Words Fail Me

[mark r]

I was contacted 2 days ago by a lady who had just purchased a sulcata tortoise from some people in Cumbria who advertise under the name of "Lakeland Exotics" on facebook pets for sale sites.

the lady in question was told by the seller that the tortoise did not need a heat lamp or a uv lamp and that it wouldn't get very big??

so after several messages the lady is now fully aware of her new tortoises needs and has already put it into a good sized tortoise table with heat lamp and uv, it had been living in a guinie pig cage??.

what is it with some people selling stuff and deliberately miss leading the new owners, ive looked the seller up and it seems they sell a lot of "reptiles" ? from their home address snakes etc etc so should know the basic husbandry needs as they have access to the internet so ignorance isn't an excuse!!!!!

i've given her the link to this site and advised she join for better info from people who actually keep sulcatas.

OK RANT OVER FOR NOW

[Suze65]

Indeed Mark , words fail me too.

[Gordon]

Unfortunatly it happens a lot as long as the seller can get MONEY thats all they seem to care about take them all to the north pole and dump them there without the proper equipment and see how they get on i say

[emma_mcraf]

It's dreadful that people are setting themselves up as reptile breeders with no care and seemingly no knowledge of the husbandry involved. You're right Gordon, it is just all about money.
It's appalling and no doubt more common than we realise. It's awful to think of the torts and other reptiles being sold this way and taken off to a life without the right care.
Some people may do their research and realise that they need to offer more than told by the breeder but I bet there's a lot of people who just take their word for it and aren't meeting their animal's needs. I don't blame you for having a rant Mark, but thank goodness you were able to set the lady straight about just what to expect having a sulcata and the correct equipment and husbandry needed.

[Evie]

Hopefully the wrong information does not lead to another Sully for rehoming !! And at least she had you to guide her

The costs involved in keeping larger non hibernating tortoises will make a dent in your budget !!!!

[mark r]

hopefully she will join the site and let us all know how shes getting on, she made a good start by not taking the sellers word for its needs.

im sure the new owner will do everything in her powers to make sure it has a well catered for life

just the seller annoys me as ive seen them advertising a lot of reptiles but they dont seem to be breeders so who knows where they are getting them from to sell.

[Pussygalore]

are you sure its a sully and not a 'spur thigh or Graeca' sullys and spurthighs are often refered to as the same, if its a spur and not a sully then it will be around 12 inch max where as a sully will be several stone and require more than the average garden and its own shed. Either though do need uv and heat during any inside spells but the sully will need heat all the year round, it seems highly unlikely a that anyone would say any tort doesn't need heat and uv during the winter if kept awake, not that i want to doubt what you say. I didn't even know there was a facebook site for selling animals

[mark r]

no its definately a sully, she sent me a pic, id say around 3-4 years old going off its size as big as an adults hand. nice looking tort as well.

i'd love a sully ive wanted one for about 30 years but they are a big responsiblity and im not 100% sure i'd be able to meet them in the long term which is why ive never bothered getting one and stick with hermans

there are loads of the sites, unfortunately some people miss use them and are just there to make £'s at any cost/

[burnt toast]

Are they a breeder? With torts that don't need papers: Leopards, Sulcata, Horsfield there are a lot of strange stories popping up. Just the other day I saw someone asking for help with a Leopard hatchling she had brought from a "breeder", it was supposed to be months old but I would say days still had a red area from the yolk sac & wasn't eating + the breeder advised her to feed lettuce!

I reckon with no paper trail its easy for them to import & just pose as a "breeder"?

[Evie]

Originally Posted by burnt toast

Are they a breeder? With torts that don't need papers: Leopards, Sulcata, Horsfield there are a lot of strange stories popping up. Just the other day I saw someone asking for help with a Leopard hatchling she had brought from a "breeder", it was supposed to be months old but I would say days still had a red area from the yolk sac & wasn't eating + the breeder advised her to feed lettuce!

I reckon with no paper trail its easy for them to import & just pose as a "breeder"?

They shoud have been reported at least - that is a death sentence for the poor little thing !!!

I am sure most people are sensible enough to do their own research - thank goodness for these forums !!