Reptiles down under

[Stuart]

I guess Stu will have a few hundred more subscribers now

Might be time to think of a way to help the Herp Community while covering those that have already helped APS

 

[CrazyNut]

Might be time to think of a way to help the Herp Community while covering those that have already helped APS

Perhaps an auction fund raiser coukd be held every now and than.

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It appears RDU has kicked the bucket. There hasn't even been activity on the FB page (aside frome peope asking about when the site will be up again). Shame, all these great places online for reptiles are either dead or dying. Looks like APS is pretty much the last stronghold. With increasing interest in hobbiest switching to Facebook, who kmows how long we will preveil. Hopefully Stu can keep this site running for as long as possible but their is only so much one can do.

 

[Wally]

There's always Herp Trader.

http://www.herptrader.com.au/

Been around longer than RDU.

 

[Stuart]

Hopefully Stu can keep this site running for as long as possible but their is only so much one can do.

I keep this site running for the community and not me, based on my thoughts I agree with the sentiment but would alter your statement to say that its the community that keeps the site running, I just provide the platform.
Stu

 

[CrazyNut]

But without the platform there is no site to keep the comunity running thus there would be no comunity.
[MENTION=23869]Wally[/MENTION] I had forgiten about herp tarder, didn't even know it was still going. Been so ling since I have visted that sight, I can't even remeber if I had an acc or not lol.

 

[Stuart]

But without the platform there is no site to keep the comunity running thus there would be no comunity.

True,

But what came first, the platform or the community

 

[snakeboy1997]

Hello can any one on here tell me some other sites to buy and sell reptiles in now that rdu is gorn life sucks so i need other sites if some one could help me thank you

 

[vampstorso]

This has happened with rdu on numerous occasions and I suspect they'll be back.
It's happened for longer before and they came back.

Patience is key.

 

[RoryBreaker]

Bring back AHC!!!!!!!

 

[Freeloader]

+1 Dave.

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As for fb there is some pages on there that have had no traffic for days or weeks. Even the popular blue tongue, monitor and skink pages have bugger all new posts for days.
I am not a big poster on here and am even less so on fb.
Maybe our hobby is on a downward trend in popularity at the moment.

 

[CrazyNut]

True,

But what came first, the platform or the community

Well that depends. The comunnity as a whole or just the online comunnity?

 

[pinefamily]

When times are tough, animals are often the first thing people let go in many instances. And no-one can dispute times are getting tough.

 

[Elite_Reptiles]

Herp Trader charges to advertise and they are not as popular as APS etc when it comes to searching particular reptiles for sale.

As for the downward spiral of the reptile industry, I'm not surprised with the amount of fly-by, wanna-be reptiles keepers that get on sales sites and offer ridiculous prices for reptiles that are well under the normal asking price. This is what has slowly killed the hobby and it's profit margins for all long-term keepers/breeders to help in the up-keep of these animals. It's just not worth the pittens you get for the amount of effort, time and cost of keeping these beautiful animals.

I remember when Albino Darwins were 7k ea, what are they now... $500 ea. Those that have been in the industry long-term, would agree that is just pathetic, especially when you can still look at these beautiful and rare animals and think how can such a low price of $500 justify the costs, time, up-keep and the safety of placing these animals into the hands of people that can barely afford the $500 let alone the cost of feeding them, vet bills, maintenance etc.

So well done to all the cheap skates out there for ruining what was a thriving hobby, you know who you are!

P.S. And it's not about lining our pockets with the big dollars, about ensuring these animals go to a good home with people that can afford to pay a top end price and can afford to look after them correctly. It also cements a long-term commitment in keeping these animals correctly and for the survival of the hobby. Hence why so many reptile sites are disappearing!

There's always Herp Trader.

http://www.herptrader.com.au/

Been around longer than RDU.

 

[pythoninfinite]

I think it's called supply & demand, especially with pythons. You can't have animals which produce 20+ babies almost every year, then three years on, half of those snakes produce 20+ babies each... and so on & so on exponentially and expect both demand and price to remain high. Mentioned in another post somewhere that the market is now awash with all sorts of pythons which people literally can't give away because the market is flooded. What we've seen in the past 15 years is a natural result of reptile breeding becoming something that anyone at home can do. Prices are low because there are too many animals available, and it was always going to happen. I remember John Weigel telling me many years ago after he cracked the code for breeding his wild-caught RSPs that they would be a $200 snake in 10 years - he wasn't too far wide of the mark, considering that he sold his first progeny for the equivalent of $30K+. It's been suggested elsewhere that lizards may now become the new focus, and this appears to be the case. At least with many lizards, clutch/litter size is nowhere near that of the pythons, so both demand and prices are likely to remain higher for longer. I also believe that there will be a steady demand for animals of specified locale, particularly pythons, for those who don't want any of the mixed-heritage rubbish now junking the market. Whether it's evolution or devolution I don't know, but I'm pleased to see far less of the frenzied need to be the first kid on the block with the latest smuggled overseas morph, which was always far more about ego than love for the animals themselves. All that looks pretty pointless now.

Jamie

 

[DRAGONEYE]

I'll second your comments Jamie.

"the first kid on the block with the latest smuggled overseas morph,"

It should not have been allowed to happen in the first place. why the authorities let it all go by I will never know. (actually I do know = not enough manpower and financial resources to control the lawbreakers here in Qld.anway)

Cheers
Sandee

 

[user 23122]

I think monitors will never be exploited like our Python species as they are just too specialised in their upkeep and breeding also with their much much longer incubation time. Although the hobby is on a downward spiral I much prefer it then it was 5 years ago when every man and his dog jumped on the wagon and purchased a pretty looking snake off the internet so they could impress their friends with. These people had no idea on the origins of their snake they purchased except it had a fancy name. Pretty **** poor really!

 

[Waterrat]

I agree with you Jamie, the other reason for the downfall in demand and prices is - all the sincere, dedicated genuine reptile keepers / breeders got exactly what they wanted a long time ago. The hobby is more or less left with the new kids on the block and pet keepers. The "investors" or commercial breeders are no longer in the game because there are no returns on investment. Sounds like too much commercialism? It was and still is for too many. Mrkos is right, the majority of reptile owners wouldn't have a clue where there animal came from, their provenance, not to mention natural history. Like fashion, things go out and come back.

 

[pythoninfinite]

I think monitors will never be exploited like our Python species as they are just too specialised in their upkeep and breeding also with their much much longer incubation time. Although the hobby is on a downward spiral I much prefer it then it was 5 years ago when every man and his dog jumped on the wagon and purchased a pretty looking snake off the internet so they could impress their friends with. These people had no idea on the origins of their snake they purchased except it had a fancy name. Pretty **** poor really!

My own feeling is that the hobby isn't on a downward spiral - the explosive growth in popularity we saw happen in the past 12-15 years was always going to peak sooner or later, and the peak seemed to coincide somewhat with the global financial crisis a few years ago, leading to changed spending habits and re-ordered priorities. What we are seeing is the "curiosity seekers" washing out of the market once they have had their snake thrill (since a snakey pet isn't that unusual any more), and the market stabilising to accommodate more of those with a genuine long-term interest in reptiles. Hence my belief that the market, although diminished, will turn more towards specialisation and those who enjoy a bit of a challenge. There have been several factors which may also affect those who keep reptiles - hugely increased energy costs in the last 10 years have greatly impacted keepers, especially those with large animals or large collections, the cost of feeding snakes can be massive if you can't or don't breed your own food animals ($38 for three 120gm rats at our local Petbarn in Port Macquarie!), and the decreasing number of people who have control over the place they live in - they may be renters forever. I also believe that many of the enthusiastic newbies who took to the hobby when snakes became more readily available, and created that massive market, were older kids who were living at home, and sadly they're all growing up now and their interests are changing, so the keeping demographic is changing along with it.

So, in my opinion the market is steadying and may be changing direction a bit, buyers will be more discerning, but still be prepared to pay a reasonable sum for good animals of particular provenance from breeders/suppliers with good intentions and good reputations, so it's not all bad news. Most of these things are cyclical anyway - price drops because there are too many bred, people stop breeding so supply drops off - demand picks up because animals are scarce - price goes up again so people start breeding again... and so on. I don't think it'll be as frenzied as it has been in the past decade, but if breeders can sniff the wind and stick it out in the slow times, they'll at least cover their costs and then some, and have a lot of fun & interest along the way.

Jamie

 

[Wallo]

RDU back up and on the air

 

[danyjv]

I have a reason to have internet again !! Thanks RDU ( please never leave me again)


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