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WC Gravids

K

kmurphy

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It seems that there are a lot more ads for wc gravid bps this year than I've ever seen. Is this a new trend? I thought that most of the mothers of ch balls were released back into the wild but maybe I am just dreaming. They probably end up in the leather trade.

This whole gravid wild caught thing really bothers me though. The stress on the mothers must be incredible. How are they taken care of while they are with the exporter and importer? Then they are shipped half way around the world to be repackaged and shipped again. It just seems to me to be a low point in our hobby/business to be doing this to make a few bucks.
 
Kevin,

It is a greed tactic in my opinion. People don't have to do anything but buy the animal and get babies. No muss, no fuss.

Then there is the part where you could produce magical babies worth 100K if you luck out enough!!!

I've never done it, and don't ever plan to. Too many what ifs, too many diseases.

It may work for some, but.... Not for me. :)

More power to the people that can do it though. To the next big morph!!!
 
More people got ahold of the ones imported this year. That is why you are seeing them offered more by different people.

They start off at the price from the imported(that will not be posted)

Then around 125 to 150

Then same animals 200 to 250

then picked through more then sold for 300 to 500

But all came in the same boat.........................

Just more people got ahold of them this year on a lower count. Like lots of 10 to 25............. Instead of a few people getting 300 to 500 of them.
 
kmurphy said:
It seems that there are a lot more ads for wc gravid bps this year than I've ever seen. Is this a new trend? I thought that most of the mothers of ch balls were released back into the wild but maybe I am just dreaming. They probably end up in the leather trade.

This whole gravid wild caught thing really bothers me though. The stress on the mothers must be incredible. How are they taken care of while they are with the exporter and importer? Then they are shipped half way around the world to be repackaged and shipped again. It just seems to me to be a low point in our hobby/business to be doing this to make a few bucks.
Click to expand...

As Gary said, its just more people buying them to resell, I only know of 2 importers who brought them in, and every one bought from them. We got some from ourselves last year and did well with them, so decided to get more this year and get some to sell too.

Benin and Togo realease some of the females that produce the c.h babies, but also skin a lot and sell them to the meat markets too. Almost all (99%) of the gravid you have been seeing for sale are from Benin or Togo, I think there has only been 1 or 2 Ghana shipments brought in. Ghana has the best practises and realeases there females after they lay, Ghana animals also lay there eggs about a month or so after Benin and Togo so there is not a lot of gravids coming in from Ghana, as c.h babies come in by the time the babies hatch.

Most of the females come in and look very good, there is a quick turn around from the time when they are collected and imported to the us. They take good care of the females, as if they don't lay good eggs then people wont buy then and they will loose out on the better money of selling gravids over c.h A lot of the females ovulate when they arrive here, we had about 20 ovulate after we got them. As long as they are taken care of properly they do very well, all our females that have layed eggs have given large clutches of good eggs, and are acclimating very well. We are setting them up for future breeders.



Kevin- If your interested to see how good the females do, and how well they acclimate, give us a call and come down to check them out, we have some weird ones, along with around 100 eggs cooking. It is a touchy part of the business, sell them gravid and give them a chance to acclimate, or let them live in the wild and get skinned...
 
Kevin- If your interested to see how good the females do, and how well they acclimate, give us a call and come down to check them out, we have some weird ones, along with around 100 eggs cooking. It is a touchy part of the business, sell them gravid and give them a chance to acclimate, or let them live in the wild and get skinned...
Click to expand...

Actually Josh I wasn't questioning anyone's ability to care for the females, although it is apparent that some get into the hands of the inexperienced - (see the Rare Python thread). I wasn't sure how many of the eggs hatched but evidently most do just fine. It is just that I don't know of any other industry that reduces the wild populations they are exploiting by the pregnant mothers. It would seem that the most prudent course would be to let the mothers lay their eggs and then take them. Of course then they aren't worth Jack so nobody wants them.
How long can the populations be sustainable if all you're taking is gravid females? Remember we're supposed to be the ones that actually care about herps.
__________________
 
Like said most of these are collected and they sit at the "farms" untill they give the eggs then they are killed for other reasons. Meat, skins ex.......

Now US is cutting that part out and getting many females. Most do fine some do not. I will not lie not all Gravid fmeales do well after they lay. But most do if cared for.

I have purchased some last year and this year.

And the morph thing. If you like morphs this is where morphs come from is the wild. Every morph was wild at one time.
 
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