You win Budman, I will quit selling venomoids..........

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Posted by conservationist on May 10, 2003 at 13:23:58:

In Reply to: You win Budman, I will quit selling venomoids.......... posted by richard.ritchey on May 10, 2003 at 01:47:14:

This behavior is not uncommon in the venomous snake community. People claim they're your friends, talk behind your back, steal your snakes, sell you WC snakes they claim are eating and never eat, or sell sick snakes as healthy ones, putting down another enthusiasts opinion, just being plain rude.

I, for one, don't support venomoids, but all of this fighting is only going to create more bad media and will effect venomous snake keeping in general.

Let's try to all get along, respect everyone's opinion, etc. If someone's ways of keeping venomous snakes are of any concern, let that person know, without threatening their life, without name calling, without the stereotypical venomous snake keeper's replies.

If your life was threatened on an answering machine message, save that message, send it to local and federal authorities. If you do know infact that it's this guy who sent the message and not someone else, let the authorities know about it. Also, let the kingsnake.com people know about it, if it's someone in this forum. It's their responsability to ban this person.

Also, you may want to contact various well-known breeders about this incident and let them know what happened. Some people have a great passion for reptiles (And their own lives) and may blacklist (refuse to do business with) him.

Another good idea, if he keeps calling you up, is to get a second phone line, but keep the reptile line. Don't give out the second phone number to anyone you don't trust. Just keep the answering machine on the reptile line and screen all of the calls. Save all of his messages and send to the proper authorities.

For most of us who keep, breed, and/or sell reptiles, it's not about money. It's about doing the things we love to do, the way we want to do them. Well, just try not to worry about this too much.

:The threats of life and limb left on my phone machine where a bit extreme. I am just happy I caught them before my 7 year old
:daughter played it back.
: I have a nice part time job which pays $52,000 a year so
:venomoids were never about money. Our society lives in complete
:fear of everything which surrounds them. This fear is out of
:ignorance. Fear leads to many things including the outright
:banning, killing, or restricting of a minority�s interests. Since many interests outside the norm are of a minority status, the majority outlaws the interests of the minority out of fear and ignorance.
: This is a never ending downward spiral which ends in the loss of all rights and privileges concerning a groups interests, hobbies, and profession.
: At some point in life one must ask oneself. What am I doing to combat this ignorance, this fear which relentlessly drives people to inhibit, or ban a groups interests???
: I asked that question to myself in 1988. It was at this point that I decided there must be more then keeping, breeding, and selling reptiles. I moved to Oregon because the government at that time still believed in personal responsibility and allowed the keeping of any and all reptiles. For 5 years I donated educational programs to schools, auctions to raise money for charitable organizations Etc... Now I provide over 400 a year in the NW.
: The use of venomoids was first and foremost in my battle to fight fear and ignorance which was considerable in this state at that time.
: I am happy to announce that the tide has changed in the past 12 years in the eyes of the public. It is not unusual for a library performance to draw in 500 to 700 adults and children to see a variety of reptiles. In the beginning I noticed people labeling venomous snakes as �Evil, Disgusting, Worthless, and better off dead� This has also changed.
: I wanted everyone to own a venomoid so people could look
:past their own death and see for themselves up close and personal how beautiful, fascinating, and intelligent venomous snakes really are. To know that no evil exists and therefore no reason to kill them en mass.
: I hold nothing against anyone. I am just tired of dancing. The demand for venomoids will always exsist. I hope whoever takes up the slack is experianced and able.
:
:Romans 14:13-15
:As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that nothing is unclean in itself. But
:if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean.
:
:Sincerely,
:Rich
:

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