• Responding to email notices you receive.
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LA Reptiles

I forgot to mention, one of the reasons

I attend the Daytona show , is to reunite with some of these people. If your ever their, look me up, and I would be delighted to really introduce you to Tom Crutchfield , Hank Molt, Chris and Gene of course , and a whole host of other old timers . We do get together and we have a great time. That also includes Marshall Meyers, who is chief councel for PJAC. I met him when he was just starting his practice.
 
Well, It was certainly interesting to see people I thought were nice turn into sleazy slime because I want to help some poor guy out with his question. Since I have been threatened by one of the posters, Rosie, on this thread I am now inclined to reveal my entire rolodex of business contacts that I have accumulated since 1978. If you ever wanted to get into the reptile business, like Scales, or RK, or Jerry this may be your big chance. Stay tuned...............
 
"Stories about shipments of dc-10 planes specially rented to bring in 2,000 macaws, all sorts of monkeys, hundreds of reptiles, etc are just mind boggling." Mike B.

It`still done that way nothing`s changed except the destination. The buisness hasn`t changed. The animal game has always been dirty. Ernie Eison
 
Ernie,

Would you care to post any proof of your statements? Your post is utterly ridiculous as the animal game is not Dirty and is very well regulated and controlled now. Yes there are still some people that try and break the law but they will get caught sooner or later but that does not make the entire community "dirty".
 
BRUCE, if anyone threatened you , please

let the webmaster know privately. I have a zero tolerance for these kinds of behaviour. Or let me know and I will put a stop to it. JERRY TRESSER
 
Bruce,

definitely inform Rich and Ken if someone has threatned you and post the information on here so everyone may see it. No matter how much a person disagrees there is no reason to make threats toward another.
 
Attn: Jerry Tresser

Hello Mr. Tresser,

Well, I did indeed thought it was you! And you are indeed correct that my comment did not have a lot to do with this thread. However, I started this thread and when you made the comment that you was probably the only person on this site that could purchase from LA Reptile, you sounded like the "Mr. Tresser" that I remember speaking to 25 or 30 years ago! And I almost have to agree with the person that responded to your post with the comment about "Did you have to build your house with oversize doors so that your head would fit in?" In any case I don't want to attack you or really even continue with this conversation! At the time your actions simply confused me and ticked me off. I made a call to you and you brushed me off like a "mother-in-law", then less than two weeks later, you called me and was almost begging for my business. Go figure! But, let's please end this conversation on an upbeat thought! We all have bad "hours", "days", "weeks" and "months"! I have even had a number of bad "years"! I would even love the chance to chat with you if you care to do so on my dime! Take care.

Thank you.

David Rivers
 
Well Mr. Rivers, i dont remember yesterday,

so I am at a disadvantage about conversations I may have had with you 25 to 30 years ago. But apparently whatever I may have said influenced you enough not to forget my name nor the company. I generally never brush people off, I have always made it a policy to treat everyone with respect, and that was the way we ran our operation. If you were familiar with our business then I am sure you must have realized that the animal business was a hectic one. Especially for us. We had a very large operation and dealt with alot of people. If you felt that I slighted you in any way, then I must apologize because I dont make it a habit of providing an unnessary hardship to a potential customer or anyone else for that matter. Alot of things were happening during the turbulent 70s. I just may have been in one of those " dont bother me moods". Aside from having the reptile business, I was a NYC cop which also made me somewhat hyper. But even bringing this to my attention at this time, is fine with me and I apologize again for any inconvenience I may have caused.

Insofar as "building a house with oversized doors" are concerned. I make no excuse for building a business from nothing in 1964 to a large import operation like the one we had. When ever I post a thread that may relate to the "days of old" I happen to have alot to contribute. I was their at the beginning, I was directly involved in bringing in herps that had never been brought into the USA before for the pet trade, I was directly involved in the first International Reptile Dealers Assoc. , and I was directly involved in congressional hearings when impending legislation was looming around the corner in the 70s. If you are familiar with the business that we had, with the exception of yourself, I doubt you would hear any complaints about how we treated our customers.

I am very comfortable in my own shoes as to how we conducted our operation, and as I said I make no excuses if I attempt to provide some history as to how the business was "then", but their are some people on this site who seem to think that either I am making these things up or I have a swollen head as you seem to have implied, and that is where I have to draw the line.

I can substantiate everything I have stated here with articles that I have saved from the trade magazines that were around then. Although it may appear big headed of me to mention that I may have access to certain importers whereas other do not, its not done as a lie or to imply anything other than a fact. As a point of information the reason I have this accessability is because of the way I have treated those very same people with the respect that I would accept. These things are done out of courtesy and respect to me. I appreciate it, and I dont abuse the opportunities that it has given me. They know it, and I want you to understand that as well. Respectfully, JERRY
 
This isn`t the place for this but since I was asked .......Hi Rob , What kind of proof ? Stories about the wheeler dealers in the reptile world.Guys sticking it to each other that type of thing? Or stuff about animals all piled up dying or dead in dirty cages and this most of the time as the direct result of guys getting way more animals then they can handle.Are you saying you don`t see this anymore ?Or do you consider this clean and well regulated? C`mon.I`d like to see you prove otherwise. How about stories of seeing animals suffering at exporters facilities under horrible conditions in other countrys. This still go `s on all the time.TO much.I go to these places and see it first hand.You have to tell me Rob have you ever gone out into primary forest in South America and seen first hand how Macaw`s are collected. How they chop one of their wings or their tail off and let them spiral down a hundred feet to the ground?They do this to thousands of them and stick them on charter planes to ship them to the Netherlands.Just like they used to send them here in the good old days. Not to mention what some of the other animals have to go thru.This happens every summer in Suriname and Guyana. This is just a little of the crap I've seen down there and other places.It`s about as cruel as it gets ABOUT.Your saying thats not dirty? I never said the whole community was dirty thats you and you alone talking .I wouldn`t couldn`t make a complete blanket statment about it threres not one that can be made.I try to see the good in everyone and always hope that things get better.Like anything else there's good and bad but in the animal business the bad is the worst because the bad comes at the expense of living creatures and yes that part of the buisness is dirty always has been nobody can honestly say different. It`s not all nightmares at least on the Suriname side of things a few guys are trying to do it right down there and it might all get shut down anyhow some of the bigger guys if they can be called that tell me they think it might have 5yrs left but I think that story`s been going around for ten years so we`ll see.Bottom line is it will never be clean.Tell me how doe`s this compare to what you've seen in your travels maybe you can provide a little proof about how clean things are?I`d like your perspective.Things you`ve seen in other countrys and here. I truly believe that for the most part in the reptile game guys don`t start out as bad guys and at heart their not .They start because they do love the animals. Who would be dumb enough to go into reptiles to get rich ?But one thing leads to another they get in over their heads their depts get out of control they start robing Peter to pay Paul this that and the other thing and then it gets ugly.Some guys are just bad.This is all over the buisness.I have to disagree with you Rob I feel that your saying that the industry is now clean and well regulated is what `s utterly ridiculous.Very nieve. The reptile business is one where you can get punished for trying to do the right thing .By that I mean there are guys who take the time and HUGE expense to do what is necessary to properly house large numbers of animals and try to provide the best care for their animals these guys put their live stock first and for their efforts some of them end up so far down thier never going to get out from under it`s a crime that it ends up this way.It really is. And surly not a sign of a well regulated industry. Clean and well regulated to me means none of the above nonsense happens but as it stands it still now happens way to much. The reptile buisness is still very bootleg even when compared to other aspects of the animal world. Here there and everywhere. In my opinion. Im not preaching or being judmental or anything just giving my honest oppinion guys do what they feel they have to do it`s a tough racket.Some right some wrong. Ernie Eison
 
Great post Ernie.

BTW, I am not sure why people are so intent on getting animals from LA Reptiles. I was at a dealer's warehouse just a couple of days ago and, although his setups were suffecient, I would say about 75% of what he had looked like crap or was dead or dying. When asked who his supplier was, he said, "LA Reptile". Yeah, they're prices may be the best on the planet but you coudn't pay me to take the animals I saw at that warehouse.

Just my opinion.:)
 
Exotica Reptiles said:
"Stories about shipments of dc-10 planes specially rented to bring in 2,000 macaws, all sorts of monkeys, hundreds of reptiles, etc are just mind boggling." Mike B.

It`still done that way nothing`s changed except the destination. The buisness hasn`t changed. The animal game has always been dirty. Ernie Eison
Click to expand...

Ernie,

You statement above is a blanket statement about the animal game. By this statement that includes all aspects of the animal arena. Maybe you did not mean it as a blanket statement but that is what I took it as in the fashion you posted it.

I appreciate your post but what I have seen in the last 10 years has been a very large improvement on the way things are handled. Now a days here in the US USF&W regulates the importation a helluva lot more than they ever have and here in Florida FWC officers inspect the facilities. Now does this mean that there are not times that overcrowding happens? NO. But with having to be licensed by the State and By the Federal Government to conduct the business it does make things more regulated and controlled. I admit I have seen some other importers not caring for the animals like I would and do but I have also seen them ALL change for the better in the last number of years. Yes they can all do more improvement but they are on their way. Also I have seen some exporter facilities and the ones I have seen have actually been concerned about the animals health and well being. Now does this mean that all of them care and house them animals correctly? No! But it means that the ones that care about the animals do so and those are the ones that I use as suppliers. As for your statement about animals still being loaded into planes and flown to the Netherlands I have no proof and have seen no proof of this and if you have proof then maybe you should present it to the Government of those countries as that type of behavior does violate international laws and should be stopped. If someone does not do everything they can to prevent illegal activity then they are basically condoning it. I have worked a few times with the USF&W in operations against exporters in other countries that try to conduct illegal activity and have been able to stop some of them. I am not saying that I am making a dent in the illegal animal arena but every little bit helps. The more responsible people that get involved the better the animals and the legal animal community will be.
 
ERNIE, I am not to sure what you mean

by "the good old days" but I can tell you that most of the wholesalers that we supplied during the late 60 and 70s were more travelers than having a physical place of business. They had routes that they would take to provide their customers with. Most of the bird importers that I knew were in Fla. and I never saw anything remotely related to what you are referring to.

I know from my own experience that we maintained a quality facility because of the volume of animals that were moving through our place. Thats not to say that these things that you mentioned did not occur, but these are exceptions to the rule and not the way the business was handled when I was in it. The animal business was very profitable and everyone did well, at least those who purchased from us.

I think if David Rivers who recently posted will tell you, most of the animals were imported , arrived in good condition and delivered within 24 to 48 hours to their destination. Much of which was delivered by the wholesaler himself. What advantage could we possibly provide by having dead animals. Now I am not talking about what may have been smuggled or illegaly obtained, but I think with the way things are monitored today, the picture that you are painting seems a bit farfetched.

Birds I know nothing about, but I do know that their were quarantine stations set up in the mid 70s and the importers had a substantial amount of money invested in insuring that these animals were cared for a minimum of 30 days before being released and vet certified that they were healthy. This business about shipments going to the Netherlands may very well be true, but I seriously doubt it was intended for the bird market but rather the feather market. I can appreciate your concern, but dont group everyone who is in the herp business as a piriah.
 
Bruce,
By all means post a threat made to you!!! I sure would like to see it lol.
Rob, Jerry, any thing I have written to Bruce is on this thread, so if you see a threat let me know. If not I will not waste my time here. Thanks.
 
"the picture that you are painting seems a bit farfetched. "

What part is far fetched tell me and I`ll fetch it as close as I can it get without name dropping . Ernie
 
My impression was that things were by far worse than they are now.

The only real way to improve the conditions are to demand better quality from your suppliers (whether this is the local pet store, a breeder or an importer) but be willing to pay a little extra for the time and effort it takes to deliver that quality.

There is a retail market out there that understands the term "value" and I have seen an increase in that "value shopper" in just the short time I've been in this industry. As people that buy to supply that need of the value shopper we need to demand that quality from importers or breeders that we buy from (as breeders ourselves we know the time and money it takes to provide quality animals). It is much more cost efficient for me to pay a few dollars more to receive quality animals from an importer than it is to rehab an animal into proper condition that I would feel represents our name properly.

Regulations will only improve quality in the short term as people find ways to manipulate the laws and work around inspectors. Show someone there is money in quality and you won't need anyone to police them, the market will do that by itself.
 
After a hard week at work at the hospital where I am the supervisor of radiology, I have cooled off and I have decided that there are a lot more important things in life than foolish internet wars. I am inclined to drop the thing and go back to my usual posting on the BOI, unless there are any new developments. Thank you all for my first involvement in an "internet flame war".
 
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