Bad Guy Horrible experience with snakes at sunset

[Chris Kennard]

Also, a true business person strives to keep even the peskiest of customers happy. Their money is no less green.

 

[Snake-Queen]

Also, a true business person strives to keep even the peskiest of customers happy. Their money is no less green.

True, but sometimes you can only take so much.

OP, most times, refunds take 3 business days to process, you will probably have your refund on Tuesday/Wednesday, depending on when it was issued (if it was).

 

[juliasara]

If someone emailed me wanting to buy one of my lizards and asked that I ship it that day or the next day I would most likely not sell to them at all. In my opinion reptiles should never be impulse buys. That situation often doesn't end well for the reptile. My animals mean way too much to me to send them off to someone who is impulsively buying them and isn't ready or educated enough to care for them. I'm not saying that is the case with the op but if he emailed me and was very pushy about getting it shipped out ASAP that's what I would think. When another living creature is involved it shouldn't be a rushed thing. Weather conditions, the animals safety among other things should be taken into consideration. Shipping on Thursday is never a good idea especially this time of year. It's very cold at night some places and if something goes wrong with the shipping company the animal will sit in a freezing cold warehouse for 3 cold nights in a tiny box with no food and nowhere to go to potty except where your forced to sit in it. I wouldn't wish that long weekend on my worst enemy! I understand that the op wanted it there for a birthday but if you'very ever bought a reptile before you know it takes more then 24 hours to buy one and have it shipped and if you hadn't you should have researched and asked questions more then a week before to see how long the process takes. Waiting till last min to buy a present online last min almost always means said prespresent doesn't make it there in time. I hope snakes at sunset at least gets pictures sent to you before the party so you can show your friend the pics. 3 days is completely normal to have to wait for a response. It's nice when people answer immediately but shouldn't be expected. Just because someone is a breeder or seller doesn't mean they don't have a day job, a family and other responsibilities. I'm sure things will work out and you'll either get the animal you wanted or a full refund just relax enjoy your friends party and be patient!

 

[SamBob]

As what I said I extremely not recommend if you want any of your question to be answered because they are very busy.
If they are that busy, why dont they just not simply hire more people? and I did nothing wrong to mention that the communication is bad, and I dont care what cause that .

"Simply hire more people"

You try being a very popular breeder, investing tens of thousands of dollars into snakes; feeding, cleaning, buying bedding, treating for mites/parasites, vet bills, housing bills, electric bills, water bills, etc. After all of that adds up, but much money do you have to hire employees? How much time do you have to do interviews? Can you pay them? Do they know what they are doing? If not, is there time to teach them? So obviously you don't understand that he cannot "simply hire more people" because that is not how it works. There are way too many factors that come into play. So again, don't overreact. Even though you already have.

 

[Lucille]

In my opinion, the OP went too far with multiple emails close together. The seller did in fact reply, saying he could ship Monday.
That was probably adequate because as brief as the communication was, it implied that the seller was not going to ship prior, and left time for the buyer to cancel if the shipment on Monday was not acceptable. (There have already been some excellent posts on birthdays and critters, and how plenty of time and planning should be key).

If I was a seller and knew a critter was for a birthday and knew I wasn't going to meet the birthday deadline I might take an extra minute and give the buyer a call, just for the sake of good communication and good relations.
But after all those emails, it might be that the seller did not want to deal with this buyer.

A comment on the nature of gifts: If you totally forget a birthday or God forbid your anniversary, there may be some atonement required. Fancy gifts are never a requirement for anything, however, it is the thought that counts. A handmade card and a homemade dinner is always good.

Here, a cake with a lizard on the frosting and a birthday card with a paper lizard and the words 'arriving soon' might be a hit.
The birthday is today, and that stuff could still be done. Much nicer than the birthday girl having no gift (because the shipment was not practical) at all and having to hear a tirade.

 

[crotalusadamanteus]

Wow, it's like talking to a rock. I think I'm going to unsubscribe to this one.

 

[Mikkwa]

Wow, it's like talking to a rock. I think I'm going to unsubscribe to this one.

 

[Snake-Queen]

Wow, it's like talking to a rock. I think I'm going to unsubscribe to this one.

Very much so.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[neilg]

i really dont see why any drama at all.

in placing an order, with payment, indicate 'ship by <insert date here> or CANCEL' in writing as well as via phone if the vendor is available by phone. note nowadays, many online businesses are not available by phone in which case they are implying that they are online.

if the vendor replies that they cannot meet your deadline, it is understood that the order is cancelled.

if the vendor does not reply, it is also understood that the order is pending cancellation once the vendor reviews the order.

if the vendor replies that they cannot meet your deadline included with the payment, but holds onto the order for future shipping, the vendor risks their shipment being refused by the buyer/giftee which in the case of perishable merchandise, could be a death warrant.

so, i don't see why an intended LIVE birthday gift would be ordered so last minute with not even a 48 hour window to ready the LIVE merchandise for shipping for the next available business day (just because a vendor indicates they ship monday thru thursday doesn't mean every single animal in their inventory will be available to ship immediately; some might need fasting or may be under one more day of observation before cleared for ship)

likewise i dont see why a vendor given a clear deadline with an order payment wouldn't cancel/refund the order right away once it's clear that the buyer's deadline cannot be met.

and again if an online business isn't reachable by phone it stands that they rely on communication.. ONLINE.

 

[E.Shell]

I read all of the BOI threads and NEVER respond to any of them (well, one before this), but this one is absolutely killing me and I cannot stop myself....

I'm not a breeder, but I am in business for myself and do business with the public. Most of my clientele comes to me through email and forums, and it is a broad cross section of humanity.

I have had a few clients like the OP, and had I had as good foresight as my hindsight, I would have KNOWN they were going to be problem clients from the very beginning. Instead, I overrode my first impressions and overlooked the approach. These people invariably ended up being (continuing to be) unreasonable and while we made it through the temporary relationship, stress from deals like that would soon drive me from the business. These days, as soon as I smell something like this, I immediately tell the prospective client that we will not likely be a good match and that he might try one of my competitors, like "XYZ".

The ONLY shortcoming I see from the potential seller is that they should have told the OP to just forget it as soon as they realized how things were going to go. Of course, this can be hard to do and maybe the seller is trying to let the OP cool down or something, hoping they will get something reasonable and coherent at some point, like a direct answer to their prior correspondence.

From what I understand, the OP asked for pictures and received a very clear answer:

"No pics before the weekend.", accompanied by the query "does this work?"

The correct answer here from the buyer would have been:

a) "I see. I need to move faster, I'll have to cancel."
OR
b) "That's fine. I'll be looking forward to seeing them Monday.".

One or the other. That's all there ever was to say.

"Awww Mommmm!!!" doesn't work in business. This approach cannot open a hole in someone's schedule where there is no room or move one to the front of the line by force.

Any response beyond either "a" or "b" above, like trying to contact the seller to "work this out" in any other way, is a complete waste of the seller's time.

Work what out? They already said what they could do and asked if it was OK?

Then, to hammer the seller with an excess (whew!!!) number of additional emails that clearly waste their time is WAY over the top. "Out of sight" over the top. Stalker/harassment-type over the top.

I'm old and independent and contrary, but had this been done to me, I'd not waste my time with this obviously unreasonable customer. I'd simply cancel any pending order and advise the customer in a no-nonsense manner that our business is concluded. From there on out, I would not even bother to read any further emails from this potential buyer. This might make me unpopular in some circles, but I can better serve my core clientele by not wasting my time.

This is where I would find fault with the potential seller: They should have cleared up any confusion by simply telling the OP to shop elsewhere. As it is, it is impossible to know their intentions and in a narrowly focused way, I don't blame the OP for being aggravated by this specific lack of communication.

OTOH, there already WAS ample communication that was not clearly addressed by the OP. Just because the potential buyer didn't like the answer doesn't mean there was anything to "work out", nor is the seller expected to be required to negotiate what they have already stated to be their best possible accommodation to the OP's requests.

As pointed out above, answering emails is a part of business, but there are also concepts like "priorities" and "time constraints" and "personal life". I work 8-10 hours a day, then spend about 1-2 hours daily answering emails, private messages and phone calls. Sometimes, I just cannot get to everything and may not return every call and every email. If someone is clearly wasting my time, it is hard to make it a priority to respond and I guarantee they will not get a return until my reasonable clients are taken care of.

If, for example, I quote my regular fee and the potential client found my rates to be too high, or that my earliest availability was December, but then they said they wanted to "talk about it and work it out", I'd know they wanted to try to persuade me to do something I cannot do. Do they expect me to dump someone else to give them a slot? Do they really think I have so much money in the deal that I can give some to them if they pound on me enough? I'd probably not even bother respond, because they are attempting to waste my time and energy trying to negotiate something that is non-negotiable.

Junranpd, I feel your pain, brother. My advice, slow down. A lot. You haven't had a bad experience. Life doesn't move as fast as you can punch computer keys. You haven't been robbed. You haven't been disrespected. It's a nice thing to get your friend a rhino iguana. Put it in a lower gear, give mike enough time to get this done. I don't know mike, but I don't doubt for a second this can end well. Slow down. Let it happen. Don't assume the worst. As important as this is, it's one of many daily transactions mike has to nail down and execute. These things are complicated and time consuming. Hope it goes well.

This is a great post! Very reasonable and well stated.

I cannot tell over the internet whether the OP is a young person still learning the ways of the world or simply a difficult person used to being catered to up till now. I DO have the impression the OP is extremely impatient and impulsive, and regardless of the basis for this behavior, there has really been no reason to start and perpetuate a thread like this. I see no 'bad guys' here, there has been no theft or fraud.

You asked.
They answered.
You went postal with emails.
They ducked and covered.
No apparent mystery.

I'd like to see the seller respond here and would ask if they have been alerted to this thread? It would be interesting to see another side of this "issue".

I'd be delighted to see a FULL disclosure of ALL emails, BOTH WAYS, start to finish, from both sides. No editing, no BS, no editorializing.

 

[95se5384]

Mike you need to jump in this mess to clear things up...

 

[pandidannycn]

Still no reply, no message, no e-mail, no refund what all the defenders here gonna say about this? LOL. You guys need to shut up unless you want to pay me the money back or let snake at sunset pay me the money back

 

[neilg]

Most of my clientele comes to me through email and forums, and it is a broad cross section of humanity.

...

I'd like to see the seller respond here and would ask if they have been alerted to this thread? It would be interesting to see another side of this "issue".

well said. people send flowers overnight on a whim for special occasions knowing they will soon wither and die anyways. but reptiles? they're almost expected to outlive us ourselves- and often do, with the right care and planning ahead.

any reputable vendor that cannot meet buyer demands [ie, ship live animal(s) out without at least 1 or 2 days' allowance after payment to ready the livestock for its journey] can and does every right to refuse business with buyer because of such demands - in the best interest of the welfare of animal(s).

however once payment is accepted, the vendor in turn is responsible for promptly notifying of the order refused/cancelled, and any such payment reversed.

the OP claims the vendor could not meet the buyer's demands, yet that the vendor is now ignoring buyer's demands for a refund.

the vendor in question actually has an active FC account here so i don't understand why a number of days have already passed and yet the vendor hasn't even responded here, yet.

not that there would be much to say other than yea, we couldn't meet your demands so your order's been cancelled and any refund due cirrently in process.

 

[pandidannycn]

I reiterate here that I am angry not because the seller(snake at sunset) can not meet my demand, i am angry because the seller not willing to discuss with me at all! and still no reply on refund things!

 

[Lucille]

I reiterate here that I am angry not because the seller(snake at sunset) can not meet my demand, i am angry because the seller not willing to discuss with me at all! and still no reply on refund things!

The seller DID reply to you and told you they could ship today.
After all your posts and the fact that you started a BG thread when in fact the seller replied telling you what he could do, he probably doesn't want to talk to you.
The refund may take a few days, if you paid by Echeck it has to clear. There's no need to send a million emails about it either, wait a few days.

 

[Manny]

Yeah, I don't think Mike is going to waste time coming here to "clear" anything up. Things are pretty clear already. You can't squease grease out of a block! I'd rather that he spend it on a good customer.

 

[gila7150]

he probably doesn't want to talk to you.

I think we can all agree that the OP went a bit overboard here but Snakes at Sunset still owes the OP a prompt response. This is not a private breeder that can choose to ignore a difficult customer. This is a retail pet store with an online presence. Their store is open 7 days a week and one would assume that they check their email at least once a day. A professional business is able to deal with the easy customers and the difficult ones. It would take 5 seconds to email the OP and say "We're not going to be able to help you this time but we're currently processing your refund". The OP's overzealous behavior does not mean that Snakes at Sunset gets a pass and doesn't need to handle things professionally on their end. The OP should not have to assume that they are processing a refund.
An online search of their reviews would show that customer service may not be their strong suit.

 

[Lucille]

The OP should not have to assume that they are processing a refund.

While I agree that the OP should be notified if a refund has been given, if he paid via Echeck SAS would be prudent if they waited until the check cleared.
In addition, you are implying that we are hearing the full story and seeing all emails/messages sent and received between the two parties.

 

[Pasodama]

Have made clear how I am no fan of the OP's approach, & behavior, with the seller. I can also imagine the possible aggravation that that the seller may feel toward the OP.
However, I feel that professionalism would dictate, by now, that the seller send an email, to the OP, by today or tomorrow. Even if it is a short email stating that they will be refunding the OP's payment in "x" amount of days or that they are waiting for the payment to clear and will send refund once it does clear. From there, they can ignore the OP, all they want, and just refund the money when the time comes.

 

[rcarichter]

OP, maybe I missed this, but why exactly did you send money before an acceptable agreement over a specific animal was worked out?