fully grown??

[dragonxxxx]

I totally agree, and my heart goes out to anyone who has had a bad experience with those stores. I also went to P Co and P Sm first but I also did my home work and found a breeder in L.A. Calif. and have been purchasing from him since. In one of my posts I said we need to educate people via this web site and others about beardies and reptiles in general. I had my beardies almost a year and just found out about this forum a few months ago. It's a vicious circle, a person buys at one of those stores first and finds this forum second, and the horror stories begin. I know they're not all horror stories, but it sure seems like it unfortunately. So my question is how to educate people first ? Also when is a newbie not a newbie?

 

[Brokenwings]

Oh boy! you guys have nice dragons then!

 

[LilStinkpot]

Oops! Wrong thread!

 

[kimmie]

Oh goodness! Wonder how big Angie will get to since she's only about 7 months old now and is 18" long!

Are you sure..? Judging by the pic of Andie in your signature, that is not 18" lol
18" is up to half my bicep. That's about what my beardie full grown is (4 years) you sure he's really 18"?

Unless my tape measure is got the wrong markings, I'm pretty sure she's 18" and what you are looking at in my signatures are perhaps from when she was smaller! I know what 18" is - trust me! I can't help it she's that long (actually closer to 19"). Even placing her on my hand, nose tip to my thumb, her tail comes up to mid-bicep on myself as well.

 

[pamelacoe]

I think the prospective owner should have to fill out a questionnaire. See how much the person knows first - what will they feed the BD? How often? What type of substrate does the BD need? What are its temperature requirements, day and night?....etc. If people can't answer the questions, they can't have the BD.

 

[kimmie]

I think the prospective owner should have to fill out a questionnaire. See how much the person knows first - what will they feed the BD? How often? What type of substrate does the BD need? What are its temperature requirements, day and night?....etc. If people can't answer the questions, they can't have the BD.

I didn't know those things going into this - so by your reasonings, I'd not have a beardie! However I learned (and not from the petstore either) about what is required. Wonder just how many are like me, didn't know a darn thing going into this but have learned a LOT and are happy owners! Just think of how many beardies wouldn't be with loving homes!

 

[spyder79]

I think the prospective owner should have to fill out a questionnaire. See how much the person knows first - what will they feed the BD? How often? What type of substrate does the BD need? What are its temperature requirements, day and night?....etc. If people can't answer the questions, they can't have the BD.

I didn't know those things going into this - so by your reasonings, I'd not have a beardie! However I learned (and not from the petstore either) about what is required. Wonder just how many are like me, didn't know a darn thing going into this but have learned a LOT and are happy owners! Just think of how many beardies wouldn't be with loving homes!

I do something very similar. basically I wont sell an animal to someone that does not have a enclosure already appropriately setup for their animal. I have flat out refused sales in the past due to not being comfortable with the consumers lack of knowledge and unwillingness to learn.

 

[kimmie]

I think the prospective owner should have to fill out a questionnaire. See how much the person knows first - what will they feed the BD? How often? What type of substrate does the BD need? What are its temperature requirements, day and night?....etc. If people can't answer the questions, they can't have the BD.

I didn't know those things going into this - so by your reasonings, I'd not have a beardie! However I learned (and not from the petstore either) about what is required. Wonder just how many are like me, didn't know a darn thing going into this but have learned a LOT and are happy owners! Just think of how many beardies wouldn't be with loving homes!

I do something very similar. basically I wont sell an animal to someone that does not have a enclosure already appropriately setup for their animal. I have flat out refused sales in the past due to not being comfortable with the consumers lack of knowledge and unwillingness to learn.

What if they were buying everything all at once? Like those of us that got them at petstores, we got everything else there (viv, lights, etc)? Now I know when I got Angie, I had a "temporary" tank, until I could make her her forever viv. I didn't have the knowledge (lacked it going in) but I can say I was willing to learn!

 

[AndyT]

Same here.

 

[pamelacoe]

Kimmie,

I understand what you are saying, but I just don't think owning a live creature should work on a learning curve. I purposely didn't allow my son to have his BD until he was older (just before 13th birthday) and had read at least one of those care books you purchase at the store. Not doing so is why, for example, BD's end up with something like MBD. Neither pet store we went to EVER mentioned calcium, vitamins, or that UVB bulbs go bad after about 6 months. They also tell you to offer them veges but don't say anything about only certain ones good as a staple and others are just treats (like mustard greens vs. squash) and don't tell you that regular iceberg lettuce will give the dragon the runs. These are all pretty simple things, but extremely important to the health of the dragon. To me, a store that requires I have knowledge of caring for the animal starting when I get it home is a store that cares about both its animals and its reputation. I would never be offended to be asked such questions. But that is JMHO.

If you were buying it all at once, wouldn't knowing exactly what you needed to purchase in order to properly feed and house your BD, as well as make it comfortable, be good proof of your knowledge? The problem is that those little leaflets in the store that they give you for free are sadly lacking in information. Seriously, if you go in and don't know anything BUT they have qualified people there that can give you a good education in a short time, that is another story. But these stores are sorely lacking in that.

Makes me wonder how these stores would react if one of the more knowledgeable people here offered to give a class on Saturday on BD care, no cost. If I felt more confident, I know I would love to do it.

 

[kimmie]

Kimmie,

I understand what you are saying, but I just don't think owning a live creature should work on a learning curve. I purposely didn't allow my son to have his BD until he was older (just before 13th birthday) and had read at least one of those care books you purchase at the store. Not doing so is why, for example, BD's end up with something like MBD. Neither pet store we went to EVER mentioned calcium, vitamins, or that UVB bulbs go bad after about 6 months. They also tell you to offer them veges but don't say anything about only certain ones good as a staple and others are just treats (like mustard greens vs. squash) and don't tell you that regular iceberg lettuce will give the dragon the runs. These are all pretty simple things, but extremely important to the health of the dragon. To me, a store that requires I have knowledge of caring for the animal starting when I get it home is a store that cares about both its animals and its reputation. I would never be offended to be asked such questions. But that is JMHO.

If you were buying it all at once, wouldn't knowing exactly what you needed to purchase in order to properly feed and house your BD, as well as make it comfortable, be good proof of your knowledge? The problem is that those little leaflets in the store that they give you for free are sadly lacking in information. Seriously, if you go in and don't know anything BUT they have qualified people there that can give you a good education in a short time, that is another story. But these stores are sorely lacking in that.

Makes me wonder how these stores would react if one of the more knowledgeable people here offered to give a class on Saturday on BD care, no cost. If I felt more confident, I know I would love to do it.

Hehehe - petstores (big commercial ones) having someone knowledgable! Yeah it would be nice if perhaps they were given some training there. I did get some good info from them, not all was bad. They need someone to revamp their leaflets. As for how they'd react - that all depends, would be a mixed bag I'm sure! I DO know someone that works in the one I got mine from (just found out hubby's 2nd cousin is working there). I might have to "chew" on his ear some and see what I can come up with.

Now the store made sure I had everything I needed when I did get Angie, they were rather helpful and while not insistent, did make recommendations. Again, the majority of those "said" recommendations were so OFF the mark. Best thing would be is NOT let big chain petstores (or even smaller ones) SELL the critters to begin with if 'they' don't have someone trained well enough. So WHO sells to these stores? Puppy mills, kitty mills, reptile mills, etc. And many many consumers (like myself) go in thinking otherwise, that we'll get what we need. I probably could have saved $100 coming here first!

 

[pamelacoe]

Well said....the store personnel need to be wiser to the needs of the animals they sell.

After losing our first pet store purchased BD in the span of one week (despite every attempt to nurse it to health; it came home sick), we are even more critical of the stores. I don't know about you all, but I know in my very house at least there are people willing to volunteer time there just to make sure the animals get concentrated care. My son really wants to do so but he is told that he is too young. Yet he is more knowledgeable than the people paid to work there....go figure. He was really upset when we went to the store for emergency crickets (ordered online too late on a Thursday) and he saw the BD's they currently had in the cage. They were so tiny, maybe 2.5 - 3 inches snout to tail tip. Gad, all I could think of is that they need such tiny food and people will give them too large of feeders or mealworms so they end up impacted and die.

 

[ziggy23]

Kimmie, it's really no different than what many shelters do for dogs and cats already. Really it'd only stop you temporarily set back, it's not like someone could ban you for life from ever getting one.