I know it`s not possible but do you not think it would be great if people on here would not be able to give advice on a particular species without at least six months and preferably longer PRACTICAL experience.

I`m sick and tired of seeing people quote advice which is clearly lifted off web sites and then passed on as tho` they really know what they are talking about.

Worse still this second hand knowledge is then used to denegrade shops and other sellers on here .

Also why do people make the pius and self righteous comment ` i`ll be researching for the next six months for my next animal` EHH ? you could do your basic research in six minutes you don`t need six months ! You`ll never learn unless you have first hand experience of a snake/lizard.

There also seem to be too many people that take as gospel what they read on here .This isn`t some mystical script it`s a bunch of rag bag information some of it good ,some of it ok and lots of it second hand and of no value.

Here endeth the rant.

Go in peace friends.

All true and valid points.

Sadly no amount of ranting is gonna change things IMO

i don't think you need to have been keeping reptiles for years and years be for you can give advice, some things you can learn very quickly and some body who has been keeping something for only a day could in theory answer most of the common questions that come up on hear about temperature ,housing ,substraight and 100's of other facts that they can learn from different sources like books and forums and web sites, experience is very valuable and will teach you a lot more than the basics but in my opinion if you know the answer to somebody's question then why not give them that answer this forum would be dead as a dodo if people had to wait until the one or two experts came on-line to answer a simple question

I know ,i would never comment on things i don`t have first hand experience of ,i always try to state that my experiences are limited.

You know and i know who`s opinons on here that can normally be taken as cast iron.

And i`m guessing there are newcomers on here that have a wealth of experience ,i feel i can pick them out by the way they write but what about the rest .

A perpetual circle of misinformation in many cases.

um there is a 12 or 14 year old kid, whos kept BD's for around a year, never bred, never had a sick one, never had a skinny one, never had one with mbd etc etc who gives out lots of advice, its the same advice, straight out of a book/s and care sheets, and if anything else 'take it to a vet'

i had them 10 years ago, had many sick ones come, skinny, problems come into me, bred them years ago, and picked up lots of things before i had the web/good shops/access to books etc...and hes put me down many times....as a lot of my info wasnt plucked out of a book, page 42 or what ever.

yeah ok i did things by trial and error, or tried new things years ago, but then thats how herpers did things in the 60 and 70's etc thats how books got written (and changed and updated)

until this year, i didnt know what a book said a basking spot said, when i made LG go and buy a book and read care sheets etc. so i sort of then followed that and what he said with basking spots for BD's, then by chance spoke to a breeder since the 80's who says, he kept his around 95deg in some vivs...lot less than 105 this kid was saying on here day after day.

i kept them for years in a v long viv, with a hot hot spot, but made sure was a cool cool end....if that makes sense.

Hi all,

I tend to buy specilist books on the subject and do my own research,I know tese books are written by experts with many years experience.

As someone as already said a lot of people just regurgitate care sheets they have found on the net.

I form my own opinion about what I read in posts, there are certain members on here I respect their opinions and advice but I take nothing for gospel.

I am of the old school specialist books, came before computers and the internet.

Anyone can post on the net wether it is wright or wrong,use your own common sence.

Also people with high post counts does not make them knowledgeable, alot use the non snake sections to get high post counts.

slither61

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i agree, care sheets, and 99% of people say never keept adult lep gex and juvis together, big no no.............yes in a book by one of the most respected herpers for god knows how long, has done it fine, with correct set up, i did it years ago, same sort of thing (by chance) and god would i be slated if i said to a newbie to do the same....

I think the very least we should expect is that people never offer authoritative advice on species they have never kept whatsoever.

My biggest bugbear is advice that misleads others because the giver has never actually put the advice they're giving into practice, so has no real idea of whether is dangerous or not.

Some of the areas in the forum are more crazy for it than others, most sections have at least a few genuinely experienced people who contribute and can at least try to iron out the fools.

Amphibs scares me the most, kids with firebellied newts since last week, people with wholly unrelated species, people with temperate species, advising temps and humidity for tropical treefrogs that they can't even identify.


The people who have the experience to back up and reason the advice they give, never give up and don't let the apathy get you, someone has to counteract the bullplop and prevent people killing their own animals based on bad advice.

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I feel it is paramount to pass on only what you know about and only really species specific.

For example I would never give advice on a bosc or a gren anaconda.

I only started giving advice AFTER I had nursed a Bearded Dragon who had pretty bad MBD, WITH vet guidance appointments and medication. The priocess took 5 mnonths and I also helped him each day with water physio to move his legs and also helped him to eat properly again proper insects etc.

I then rescued 2 WDs one who was close ot death again with Vet advice and care and a LOT of time and effort.. they were both nursed back to health. One far better than the other but both with good quality of life.

I have expereince of extreme bad shedding in a rescue crestie .. who unfortunately was so weak she died at the vet whilst laying her eggs..
I tend to stick only to that type of advice and I always always stress that nmo matter HOW much experience a person has.. ( added up I have around 4 years 2 when i was younger and 2 recently...so not much)

we are NOT vets NOT specialists and guessing can be as detremental as saying nothing at all.

There are obvious basics for every species like heat and light and thermostats etc.. but non eating can be anything from crypto to blockages or parasites.. advice on here at times shocks me.. peopel say

So youre beardie isnt eating or moving much dont worry its winter...


the thing is MAYBE their beardie did that LAST year and it WAS brumation but to then suggest that ALL beardies in november/december arent eating or moving due to brumation is very very worrying and totally inacurate.

Guesses and comments like this slow down the person seeking correct vet attetnion and check ups.

If i ever do give basic advice I always mention that a vet should be contacted. There are several reasons for this.

ONE.. I have no idea if I have obtained all the relevant info from the person asking for advice.

TWO.. i am not able to visually SEE the animal and therefore mistakes can easily be made.

THREE and this is the most important one.. I am not a specialist in vetinary care or animal science.. so my advice will only be basic and could be irelevant.

basics are obvious and can easily be given.. husbandry issues addressed such as temps and feeding or even size of vivarium.

But after that advising to force feed a lizard or how much supplemtnts to give is pointless. Without weights and examanations advice could potentially be dangerous.

Recently I have told people this puiblically that their advice is dangerous and I have gotten a mouthful for it. However I would prefer to do this than see animals suffer due to bad advice.
I would far prefer if a person is in any doubt to help them locate a herptology specialist in their area and advise them to make a vet appointment asap.
You can suggest things like possible MBD or Bad sheds.. but the underlying reason is what needs treated .
suggestions though at times on here are nothing short of horrific.
One person advised giving complan ( the dairy based human product) to a sick leo.. and others advise upping calcium supplements to what could be a dangeroud level.. and cause issues with over-calcification.. hypercalcimia..

anyway the general jist for me is..

if in doubt check it out.. WITH A SPECIALIST.. not on a forum for 6 weeks whilst your animal is losing weight and seems unwell..

Forums can help.. they cant cure!

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I do have a few other animals too...............
0.1 Wd, 1.1 snakes, 1.0 APH, 2.2 Kittys and some fish

Problem is, if you want advice that's valid, don't risk posting your question on a public forum. Look at my profile and it says i'm 25 with 7 snakes, I have 18 months keeping experience and I can provide photos of myself and my snakes, but it still doesn't prove i'm not a 69 year old bloke from Nigeria who's never even seen a snake in my life.

Unfortunately if you don't like it, tough, I understand it's frustrating, my personal pet peev is replies such as;

"I think it's an amel, but i'm no expert" Following a reply from an experienced breeder stating it is for a fact a butter. If you don't know and you're no expert don't comment, I don't start threads so people can post some random rubbish to up their post count, if my question has been answered I expect the thread to die out, not go on for two pages of one word answers agreeing with what's already been said.

Well, rant over....

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