How do I regiment/dose reptaid used as precaution?

[FFSTRescue]

Yeah those guys are tough. They seem like they do fine if they have excellent conditions but the slightest mistake and they just can't handle it. I have never found any product or technique that will change that! Never tried breeding these and I dont think I have ever seen a captive bred one for sale either. Good luck with that. Have you ever gotten live babies?

As far as I am concerned these things should be discouraged by the industry. The mainstream herp media did such a great job discouraging everyone from buying iguanas, and I have always felt that these should go the same way. They end up in the wrong hands simply because of the price. There are some animals that just don't belong in a cage.

I actually have 8 babies that are about a month and a half old and are doing well... many have died, but these guys have hung on for quite a while and a week has gone by with no mortalities, the longest since I have had them.
I agree with you about them not belonging in cages... in my opinion, no exotic animal belongs in a cage, but unfortunately people are always going to want and buy them, so I try to steer them in the right direction. I am very picky who my animals go to. If they have to be in captivity, then I want it done right. I educate kids (I try my mind control methods ) and I show them the scratches on my arms from my iguanas, I show them toys that birds destroy and say that could be their toy, etc. I also use that as a chance to educate kids about the animals, what they require, where they come from, and what we can do to help them in the wild.
When people ask me how much room a macaw needs, I say 900 square miles.
There was an interesting thing on TV about a man who has a pet store in England somewhere, and he won't sell to people on their first visit. He makes them study up on the animal they are interested in, and he sells to them the second time after they have had a week to think about it. I would love to do the same thing. Though I don't think exotics belong in captivity, if someone wants one, they are going to get one, but I would rather they get it from me so I can educate them correctly. I would love to have a pet store where people have to watch a video and take a quiz on each animal they want to purchase before they can take it home. I don't quite know how to refine it, but I'm sure I will get it down someday. And if people don't want to do all that, then I won't sell to them and I will highly discourage them from owning exotics. But put the right animals in the right hands, and they can live wonderful lives, not the same as being free, but great lives none the less.

 

[AB EskimoC]

Thinking about that just reminded me of a story I haven't thought about in a long time. We used to sell male veilds or panthers, off of a similar canopy to the one in the picture above. It was the centerpiece of the store right in front of the register. You would think that it would have been too stressful for them, but we would just feed them by hand all day and let the customers do it to. Within a few days of being on the canopy, they would become the tamest chameleons you've ever seen, and they would literally beg for food from nearly every passerby.

Well that went on for several years. We were always afraid that someone might walk out the door with the loose chameleon (Hence being right next to the register). But this one day a huge biker was in the store buying rats for his boas. While he was at the register, a particularly bold male veiled took the opportunity to make his great escape, by climbing onto the back of the guys leather jacket without anyone noticing! That guy had the surprise of his life about 2 blocks away on his chopper, when he realized he had company sitting on his shoulder!

That is the greatest story. Hahaha Love it. In a nutshell and not to swoop on the discussion, years ago in 8th grade, my Science teacher had reptiles of all sorts in the classroom and would often let us students hold them during class and a blue tongued skink snuck into my backpack. I found it 3 periods later and ofcourse, returned it to him. "I knew someone would show up sometime with her" he said. Ridiculous. lol