Chicken or egg first?

[killerthetortoise]

Now, having just read a thread I have a question to pose.

It has been insinuated that breeders "tell people not to buy from shops", shops tell people "the breeders say that to keep the prices high"

Surely if breeders dropped thier prices it would no longer be profitable to import tortoises? Breeders would then have an in road to suppy shops.

If this has been discussed before please point me in the right direction. I can see both sides of the story and also the fact I myself am trying desperatly to locate one or two new specimens

Phil.

[piglet]

Phil I don't know any breeders that sells there tortoises for the price that shops are asking , in general most UK bred torts go for the 100 mark where as shops ask a graet deal more anything from 150-275 a hatchling

D

[Laraine]

All the prices I have seen for Tortoises from UK breeders have been cheaper than from shops or Internet.

[killerthetortoise]

Please show me evidence of this? Everyone I have asked are the same as shops if not more expensive. What I have noticed is 3yr> torts online are about 160 (depending on species), i havent had one breeder offer me a 3yr> plus tort. They are all this year or last. All £90. In fact I've not been able to find a breeder with any to sell or willing to. I could get one from a shop tomorrow.

Totally without predudice. I wish not to offend anyone, only see a way you breeders could really make a differance.

Phil.

[Laraine]

That could be because tortoises from breeders are more popular, some breeders will have a waiting list of people willing to wait up to 2 years to get a good healthy young tortoise from them. If you are after an older tortoise, have you thought of rehoming? or do you want to start breeding tortoises yourself?

[piglet]

Phil I offered you a tortoise UK captive bred, yes only a yearling but you asked at abad time of year as most older ones have already been rehomed

D

[wildlifewarrior]

ok well i am talking from a breeder of lizard and snakes point of view. a shop has torts in there shop and they class them as stock....they sell them they get more in and so on....when they run out they order more in. they want a income at the end of the year.

a breeder conditions his adult torts and gets them regularly checked at the vets and keeps them in great condition. he then puts a great time and effort in to looking after and rearing the eggs and then keeping the babies on the correct food so that there are less health problems late ron in life. this as i am sure the rest of the breeders on here will agree , it is not a job but a love. (sorry for using HE as i no there are female breeders)

so that is why as they have spent alot of time providing a top noch tort for you.

but i beleive that breeders in general breeders have cheaper torts than shops. breeders start with nothing and then raise torts so they sell them to cover the costs and make a small profit........shops have to buy them already for a price and then have to make a high profit to cover there costs. with shops you don't see how they were riased plus i bet any breeder on here would show you the parents of the babies aswell uf you asked....you don't get that in a shop.

[DAISY]

From a financial point of view buying from a pet shop can work out alot more expensive. After the cost of the tort, one local pet shop round here is selling their torts from £200-£450, you could then expect to pay lots more in vets bills as the tort will most probably be wc and then badly housed. I know people who have bought from pet shops and the tortoise die. Its false economy really.Okay it may be harder to buy an older tort from a breeder, but health wise and cost wise at the end of the day it is alot cheeper and you have a tort that has had the best possible start.

Rach

[Pussygalore]

I paid £100 each for my herman hatchlings that was nearly half of the shop prices, they came from Terric Tortoise or TT as he used to be known they have never had a days illness and were 2 in august, I would say he sells all his hatchlings so rarely has anything much older apart from his breeding stock and I would imagine that would be the case with most breeders, thats just a guess, any torts older than that probably have to be rehomers or ones sold on by their 2nd owner (not breeder), if petshops are selling older tortoises wouldn't they also be ones that they had obtained from somewhere other than the breeder, they wouldn't sit in the petshop for 3 years so either someone has sold it to them because they don't want it or more likely they would be wild caught where the age would be immaterial to the catchers and then you would also just be guessing at the age anyway.

[niamherrity]

I bought benny a approx 2years old for 280 euro in a petshop, (didnt know at the time ) breeder here in Ireland was 180 euro for a 7 yr old ibera Don't ask me why I didnt buy her