How can I help this customer?

[Velrys]

Hey guys,

So I've done my share of dealing with various customers. Not all prospective owners are excessively knowledgeable, in fact one of the parts of this hobby I enjoy the most is education.

However I have had my first run in with someone I am NOT interested in selling too because they do NOT seem interested in taking any responsibility. I would like to educate them but with baby steps, you know like a pet rock maybe. I could simply tell the person that given the conversation we have had they will not be purchasing my animal but I would like to salvage the opportunity to educate.

I will post the conversation up here because I honestly at am a loss as how to proceed. I know how to do so politely but like I said would like to salvage the opportunity to educate, any advice would be GREATLY appreciated.

I don't know this persons name so it has not been changed to protect the ignorant. Here is the conversation that has taken place via text: (if it is of interest the craigslist posting is under Flagstaff AZ "Ball Python, Normal") As a side note I'm still not convinced this isn't somebody I know messing around haha.

Buyer:

Do you still have the python?

Me:

Sure do, and its still eating well

Buyer:

Was it not eating well before? Does it have any mites?

Me:

It has been our best eater out of the clutch, very regular. Nope, haven't seen any mites.

Buyer:

That's good, is it gonna get big as hell or no cause I don't want a big ass snake I got kids at home.

Me:

Pythons are some of the larger snakes but Ball Pythons only get about 8 feet long.

(hadn't sexed it yet so overshot to make sure the size would not overly concern them)

Buyer:

How old is the one u have and how long? is it pretty tame

Me:

Its almost two months old, a little over a foot long. Babies can be a little snappy but they usually mellow as they get bigger.

Buyer:

Oh, ok but it's not poisonous right? I have never owned a snake just iguanas.

Me:

Nope not poisonous. There are care sheets on websites like ball-pythons.net that have a bunch of information for prospective new owners that can be very helpful.

Buyer:

Yea I mean I owned one for like a week but it ran away when could I see it?

(At this point I obviously won't want this person knowing where I live since I don't intend to sell them a snake)

Me:

Please read up about what is required to successfully take care of a snake. If you are still interested in a couple of days please let me know. I will hold the snake for you until Friday.

This last was sent at noon on Monday. At which point I did not get another communication until this morning...

Buyer:

When could I check out the python?

I'm sort of out of patience, I feel like this person is wasting my time. After this conversation nothing short of a quiz and a trunk full of stuff to build his enclosure is going to convince me this guy has the first clue about what is going on.

But like I said I would REALLY like to salvage this , if this person is interested in snakes I want to get them started on the right foot, not like they cant just go to Petsmart and buy one no questions asked. Then they will have no information and end up with another dead snake. But I can't MAKE them learn anything.


If you have any suggestion please don't hesitate.

Thanks in advance!

[somnambulant]

"Owned one for a week and then it ran away" If he doesn't know that BPs aren't poisonous or venomous, I doubt he had one at all... even for a week. This sounds like the type of person that's going to plop it in an empty aquarium and forget about it. Good on you for following your instincts on not selling, but still being courteous and educating the best you could.

Perhaps what you could do is tell him that you will sell him the snake if he can show you proof that he bought an enclosure and the proper equipment? It might turn him away, but if it does, that's not the person you want to sell to anyway.

[Velrys]

That is exactly what I thought after that comment as well. And yes they sound like EXACTLY that type of person which is why I'm uninterested in selling.

Exactly, that is what I mean. Short of answering some quiz questions and showing me their setup I don't know what else will give me any confidence.

[Freakie_frog]

At some point you have to remember you're not their mom. You're with in your right to refuse to sell to anyone you want to. Just make sure that you understand at some point everyone buys their first snake. Someone has to sell it to them that someone will be you at some point..

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Sadly I see ignorance on both ends.

So I've done my share of dealing with various customers. Not all prospective owners are excessively knowledgeable, in fact one of the parts of this hobby I enjoy the most is education.

Me: Pythons are some of the larger snakes but Ball Pythons only get about 8 feet long.

But to answer your question it's simple you can refuse the right to sell to anyone and you do not have to give the reason, I know I have.

A little advice if you want to deal with real potential customers chose the right venue for your ads, CL is not the right venue and unless things have change it is against their TOS to sell animals on their site.

[somnambulant]

That is exactly what I thought after that comment as well. And yes they sound like EXACTLY that type of person which is why I'm uninterested in selling.

Exactly, that is what I mean. Short of answering some quiz questions and showing me their setup I don't know what else will give me any confidence.

I don't think anything else can give you confidence. If you really want to make the sale, you should let him check out the snake and see how comfortable he is with it. If he likes it, you can tell him you'll hold the snake until he has a proper set up or he can bring his set up / pictures top show you. That's really all you can do. Like Freakie_frog said -- everyone buys their first snake. If you make sure he's got the right set up, then he will start off on the right track. Send him off with a care sheet and your phone number if he has questions. Other than that... there really isn't anything that you can do. If he has the chance between taking a pop quiz or just hitting up another CL seller, he'll probably do the latter.

And just as a question... were you joking about the 8 feet thing? I didn't notice it until the commenter above pointed it out! Don't spread misinformation just to test the waters.

[Jayare]

Tell him it's been SOLD.....

Jayare

[Tigerhawk]

I would not respond any more. This person sounds like someone trying to pull your chain. If you meet them in person, you will probably wounder why you wasted your time. There are other people out there you can sell to. And you will sleep better with the thought that your little guy is in good hands.

[Velrys]

I do understand that everyone buys their first snake at some point however some research should go into that purchase. Enough research perhaps for them to know that BPs are not "poisonous". I still remember how surprised I was going from having a fair level of reptile knowledge to snakes. Very little stays the same in the crossover.

Yes I am obviously aware that I do not have to sell anything to this person. My question was, can anyone see a way to direct this person towards learning how to take care for a snake that has worked for them in the past?

Yes, as I said in the original post I overshot the actual size, I meant it to be a max rather than an average. And I think also trying to shy this person away from getting it.

Actually I really like CL for the reason that you get people who are getting into snakes/reptiles/exotics for the first time. By putting a normal up from time to time you get people who shy away from the $100 price tag on anything interesting at petstores or who don't know exactly what they are looking for, anything with scales will work. But they are interested and want to learn, or at least that is typical. I have never run into this brand of "I want snake!" Do you know anything about snakes? "I want snake!" customer.

[Reptile Frenzy]

I agree with Deborah. Ball pythons dont get 8 foot... your already digging his hole deeper down into ignorance... I would tell him its sold. Then again who says the person that is knowledgeable doesnt mistreat it? Make the best judgement call!