More for the smaller scale breeders... though I'm sure some of the larger breeders care too.
After seeing all of the abuse threads (as in deliberate abuse/neglect), I have to wonder if breeders should also take responsibility for who they sell to.
Last year I screened my buyers. I insisted they know basic care of the animal before pick up. I was willing to sit on my hatchlings until I found good owners.
So one woman insisted that she could pick up the baby ball python, but didn't have the money for the UTH. O.o; I'm like, well, then, how are you going to feed it adult mice (was up to mice) once a week? No sale.
Teenager e-mailed me that his father kept making him get rid of his large pythons/boas and wanted to know if he could buy mine. Uhh... no. I don't need it to sell and then bounce to another home. I need it to get to a good permanent, or at least near to permanent home. If you want to raise a ball python for a year, go ahead, not one of mine. No sale.
Another person wanted to buy it with a heat lamp, another a heat rock, another refused to look up instructions on care... uhhh... yeah, like I'm giving up my precious snakes I waited a year for to the likes of you guys. Mass buyer wants snakes. (I do not trust mass buyers, because I don't know if they are going to feed them properly and also they probably won't care for them properly.) No sale.
I screen my potential owners and make sure they understand that they will grow, need feeding once a week, etc. Also cite if they had previous problems. (Like slow to start eating.)
I also make sure to let the buyers know that they can contact me with questions, problems and sell back the snake at what I sold them for. Snake first over money. And I sent off both with a meal in their bellies because I knew they were going straight to their new homes and probably wouldn't be eating for a few weeks.
There is no guarantees, but at least I try to screen out the idiots...
That's my thought anyway.
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