CooperDragon":1dzs9l3i said:Makes me wonder if they are actually breeders or just reptile flippers making money off of rehoming dragons.
Very well could be doing that on the side, but I'd say they are definitely breeding them too, as evident by not only this poor girl that they bred nearly to death, but also from their prior posts, photos, and videos on their Facebook page.
It's unfortunate, but right now Bearded Dragons are hot pets, as we all know from the massive amount of new owners coming on here every single day, and that all seem to have health issues because they are being given horrible advice, not only from pet shop employees from PETCO, PetSmart, Petland, etc., but also often from breeders they are buying them from. I've often wondered how people can be given terrible husbandry advice from a Bearded Dragon breeder, such as being told to use a coil UVB bulb, UVB bulbs meant for tropical reptiles, being told to used terrible, lethal substrates like crushed walnut shells and calcium sand, being told to feed babies superworms, etc. But this "Breeder" is a perfect example (and perfect explanation for me) as to how this is happening daily to people who genuinely just want to bring a young beardie into their homes to be a much loved pet and family member. It's sad.
The problem right now as I see it is twofold; #1, a normal baby bearded dragon, nothing special at all as far as morph or color costs between $50-$100 from a pet shop. I was shocked the other day when I went to a privately owned pet shop about an hour away from me and saw a normal baby Beardie for sale who cost $99! So obviously special morphs and colors, leatherbacks, silkies, etc. cost hundreds of dollars. And this doesn't seem to be stopping the demand for them. So "Breeders" like this a*****e get ahold of a leatherback and maybe just a normal either by posing as someone who wants to "adopt" a Beardie in need of a home, or by just buying two babies, they buy a used incubator on Craigslist, some vermiculite, then they just start cranking out clutch after clutch after clutch, like they did to this poor girl...You can all do the math, have a clutch with 20-30 babies, maybe out of that 20-30 they get 1/3 or so that are leatherbacks, so they get a minimum of $50 a baby, probably more, and for the leatherbacks, silkies, and any special morphs and colors they are getting $100+ per baby... They're making thousands of dollars in very short amounts of time...#2 problem is that there are soooooooo many Beardies on Craigslist, Petfinder, etc. that are being rehomed either for free or very cheaply, INCLUDING EXPENSIVE ENCLOSURES, LIGHTS, FIXTURES, ETC. and people are just collecting them and reselling them Beardies and especially the enclosures and set-ups for a large or possibly a 100% profit.
Why do people not care about living creatures? And how can they not care at all about living creatures that they themselves purposely brought into their homes? It's sickening and I just don't get it...