[hissnhers]

:rant2: Sorry. but this is a bit of a rant..............:devil:

I'm into corn snakes and crested geckos but I'm sure this will relate to other breeds/breeders too :whistling2:

Is anyone else getting frustrated with seemingly ever-decreasing prices and/or ridiculous offers on animales? WHY do we seem to undervalue/devalue the animals we're selling? :banghead:

I've been searching for specifics - UK/Europe/US/Canada - and it's become fairly obvious that we VASTLY underprice our babies/youngsters and adults.

I'm not just talking about their rare/unusual morphs, I'm on about the more prevelant morphs -harlequins/pinstripes/solid colours etc - all of which we have over here too.

I realise that there's sometimes a genuine need to offload because of overstocking/cashflow but it seems to me that every time someone offers corns for £10 or cresties for £30 it makes it harder for others to sell on their own stock.

I understand males are usually cheaper than females but why should they be offered at rediculously low prices just to get rid of them?

US/Canadian males are still a good price - after all, if you want to produce nice babies, you generally need a good male morph. Don' devalue their worth :bash:


STOP undervaluing your own efforts, those of breeders and, indeed the breed itself.

Cheap prices often mean that owners think they're getting something for nothing and treat it accordingly

Longterm -people start to have the mindset that prices SHOULD be cheap - WRONG WRONG WRONG:devil:

Prices should, quite correctly, reflect the size/weight/morph/sex etc but (I think) it's about time we re-established the true value of our animals in order to maintain and improve ALL breeds moving forward :flrt:

Any thoughts? :grouphug:

 

[angelgirls29]

I agree.

A decent price for a decent animal

EDIT: A decent price for a HEALTHY animal

 

[zmtab]

I agree too

 

[leopardgeckomad]

i cannot agree more :notworthy:

 

[MrMike]

I agree wholeheartedly, however it's all supply and demand. When supply exceeds demand prices drop.

We still have a few Leos left from last year, but I'd rather keep them than "bargain basement" them. Good job I only bred numbers in could keep for an extended amount of time ;-)

 

[SilverSteno]

Supply and demand, the more of something there is the cheaper it becomes and as there are so many people breeding when they aren't enough homes available this is the way things go - prices drop because people can't shift the offspring so they end up giving them away because there is always someone else in the same situation that will get the market share first.

 

[Bosh]

yeah too many people out there that want to breed, without thinking realising how hard it may be to shift the resulting offspring.

first thing they do when they cant shift them is drop the price.

 

[ginnerone]

which is why i'm very particular who i sell to.

you can get Tokays for £10 in some establishments, W/C obv but price is never discused when i sel mine, its not a priority, if people want a lizard price shouldn't be the No1 priority IMO.

I personnaly think people are far more concerned if a £500 lizard gets ill whereas if the same lizard only cost £20 it would be a case of "i'm not paying £50 vet fee's on a £20 lizard".
this is a very frustrating problem that is way too popular in our disposable culture.

Animals should be sold for what they are worth, NOT what you can get for them.

this problem has arrisen from 'have a go' hobby breeders, hear today and gone tommorrow selling loads of lizards at cheap prices, ruining it for the real breeders unfortunatly.

 

[SleepyD]

We still have a few Leos left from last year, but I'd rather keep them than "bargain basement" them. Good job I only bred numbers in could keep for an extended amount of time ;-)

*nods* ditto
all too often though you see people offloading reps as bargain bucket/basement efforts which has, in some cases, little to do with how many are currently in the market and more to do with getting shot of them asap to maximise the return whilst minimising the expense/effort.

 

[Phil3822]

yeah too many people out there that want to breed, without thinking realising how hard it may be to shift the resulting offspring.

first thing they do when they cant shift them is drop the price.

As above. I think laws around breeding should be much more regulated and controled. As another poster its about supply and demand. To many people want to breed hence beardies can be picked up for fiver. In fact last week I was asked if I would take on 40 beardies from a regular breeder otherwise he would freeze them. He could not sell for even a fiver each. No one wanted them round here.

 

[k42c]

As above. I think laws around breeding should be much more regulated and controled. As another poster its about supply and demand. To many people want to breed hence beardies can be picked up for fiver. In fact last week I was asked if I would take on 40 beardies from a regular breeder otherwise he would freeze them. He could not sell for even a fiver each. No one wanted them round here.

he was going to freeze berdies or the eggs? surly someone wouldnt put a live lizard into a freezer?

 

[Phil3822]

Oh yes they would. Unfortunetly I know of it to be common practice amoung certain breeders and shops. If they cost to much to feed and cant sell. Live beardies this is.

 

[Tds79]

Sadly killing young seems to becoming more and more common place if they cannot be sold, I know of a shop that flushed babies it couldnt sell.

 

[k42c]

Oh yes they would. Unfortunetly I know of it to be common practice amoung certain breeders and shops. If they cost to much to feed and cant sell. Live beardies this is.

thats quite sad. im going to stop reading this thread now

 

[Phil3822]

It is very sad. Hence why I think breeding should be controlled and regulated. Not very easy to do at all though.

 

[hissnhers]

Animals should be sold for what they are worth, NOT what you can get for them.

ABSO-BLUMIN-LUTELY:lol2:

 

[Khonsu]

Whatever the rights & wrongs are the problem is simply that to many people are breeding thier snakes/lizards because they think they can make a fat profit. You only have to look at the classifieds on this forum, endless postings by people who are trying to sell on babies that noboddy actually wants, bred unthinkingly, until this stops prices will continue to fall for most of the "common" reptiles available.

 

[andy007]

Was discussing just this subject with Sweetcorn the other day.

As said, a lot of these cheap animals are being sold by "have a go, jump on the band wagon" types. You know the ones.......wanted ads like "looking for adult pair of this or that" cus they cant be bothered to wait. I've seen Beardies for sale locally from private breeders at £10 for Beardies that aren't even two weeks old:devil:

Some shops, as well as breeders, are going this way too. Cheap deals on multiples etc etc...... The animals I sell may not be the cheapest around, but I don't believe that they should become throw away items. I would prefer to sell one good, healthy animal, knowing the buyer has taken time to consider their purchase, rather than banging half a dozen out at bargain prices to anyone that walks through the door. I then sleep with a clear conscience.

Some customers do notice that my selling ethics are far different from the others locally. I've had customers buy Cresties from me at £60 rather than paying £30 from somewhere else, because they like the way I treat the sale personally not just as £££££'s.

So I say to everyone miffed by these cheap sellers, stand your ground and stick to your prices. Quality animals and advice will always prevail in the end: victory:

 

[amiz]

I also feel that it's cos certain species are all the cos and others get pushed to one side. This also reduces prices a classic example is the small species of skink. Love reptiles but often get ignored

 

[Sweetcorn]

I totally agree. If you need to start selling at stupid prices then either don't breed or breed less. I only ever breed two females each season. If the babies don't sell quickly, it doesn't matter because it's a manageable number and I don't need to then sell for £20 to get rid of them.

I enjoy raising my babies and to me they are worth more than that. I would rather keep them here than let them go for peanuts.

I've raised all my females from babies and they all get a year off from breeding inbetween.

Another trend I've noticed is how many people are coming on saying they have bought babies at just 3 weeks old. In my opinion that's far too young and lazy on the part of the breeder :devil: