Horrible way to handle. Opinions?

[jclaiborne]

Does he really keep those 3 alligators in that kiddy pool?

yup...I loved how today's episode he was discussing "animal ethics" then displays that for husbandry... FAIL

[Rob]

Eh, not a fan of where this is heading. My intentions when starting this thread wasn't to bash a guy that is a huge proponent of the hobby. Brian's one of the good guys, is he perfect? No, but no one is. He's made mistakes along the way, but for the most part I'd say he is a good representation for the reptile hobby to a mainstream audience.

[jclaiborne]

Eh, not a fan of where this is heading. My intentions when starting this thread wasn't to bash a guy that is a huge proponent of the hobby. Brian's one of the good guys, is he perfect? No, but no one is. He's made mistakes along the way, but for the most part I'd say he is a good representation for the reptile hobby to a mainstream audience.

I would agree with this. I have never met him but the general concensus is that he is in fact a good guy and he does seem to care about his animals, that being said IMO and this is just my opinion he is a snake guy, it seems lately he has been getting more and more into lizards, but his husbandry is off. Lizards require room to move, they need substrate to burrow, you can't keep them like snakes (in racks with nothing but a hide and a water bowl), so my only issue is that people that may be getting into lizards see his husbandry because he is such a big name and they are pointed in the wrong direction.

[Saber402]

My family got a chance to talk to him at length at the January Reptile Super Show in Pomona, CA. You can't find a person more into his animals. And, his personality was just like in his videos so there is nothing theatrical about him. Down to earth and willing to take the time and answer question after question. Unfortunately, it is a rare person to not have any critics, especially when in the public eye. I would like to see all of these critics be where he has gotten in 25 years and maintain an absolutely 100% perfect shop. Even he is admittedly learning new things all of the time. As stated above, he is one of the good guys in our hobby!

[colton62]

I agree 100% with you guys though. I wasn't trying to bash him. He seems really passionate and very good with snakes. I was just a little put off by the monitors and then seeing 3 gators in a small pool. I believe he is a really good guy with good intentions. Just talking about animal ethics then showing 3 gators in that pool wasn't a good idea. There is or is going to be a law in Germany that requires like a land and water area that are at least like 2 times the length of the crocodilian and by 4 times the length for each land and water.

[jclaiborne]

My family got a chance to talk to him at length at the January Reptile Super Show in Pomona, CA. You can't find a person more into his animals. And, his personality was just like in his videos so there is nothing theatrical about him. Down to earth and willing to take the time and answer question after question. Unfortunately, it is a rare person to not have any critics, especially when in the public eye. I would like to see all of these critics be where he has gotten in 25 years and maintain an absolutely 100% perfect shop. Even he is admittedly learning new things all of the time. As stated above, he is one of the good guys in our hobby!

Again not disputing if he is a good guy or if he has good intentions. I am a critic about the husbandry of his lizards. His husbandry for lizards is wrong, there really is no dispute there, with him being in the public eye it seems like its the "pet store" syndrom all over again. "Well he's a big name and his videos show him caring for lizards in this way so it must be correct" when in fact it isn't, that is my issue. So in that sense yes I am a critic.

[CryHavoc17]

What exactly is the issue with his lizard husbandry? Leos do fine in racks. While most people wouldn't keep beardies in racks its pretty clear to me that for a breeder needing a high efficiency set up his beardie husbandry is fine.

The most recent set up (actually the only one ive ever seen on his show, so im assuming is the one you guys are talking about) for his night nile monitor project wasnt bad for the size the animals were at. He can use screen cages (its not actually screen, but pvc coated mesh, but i digress) for his monitors for the same reason he can use the screen covered freedom breeder racks. His shop is temperature and humidity controlled. Now im not a fan of how barren the setup I saw was, monitors are too smart to not have an enriching captive environment, but that was my only nitpick on that setup.

So what exactly are you guys griping about?
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[jclaiborne]

What exactly is the issue with his lizard husbandry? Leos do fine in racks. While most people wouldn't keep beardies in racks its pretty clear to me that for a breeder needing a high efficiency set up his beardie husbandry is fine.

The most recent set up (actually the only one ive ever seen on his show, so im assuming is the one you guys are talking about) for his night nile monitor project wasnt bad for the size the animals were at. He can use screen cages (its not actually screen, but pvc coated mesh, but i digress) for his monitors for the same reason he can use the screen covered freedom breeder racks. His shop is temperature and humidity controlled. Now im not a fan of how barren the setup I saw was, monitors are too smart to not have an enriching captive environment, but that was my only nitpick on that setup.

So what exactly are you guys griping about?
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My gripe is that NO those screen cages are not ok for Monitors of any size (regardless of being in a temp controlled room), Blueys do not belong in racks and IMO neither do leos or beardies. Monitors, Tegus, Blueys are all very intelligent species and they need room to explore. I'm so tired of people saying bare minimum husbandry is ok because its a "high yield" breeding facility. Husbandry doesn't get a pass because they are breeders, and I am not just targeting him at this point. Lizards explore, they don't sit in burrows all day, they cover a lot more ground in a day then snakes, esp monitors, none of them belong in racks.

[jclaiborne]

Spend some time reading on this forum if anyone still thinks those small screen cages are "fine" for monitors: http://www.varanustalk.com/forum/

[Bluebonnet Herp]

I agree 100% with you guys though. I wasn't trying to bash him. He seems really passionate and very good with snakes. I was just a little put off by the monitors and then seeing 3 gators in a small pool. I believe he is a really good guy with good intentions. Just talking about animal ethics then showing 3 gators in that pool wasn't a good idea. There is or is going to be a law in Germany that requires like a land and water area that are at least like 2 times the length of the crocodilian and by 4 times the length for each land and water.

I believe the pool is temporary for the gators. Nor do I see it being much different than their basic needs. He may need a bigger one for them now that they're getting bigger, but what else is an aquarium at the zoo once it's stripped down of all the pretty decor? And of course, I'm sure he would have it filtered.
As of the monitors, that was all a bunch of old, misunderstood bull#### from several years ago. He never kept them in small enclosures full-time; he's stated a million times before they were only temporary enclosures for feeding.

Brian's still learning; especially since it's only recently he's began keeping lizards and crocidilians. That's what life is and is why we do what we do. Brian's a good guy; he works for USARK, wants to spread a good message and is passionate about his animals. Cut the man some slack.