Couldn't have said it better myself. We have no way of knowing where someone has gotten their previous information....it's just wonderful they are here now to get good info.
I am agreeing with the "how people interpret things" comment. Sometimes I spend the bulk of my time revising my comments so that it doesn't sound rude or bias. In all honesty though, there are very diverse bearded dragon owners out there and I can see how some can't get along with others. However, I've seen some pretty rude people on here and it's just upsetting. If someone asks a question and you don't want to answer or feel it is a "stupid question" then you don't have to answer. Thats what I don't understand, people start fights on here just to start them it seems,or they just feel very fixated on their opinion.
I will admit that I have bluntly wrote "Sand is bad!! Don't use it!" mostly because it's a HUGE concern and the most basic necessity that beardies need. Sand is scary because it can cause so many problems. I'm a huge advocate for telling people to use something other than sand for their substrate. I know it's hard with all the pet stores around telling new beardie owners other words of advice. I apologize if I have ever offended anyone on here, I hope I haven't. I love this site! Without it, I know Izabella wouldn't be as healthy as she is. We lost our first beardie and the people on here really helped and were very understanding. Thanks everyone for being so supportive! It is really appreciated.
You newer members haven't seem nothing yet. Wait until this spring/early summer when the market is flooded with super cheap, ill dragons. After you've seen two pages of "why isn't my dragon pooping?" you might start to get short with people too.
Kind of why I left the forums for a while, not just this one but most forums I posted on.
Everybody has to criticize everyone else.
Why? It's not your business, so chill out.
This is supposed to be a community.
Also, I think it would help if mods either closed threads/deleted posts.. I've seen threads go on way too long without any mods stepping in.
Some sort of infraction deal would be a good idea maybe? 3 strikes and you're out!
I always do my best to be nice to people, but if they are rude to me or insult me it is hard to type back nicely LOL.
I remember how horribly confused I was when I joined as a new beardie owner, and getting my set-up right and finding good lights was SOOOO frustrating, so I understand where a lot of the newbies are coming from and try not to criticize. I'm very guilty of the "NO SANDDDD!" thing though, LOL! But the people who I have converted to shelf liner and non-particle substrate are always happy about it, and I think everyone should at least be warned on the potential dangers of it so they can make a better decision for their beardie. I recommend using a little "sand box" instead of having a whole viv full of sand too, so I try to be open minded.
I also don't believe that mealworms = death as much as most of the members on here do. We all have our different opinions, so sometimes I think we need to remember that even though there are many ways not to house a beardie, there is more than one "right" way to house them too.
It's all in how your present your opinion or advice.. Unfortunately sometimes it comes across completely the wrong way when you are "typing"... Too bad you can't have a "tone of typing" like tone of voice..lol
i do agree with what you have said, and i was mega upset nd defensive when soeone put about my spellings, it happens that i ve struggled with dyslexia , so not all bad spellers and grammer is down to english not ben there first langwige , they could ve difficultys ......
however keep in mind that most members have been on these forums for a long time and get sick of the same questions over and over. Some members simply try and be concise with their responses as they have grown tired of being super friendly, congratulating them on their dragon and talking about stuff that is not directly answering the questions at hand.
Also yes i am getting quite frustrated with spelling etc. Either our newest members are 10 year olds or really struggling with their english and writing skills. Hope they are better at caring for animals.
however keep in mind that most members have been on these forums for a long time and get sick of the same questions over and over. Some members simply try and be concise with their responses as they have grown tired of being super friendly, congratulating them on their dragon and talking about stuff that is not directly answering the questions at hand.
Also yes i am getting quite frustrated with spelling etc. Either our newest members are 10 year olds or really struggling with their english and writing skills. Hope they are better at caring for animals.
I understand that people that have been here for a long time get irritated with the newbies.. And I can understand that b/c i feel like if i see one more sand rant i'm gonna pull my hair out..lol But we were ALL newbies at one time.. And really i'm not talking about the people that have been here forever.. There are some newbies that get out of control and get all defensive b/c the advice they receive isn't what they wanted to hear..
You really can't get frustrated with newbies. The fact that they're even posting on the boards is great, because that meant they took the effort to research something about their dragon and it brought them here! Lots of people won't even take that small step of internet research.
About the whole commenting thing, I think the better approach is "here is why you shouldn't use sand" or "it isn't the best idea to feed mealworms because" instead of straight out saying DON'T DO IT!! Lay the facts out and let people decide for themselves. Now of course I realize when people do that and the OP comes back with a rude comment that's when we can call get a bit snippy :roll:
You really can't get frustrated with newbies. The fact that they're even posting on the boards is great, because that meant they took the effort to research something about their dragon and it brought them here! Lots of people won't even take that small step of internet research.
About the whole commenting thing, I think the better approach is "here is why you shouldn't use sand" or "it isn't the best idea to feed mealworms because" instead of straight out saying DON'T DO IT!! Lay the facts out and let people decide for themselves. Now of course I realize when people do that and the OP comes back with a rude comment that's when we can call get a bit snippy :roll: