this thread. I don't think it was right to have untreated wild caught animals mixed with captive hatched ones. I wouldn't have TOO MUCH of a problem with it, if they had been treated first, but even so I still like to know whether my snakes are captive bred, captive hatched or wild caught. And I like not having any nasty parasites-coming-out-of-the-head surprises too. I think that video of the things crawling out of the mouth was enough proof for me. Unless I missed it, it wasn't disputed that it was the same one she had just bought. And anyway, if they had come from her collection, I'm sure that she probably would have had others that the same thing had happened to, and she wouldn't have been so shocked.

Common sense at the core of mental mayhem. Well put! If nothing else comes out of this thread, I hope that ANY animals being sold are properly quarantined, checked and treated before sale. If I bought from a self proclaimed "hobbyist" who is not in it "for the money", I would not expect to have aliens crawling out of my purchase.

 

[rhacfiendrva]

Tell you what Chris, if you were found dead at this point is say from your personality alone , it was well deserved. You are the almighty infallible perfect keeper. In fact tell us Chris, how many lung worms have you seen exit through the ears, how long had that gecko been dead, at what point did you see the incision made and the worms crawl out ?

 

[AbsoluteApril]

personal insults are not welcome on fauna...

Brian, Chris, I know you are both trying to make your points but some of the back and forth would be better taken to PMs or not said at all, it just detracts from the subject of this thread IMO

 

[Chris Kennard]

Tell you what Chris, if you were found dead at this point is say from your personality alone , it was well deserved. You are the almighty infallible perfect keeper. In fact tell us Chris, how many lung worms have you seen exit through the ears, how long had that gecko been dead, at what point did you see the incision made and the worms crawl out ?

Koo-koo! If you were found dead from your grammar in that first sentence, which I still don't understand...whatever. There is only room for one "infallible perfect keeper" here, and that must be you, lol. Perhaps you, the all knowing, all seeing, could answer those questions for us. I never claimed they were lung worms or maggots. I gave an opinion based on what I have seen and read in this thread, unlike you. So sorry my personality doesn't suit your agenda. To answer your question..."at what point did you see the incision made and the worms crawl out?", It was when I watched the video... with my good eye.

 

[Chris Kennard]

personal insults are not welcome on fauna...

Brian, Chris, I know you are both trying to make your points but some of the back and forth would be better taken to PMs or not said at all, it just detracts from the subject of this thread IMO

You're right April. PMs would be just as futile as these posts. I am embarrassed that I even dumbed it down to this level. Later.

 

[Pasodama]

I would like to comment that the OP made it clear that she wasn't posting this to make a complaint of the refund (although that's the issue that almost everyone else, including myself, has focused on),

I am aware. Guess you didn't take what I wrote in the manner that it was intended.

but that the seller clearly mixed CB and wild caught animals, was misleading in many statements, and allegedly sent animals that had parasites. While the last wasn't proven with certainty, the first two have been made evident, and makes it a "info thread" more then a bad guy post.

You are right. It hasn't, exactly, been proven ... although it is evident that worms were present in the videos/photos.
If the seller "willy nilly" mixes CB & WC together, that would not be good. However, if it is done to introduce new blood into a breeding program, I don't see the problem with that... if done after a quarantine period.

The thing I do criticize, is that I would not rely on an importer's word (even if a friend of mine) that any animal had been properly treated for parasites. Regardless of what an importer does/says, I would treat them, myself, sometime during the animal's quarantine.

 

[Chris Kennard]

I am aware. Guess you didn't take what I wrote in the manner that it was intended.



You are right. It hasn't, exactly, been proven ... although it is evident that worms were present in the videos/photos.
If the seller "willy nilly" mixes CB & WC together, that would not be good. However, if it is done to introduce new blood into a breeding program, I don't see the problem with that... if done after a quarantine period.

The thing I do criticize, is that I would not rely on an importer's word (even if a friend of mine) that any animal had been properly treated for parasites. Regardless of what an importer does/says, I would treat them, myself, sometime during the animal's quarantine.

Apparently, there may be more than one "importer friend(s)". I'm sure they could contribute quite a bit to this thread. As could the revealing of the ZOOS. But somebody conveniently cut out before adressing those topics, as well as many others. I would love to see the husbandry/cleaning/breeding/fecal exams/feeding etc. schedule of someone who claims to have a "real job", schooling and studies, vacations, pours hundreds of thousands of dollars into his collection, has what I assume is a mortgage and school tuitions, breeds, raises and imports animals to the tune of a thousand strong in his collection, and is just a hobbyist who cares less about the money. Pretty fantastic!

 

[Spyral]

I think I missed where there was evidence of mixing CB & WC together. I think there was a mention of the same photo setup that may not have been properly sanitized between photo shoots? Is that it?

If an animal is WC, placed in a cage with other WC, and that cage is tested for parasites and the results are negative, is this not acceptable? Especially if the importer had stated they were treated previously?

If we knew what these parasites were, we could track down the source. Unfortunately, we don't know whether this was a parasite present while in the seller's care. If it was, he refunded the money.

However, as this is an info-only thread so the focus is not to vilify the seller's business practices but to call attention to the fact that some kind of parasite is present in his stock. This has not been proven and there is a possibility that whatever the worms/maggots are came from the buyer's environment. I don't think it's necessary to grill the buyer on her care and husbandry, but if she wants to volunteer any information on setups, food, and any other problems in her animals it may be helpful to fully understand what happened. Just like it may be prudent for the seller to proactively treat his animals. Panacur can treat certain species of lungworm.

It's possible whatever the worms/maggots only affected this particular gecko if it was stressed from shipping or adapting to a new environment. We just don't know. The only remaining evidence may or not be present in the remaining gecko. We don't know his current level of health it appears that the matter is inconclusive until more data is presented.