Kelli,
It seems as though we are interpreting the initial post differently. That’s quite alright, and you may very well be right but here is what I read in that entire post:
Thought it might be helpful to other herp enthusiasts to hear about my recent interactions with Tracy Barker at VPI. As anyone who is into herps will know, Tracy and Dave Barker have an incredible collection of snakes, mostly Pythons and Boas. I think it’s accurate to say that Tracy handles most of the retail activity, and occasionally she will place an ad on kingsnake.com.
Praises to VPI animals.
I imagine the volume of phone calls and e-mails to VPI is considerable, and I don’t expect immediate responses from Tracy when I inquire about the availability of an animal. On a couple of occasions I e-mailed Tracy with a photo request, and received an immediate response saying that she would take pics and be back in touch. On the first two of these occasions, I never heard from her again….no photos, no communication. Not really a big deal---I simply purchased from other sources and left it alone.
Complete understanding of the issue, non-unrealistic expectations, non-judgmental, took his business elsewhere.
This Spring I did purchase a Blood Python from Tracy, and it was a good interaction, with prompt responses, great service, and a very nice animal. I was, and am, very pleased with the snake.
More praises to VPI service and animals.
In early August Tracy advertised some Blood Pythons and I e-mailed her in response, asking for photos and sharing my interest in a purchase…No response for several days, so I called and left a message, sharing two phone numbers and asking her to call me. I didn’t get a response, so after a few days I e-mailed again. I finally got a response from Tracy, who asked the appropriate questions about what I was looking for and said she’d take photos.
States facts in a civil way. and in spite of the delay, again non-judgmental
After that interaction in August, I was regularly in touch with Tracy via e-mail and these are some of her statements: “Got it, and you will get pics tonight!”…and “pic time is here-I have my animals marked for you!”… After more than 6 weeks, I was still waiting to see a photo. At the beginning of October, I finally sent an e-mail to Tracy:
More facts about his interaction with Tracy. More than 6 weeks go by and sends the following e-mail:
Tracy-
No big deal right now, but at some point in the future I'd like to
consider buying a het from you.... I've been working at this since
early August, and haven't seen a photo yet.
I get the idea that I'll never hear from you again unless I do all the
work to make something happen. Are you having regrets about giving me
the $500 credit?
In a very polite manner states that he still would like to buy a snake, and asks a valid question.
Tracy responded:
Jim,
I am so sorry. Honestly I have had my own health issues, my dad just dropped dead of a stroke last week, and Dave has been working like mad trying to finish this ball python book. I absolutely have every intention of honoring your credit.
I will try and get Dave to fix the photos I took for you asap. I'm off to Baltimore to be with my mom til Saturday. I am planning to do shipping the week after. Please accept my apologies for this delay.
Tracy
Tracy responds with a very valid reason for the delay, states she will honor the credit, and says she has already taken the pictures (…“fix the photos I took for you asap”…)
Yes, I felt like a jerk. I sent her this e-mail:
Tracy-
I am so sorry to hear about your Dad! and obviously it's fine to have all this put on hold indefinitely. I believe in the power of prayer, and will be praying for you and your family- I know you have been through cancer..has it returned?
Jim
Acknowledges he was feeling bad about his requests after learning the problems Tracey has been going through. He is completely sympathetic with Tracy’s recent loss.
That was Oct 3….I haven’t heard from Tracy since then, but figured she’s been tied up with family stuff and out of the business loo Frankly, if I lost my Dad I’d be out of commission for a long long time.
He comments on how he would actually feel and act if something like that happened to him. He completely understands the situation.
THEN, today (10/26), I noticed an Oct 15 ad by Tracy on kingsnake.com for a Retic, saying “email for pics” in her ad…
He is caught by surprise by the fact that business resumed for VPI, but he has yet to hear from them. What I can imagine is that with the number of e-mails, requests, questions, and animals to tend, more than likely something fell through the cracks; it happens to anyone.
I have now given up on purchasing anything else from VPI. Hopefully mine is an isolated situation, and others will have far better to report. If you're willing to stick it out, you are likely to be very pleased with the results.
He sounds disappointed by the way things turned around for him and not being able to buy that animal from VPI. Even though he still praises VPI and his animals.
This is the post in its entirety. We seem to be reading different things or a different intention by the poster, and that’s fine. My interpretation is summarized in his last sentence:
If you're willing to stick it out, you are likely to be very pleased with the results. What I read there is: “if you are willing to wait you will be rewarded with the quality of the animals you get”. In this instance he was not willing to wait any longer. Is that bad?
The only things I read in his e-mail are praises, sympathy, and a bit of disappointment because not being able to buy the animal he wanted from VPI.
As a potential future buyer from VPI my conclusion is: they have great animals, they have a very busy schedule, if my plans are to buy from them and I’m patient, I’ll be rewarded with the quality of their animals.
Kind regards,
