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This really irritates me....vent

houdini1

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I go to a lot of different forums and read and of course answer the questions I can. It seems on almost every forum I go to now except this one I see these posts Saying, "I want to buy a leo really cheap" or " Will someone sell me a leo or give me one". This irritates the hell out of me. I am by no means a breeder and I only have two leos and I have had people email me asking for me to sell them a leo really cheap. Then they dont want or have the money to pay shipping. I completely understand that there are some younger people on these forums who really want a Leopard gecko and dont have the means to pay for it but if you cant afford to buy a good healthy leo at resonable price, and cant pay shipping how are they going to pay for vet bills or food, replacement parts for heating and well you guys get the idea. I personally dont have alot of money but i have money saved up for vet bills and emergency situations so my animals can get the proper care they need. I am sorry I just had to let it out. Its better to save your money, buy a leo that is going to be healthy in the long run than buy a cheap animal just because you want it right then. In most cases you get what you pay for. Thanks for reading.
Kristy
 
yeah... I can KINDA relate...

I get at least 3-4 inquiries a week about some of my bell hets, I haven't posted any for sale yet but have them here and there on forums online. They usually run the line of "Ohhhhh... they are so cute, I want some, how much are they"

So I write back with the price, a pretty fair price as well I might add, and invariably I NEVER hear back. I can tell the more serious inquiries as they usually ask for pics of the parents and other questions of the like....

Sigh.... I even had one gent write me back and laugh at me, said he could get a gecko at the petshop for 30 bucks, I wrote him back and said yes you can, and enjoy it very much....
 
Yeah and then they go buy the petstore leo that they end up paying tons in vet bills for, which equals out to the price of a good healthy leo you would have sold them. There are some beautiful leos out there with a high price that I would love to buy, eventually I may be able to. But I almost feel like it is an insult to the people who put the time and money into raising and breeding animals that they absolutely adore. you guys dont do it for the money, I have read the posts. Its because you enjoy the experience of it.
 
That's nothing. I have a wall of geckos. Basically, a giant rack of cages containing 7 leos, an incubator with 3 eggs and my skink's 50g aquarium. I share a duplex with friends, me and my fiance plus daughter live on one side, 4 of our friends live on the other. Ever since the eggs were laid, I have been asked on a regular basis if they have hatched so that they can get a leo. They even told their friends I was like handing out leos. That's annoying.
 
Yeah i can relate, this is my first year breeding a few of my leos and there are so many people who ask me if the can have/buy one etc. Thats all fine and dandy, but what frightens me is that i am now currently drawing a realistic CHAMELEON and many of the people who are asking me for geckos will often ask if i have finished the "gecko" drawing :no01: . It really kind of makes me twitch a little y'know? :eek:

But yeah the idea of even selling some of the offspring to these people frightens me, lets just say they'd be last in line, and by last in line i mean they get none at all...
 
Yeah I just started breeding this year, and I got like 6 peeps here in town that want one. I tell them strait up that the normals I get will be $25, Im NOT giving them away, and I want to see the tank before they get them! And one of my husband's freinds isnt getting one if he paid me $100!! I've seen him kill more pets than any other person I know. He's one of these who see it, wants it, gets it, then ignors it till it dies. NO WAY he's gettinig one of my leo's!!! He had a pair of rats once, let them breed uncontroled, never got rid of the babies, got bored with them, and the next time I asked he was like "I'm sick of them, they are eating each other!" Im like, how many do u have in that 20g long? and when was the last time you fed them!? idiot.

~Mia
 
houdini1 said:
Yeah and then they go buy the petstore leo that they end up paying tons in vet bills for,
Unfortunately I don't think that's true at all... I think (most of) the people who laugh about your prices and say they are 30 bucks at a petstore are exactly the kind to release it outside or simply let it die. After all, they're only $30, why not just go get another instead of paying for a vet?

I haven't had anyone ask for free leos. I think the more you look like a business the less people think they can get a deal. I would imagine that if you're a small breeder and info is spread word of mouth you'll run into the problem of 'You kind of know me.. can't you give me a deal?" One of the best parts of being a breeder is that you can decide who you sell to.
 
Milwaukee Reptiles said:
One of the best parts of being a breeder is that you can decide who you sell to.
ahh yes this is where i messed up with my boas a while ago. once people found out i had a litter of 24 babies and i was selling them for a good price they started to go fast, and i was grateful (feeding bills tripled i recall) to let them go. but now when i consider what may have happened to probably most of my babies my gut starts to sink really low. i dont even want to know how many,if any, are still out there and what they may have been put through. i beleive that most people are too impulsive even when i show them the 9 ft mother and try to paint the picture for them.

i will prob never breed my boas again unless it was somethin special like starting my albino project again since i doubt someone would neglect a high(er) dollar animal.

as for my geckos i find myself like more of a soup nazi. i really try and consider if they are going to care for it or not. i evn chimed in when someone else with leos was gonna sell one to somone i didnt trust to care for it. ive never lost a gecko but one i let out had died (i think it got cooked) and i felt horrible, me and my neice used to hold it as a baby, as i do all my babies. i went in and helped them find a replacement and corrected the situation, setup the tank for them showed them how to care and handle the leo. and as a matter of fact the little guy came over with his new leo today to see my "operation" and get another little training course in how to pick up your leo without freaking him out (guess hes a biter but always a sweetheart when i see it so im assuming its their approach). i even sent him home with a container of vitamins i found out he didnt have.

sorry for the long post , maybe its my guilty concience for the boas but cost probably should not be the buyers biggest concern if they want a healthy happy experience. probably the funnest responsibility ive ever had.
 
Milwaukee Reptiles said:
Unfortunately I don't think that's true at all....

You know I was thinking that right after I posted that reply, I agree. Fortunately though there are alot of people like us who even if the animal is given or surrendered to us as a rescue we would give it the best care possible including vet treatment if needed. The sad part is there are too many people out there who dont see their animals as basically family. Mine to me are no different than my children as far as the care provided they deserve the best.
 
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