Just wanted to vent some frustration

Man that really sucks! If I ever find a good deal on craigslist I jump on it as fast as I can. I found a used freedom breeder rack on CL for a great price and I was so worried someone else would come along and offer a little bit more and snatch it away from me. So I made the drive as soon as I could to pick it up, even though I can't set it up until I move to my new house. I couldn't let the opportunity pass me by!

That is the thing about CL... they don't have to honor your agreement. If a better deal comes along they have every right to take it. I hate to say it, but I would probably do the same thing. :( But what that guy did was pretty rude. He should have said that if someone offers higher, he will allow you to counter offer but after that, he has to take the best deal. False hope..the worst. I hate that.

Next time make sure you pick up your CL gold asap!!

Well sorry to hear that but unfortunately Craigslist is a TOTAL IMPULSE market of people sometimes pushing and selling reptiles and sometimes selling to maybe feed their family after a personal loss such as a job. I have learned that on Craigslist never wait for tomorrow if the deal is good push for as soon as possible or forget it because if you don't someone else will cut your throat for the deal.

Ooooor.....

You just dodged a bullet. Possibly even literaly.

He may not even have had any snakes just pictures he stole from the net and planned on stringing you along so you turn up somewhere nice and dark with a pocket full of cash.

I'm not saying bargains never turn out to be true on craigslist - but there is a high chance of someone trying to fob you off with a normal or even a stolen snake.

You already knew his word was worth nothing so why assume anything he said was true?


dr del

I agree, what happened when it was a really nice faux clown normal? That'd be the highest priced normal for a while.

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First sign of shady-ness and to run would be that he would damage his reputation with you over 50 dollars. Sorry it didn't turn out well but like the others said you could of just saved yourself a heart and wallet ache if the snake wasn't what it should be. Stick to breeders. CL is a scary place.

Ok, I'm going to try to respond to all the posts at the same time:
The only reason I didn't go get her the same time I saw the ad was because it was 9:30 pm when I finally heard back from him with the first contact. Then where he is located is about 2 hours away. The only reason I didn't go down the next day was because I was working a 24 hour shift, something I can't leave for any reason because you are on call. And we had already discussed all of that and he was fine with holding her. I know the snake was real, I still have about 10 pictures of her in my text messages from him. I highly doubt that he would have robbed him, we were meeting in a well lit and traveled place, plus I'm not exactly a little guy either. Which to further ad on to that this guy thought that I was gonna hurt him just because I am a Marine. And even though I've not been in this hobby to terribly long I know the difference between a normal and a clown so why would I pay that much for a normal? You guys did say it best with "there is no honor on craigslist" and "you have to jump quick".
Thanks for taking the time to read and reply everyone.

So, I would have to say that just like a purchase off of a "professional" website, a deal isn't done until money has changed hands. Unfortunately, there are many more people making promises to make a purchase and not following through than there are people in your situation who just need a day to fit it into their schedule. That being said, he gave you his word and broke it, which is flat out unethical and greedy.

It sucks you lost out on a good deal, but if that's the worst that comes out of CL you are doing OK. CL is the wild west. It can be beautiful one day and ugly the next. Great deals from desperate people abound, but desperate people are often only concerned about $$$$$$. BTW, asking for his buddy's name might have been a lil over the top and was probably what inspired the comment about the target.

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