• 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.

  • IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed

    =====================
    Posted 08/15/2025
    =====================


    Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.

    Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."

    Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....

    =====================
    Addendum: 01/10/2026
    =====================


    Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....

Reputation Poll (more than 1 OK)

How do YOU choose who to purchase from? (More than 1 OK)

  • Walmart has very few reptile items but a good return policy, I shop there

    Votes: 4 12.5%

  • I appreciate, and check out the BOI Good Guys, when I want to buy

    Votes: 21 65.6%

  • I just get whatever is cheapest and do not check reps

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • I always search the BOI and consider the experiences of prior purchasers

    Votes: 24 75.0%

  • If I see someone has screwed up once but come clean and make amends, I will give them a chance

    Votes: 12 37.5%

  • I check reps out closely, my hard earned $ does NOT go to slimeballs

    Votes: 24 75.0%

  • I talk to the vendor and use personal intuition

    Votes: 19 59.4%

  • I've been burned and I am VERY careful of who I purchase from

    Votes: 13 40.6%

  • Hey they SAID it was a het....must be true, right?

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • After a few bad experiences I only purchase 'in person'

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Wow this guy offered me a foreign cashier's check for $5000 and I get to keep the change!

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • I put the check in the mail and then pray

    Votes: 1 3.1%

  • I sent them a money order two months ago and still no snake, what's up?

    Votes: 1 3.1%

  • I only order from personal friends

    Votes: 3 9.4%

  • other

    Votes: 4 12.5%
  • Total voters
    32
Lucille

Lucille

New member
Joined
Mar 2, 2004
Messages
16,037
Reaction score
1,441
Points
0
Location
Texas
What with the advent of The BOI Good Guys Certification Forum (which helps take the risk out of transactions by allowing identification of those with good reputations), and what with clear evidence that there are still scammers extant both lurking and plying their scams and ripping people off, I was curious as to how y'all made your purchasing decisions?
 
It depends. If I am buying online I ALWAYS come here first. I try to buy everything from folks who support Fauna and have good reputations.

Now when at an expo, you have to trust your experience and intuition. Yet even then I try to do business with people I have built relationships with and know to be good folks.

I am not a deal hunter. I have no problems paying the extra cash when the animal/supplies/caging is worth it. Most of my snakes came from Mike Wilbanks. He cut me a hell of a deal on my albino, pied and hets for both. I did not get them from Mike becasue of the price, I got them from Mike because he is a good guy with excellent snakes. My racks come from Jason at Jasons Jungle, again a good guy. Half of my Leos came from Shelley at Lizard Lair, my gutload from Cody at ProGeckos, my feeders from Grubco, all 7 of my cages are from Boaphile, etc, etc. See a pattern? Good folks with high quality animals and products. Quality of the product/animal and the quality of the individual I am buying from means much more to me than saving a few bucks.
 
neither do we!! i buy my water and food bowls there and fake plants and vermiculite and spagnum peat and SAND!! among other things... like i said i shop at walmart. i didnt say what we got. wally world kicks ass
 
Seems we all voted on the same four :hehe:
I'm quoting shrap, because that's about what I would have written myself.

shrap said:
It depends. If I am buying online I ALWAYS come here first. I try to buy everything from folks who support Fauna and have good reputations.

Now when at an expo, you have to trust your experience and intuition. Yet even then I try to do business with people I have built relationships with and know to be good folks.

I am not a deal hunter. I have no problems paying the extra cash when the animal/supplies/caging is worth it.
Click to expand...
 
robin s. said:
LOL yeah forgot about the rubbermaid section!!!
Click to expand...

Kinky.

Actually boycotted walmart years ago...they tried to strongarm an anchor store here, and resorted to some fairly underhanded means...scumbags. Unfortunately, they ended up winning the land, and the monstrosity is under construction.
I like to support small businesses (owning one, I understand the work load)...but I do use the boi to check out any potential sellers/buyers...even though my last purchase was made from a seller no one here seemed to like...worked out well, guess I got lucky.

:) greg
 
I could not imagine life without a Wal-Mart. I shop there at least 2 times a week. I will be moving out of state on June 4th and where I am going has NO Wal-Mart unless I want to drive 2 hours. I just don't know what I am going to do. :bawling:
 
Actually boycotted walmart years ago...they tried to strongarm an anchor store here, and resorted to some fairly underhanded means...scumbags. Unfortunately, they ended up winning the land, and the monstrosity is under construction.
Click to expand...

Residents in my area are in the beginning stages (petitioning) of fighting the building of a Walmart here. Two of the reasons being that it will be directly across from an Elementary School (the traffic created would be dangerous for the children), and there are many small businesses in the vicinity which would undoubtedly go under with the competition including long-time friends of mine who have worked years to establish their stores. And from what I hear from the trenches is that they've lived up to their nasty reputation in that aspect so far. :hot: I apologize since this may be a little off topic for this thread.
 
Back
Top