• Posted 12/19/2024.
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    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

Bad Guy Maelstrom reptile ranch BEWARE

Mreynolds101110

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maelstrom reptile ranch continues to sell sickly animals and offers zero customer service to its buyers. this has been an extensively long and drawn out issue with them. and for someone that claims to be a "reptile rescue" its honestly appalling. they ship sick animals and pack poorly which only amplify s any underlying condition the animal may have. the most recent issue is with Amanda Willis who bought a dragon which was stated to be "healthy" and it was packed poorly, little insulation and its tail 3/4 pinched in a deli cup upon delivery. the dragon later died after several vet visits and he is disputing the claim. and refuses to offer ANY REFUND at all. stay clear of him and spread the word PLEASE!!!!!!
 
My poor Sapphira

my poor little girl didnt make and i was reasonable enough to even take half of what i paid due to i knew he didnt have alot of money i was tryin to fair and respectable....as you can tell it got me no where!
 

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From what I can tell the packaging looks okay and the dragon looks to be healthy. I think we need a little more information here.
 
Now that I have reread your complaint and looked at the pictures I assume you are trying to show a healthy bearded dragon that has a portion of its tail enclose in the lid of the deli cup. Am I right?
 
Might be worth noting that the images Amanda provided look to have been taken by Malestrom.
He also has images of the dragon in this album as well. I don't deal with bearded dragons, but from the photos in his album, as far as I can tell, it looks to be healthy.
 

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ok thats great how about her tail in the deli cup and if u look farther down in his pics he got her in oct or nov and she is still the exact same size....i was told by several sources there was genetic issues as well...and the stress due to the amputation which had to take place and he said he would make it right if it had to come off i messaged called and texted him march 11th to inform him of the amputation. the stress of an amputation on a unhealthy bearded dragon is what cause it. He promised me a nip free healthy dragon i didnt received either. due to his carelessness she lost part of her tail and now i have lost her. I payed him on the 11th of feb he sent about 2 weeks later(i still have shipping box) tail was amputated on march 11th i have sent pics and tried to contact him every step of the way via pics, text, call, and messages via fb i did everything on my end i could have.
 
You must name your "several sources". And while you are at it please give up a composed post that includes emails, texts and any other info. These guessing game threads are a headache.
 
What's inappropriate about the packaging? I see a standard shipping box with 1 inch styro, two heat packs wrapped in newspaper, and the empty space filled with newspaper. The tail in the lid is definitely careless. Lizards lose their tails all the time. I doubt losing the tail stressed it to death. The lizard dying after a vet procedure sounds more like an infection.
 
can you please post a clearer picture that shows the tail actually pinched inside the rim of the deli cup? i am not seeing it clearly
 
Was the amputation a veterinary procedure? Amputating a tail in lizards doesn't sound right... lizards have abscission points in tail vertebrae as well as specialized valves that will cut off blood flow to damaged areas. If an amputation was performed, it doesn't sound like an operation that was done by a qualified reptile vet. I certainly wouldn't recommend an actual amputation via operation considering the significant risks of placing a reptile under anesthesia for the procedure. It sounds to me that the animal died due to complications from an unnecessary surgery, but more information is definitely needed.
 
when i looked at the pictures i didnt see the tail in the inner lip of the lid of the deli cup it may just be me but the seller would have noticed something like that and fixed before placing in the box the dragon would have freaked out immediatly just my two cents
 
A lot of things don't add up. They complained about the packaging and the health of the dragon. The pictures don't support either. When I think about it, could a relatively flimsy deli cup lid damage a beardie's tail that badly? I doubt it, maybe a gecko's tail. And if it was damaged that badly why did it take two weeks to get it to a vet? Frankly, after that length of time, as a seller I would probably assume the buyer did something to cause the demise of the beardie. Very few sellers guarantee health for that length of time because anything could happen in a buyers care.
 
maelstrom reptile ranch continues to sell sickly animals and offers zero customer service to its buyers. this has been an extensively long and drawn out issue with them. and for someone that claims to be a "reptile rescue" its honestly appalling. they ship sick animals and pack poorly which only amplify s any underlying condition the animal may have. the most recent issue is with Amanda Willis who bought a dragon which was stated to be "healthy" and it was packed poorly, little insulation and its tail 3/4 pinched in a deli cup upon delivery. the dragon later died after several vet visits and he is disputing the claim. and refuses to offer ANY REFUND at all. stay clear of him and spread the word PLEASE!!!!!!

my poor little girl didnt make and i was reasonable enough to even take half of what i paid due to i knew he didnt have alot of money i was tryin to fair and respectable....as you can tell it got me no where!

I agree with others. Can vet bills be posted? It seems even the OP and the victim aren't in agreement. I am guessing there is some background here that hasn't been shown the light of day yet...
 
Unless another owner of dragons refutes this dragon tails are very well armored, but with saying that you can damage them if you catch it in a cage door or something that is very sturdy but you will know right away and the dragon will freak out. i cant see a a deli cup asserting a enough pressure to cause damage to need an amputation. now there could be a scenerio where a clutch mate bit the tail and the seller not seeing the open wound even then it would've had to be almost severed to need an amputation
 
I agree with others. Can vet bills be posted? It seems even the OP and the victim aren't in agreement. I am guessing there is some background here that hasn't been shown the light of day yet...

I don't see any discrepancy between the two posts.

Clearly the buyer offered to take half of the cost of the dragon as reparation, and the seller refused.
 
Okay, Sarah, I'll buy that. Still smells in here, though. So far, no evidence and LOTS of unsubstantiated claims/hearsay. How could a guy be careful/paranoid enough to take pictures of himself boxing an animal up (that appears to be the shipping label used here) and leave the tail pinched? Until/unless I see some vet bills, I call this a smear campaign.

I look forward to hearing the accused, and seeing any evidence the OP/Amanda can provide to substantiate their claims.
 
I have a suspicion of what may be going on, but I want to see how this plays out tomorrow. I will say, though, that I'm always skeptical when someone comes on here exaggerating things to sway opinion.
 
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