Herping Career

[Oliverian]

I'm not quite sure how to post an actual poll, but I have a question for you all. How many of you raise reptiles as a career? I was considering going into that field, and I wanted to know how many of you do it already or are considering it. You would have to be really deticated to your work (not a problem for most of us i'm sure:D)but it would be so great to do what you love doing all the time as a career.

[paul_le_snake]

i work at reptilia in vaughan, and i do all the captive breeding (not personally) this year we'll produce over 600 different reptiles and amphibians
cheers
paul

[Bencb3]

i would love to work at a pet shop or just plain out breed herps as a hobby or as a job, but i am 14 and my father hasnt agreed to letting me get a snake ,yet.

[Linds]

I do work in reptiles (I was working at Kris' Reptiles and Travelling Exotics Roadshow until I was laid off as they are opening a zoo which I will be employed at), and my future career is one in reptiles, however I do not breed them as a career... and very, very few people do. I do intend on maintining a breeding operation, however I'm not expecting it to be my source of income, as it is very very difficult to actually make money by breeding reptiles, unless you do it on such a colossal scale. Pretty well all the big name breeders in N. America breed as a "hobby" and have their other career as a source of income. Your lucky if you can even break even in this hobby :rolleyes:

[ReneeB]

I've got it as my career right now as I'm a stay at home mom, so it's the other % of my time :)

[reptilez]

Im 14(15in septemeber) so im kinda young to get a job, but at the moment im volenteering at Reptilia. My only source of income is my $15 a week from my parents for doing chors for them and when the time is right i breed my bearded dragons and leopard geckos for some extra cash:D
-Reptilez

[Invictus]

I have every intention to make reptiles my career, but it won't just be breeding. I'm getting into the full deal - breeding, terraria, supplies, etc. My gf wants to become a vet or herpetologist. It'll take us a while, but we'll get there. In the mean time, it'll be a great second income once I have breeding stock.

[fateamber]

I want to be an animal behaviorist (i can't spell behaviorist) and i would like to look at reptile behavior

[Lisa]

We'd like to have reptiles and reptile related items as our main source of income, how ever I can't see it happening for a while.

[drewlowe]

I would absolutly love for reptiles to be my main job. But i can't make enough money to support myself on the income i would make. I really don't expect to become rich or even make that much of a profit. So it is my hobby and will probly always be that way. And any money i make from selling babies i put right back into feeding, cages, vet bills, basicly anything to do with my reptiles (even buying new ones). So i basicly either break even or put more money into it. mostly put more money into it.

I do it for the love of the animals. i believe the people in it for the money will soon find out that it's not possible.

[spyderman]

I just love 'em as a hobby.

[HerpHannah]

Some people could raise them as a job-and then sell of the results.
I couldn't breed them bcos they take up a lot of time and money, you won't get out much and i'd hate 2 see them go 2 a person who i hardly knew, now knowing if they would treat them properly or not,

Dont Buy What You Cant Afford-It Could Turn Out Nasty

[burmer]

My wife and I have talked about it. We are moving soon. When we get set up in a new house and see how much room we have we may start something. She is under the impression that everything we hatch I'll want to keep.

[Oliverian]

Lol. :) Well they are pretty cute when they hatch. If I could keep all the babies I hatched I would, but it would be almost impossible.

[snkmn]

i am too young. after all i am only 13 .plus i would rather be a herpetologist than a reptile breeder

[RaVeNo888o]

ive applied at teh local pet store but they dont seem to want to hire me. I wish that i had volunteered there a few years ago which would have secured me a job their , but i didnt have time then with my other activities.
id love to have a job working with reptiles, beats having a job working with humans lol :D

[blessed]

I would love to make a living catching snakes,now I just go out to the mojave dessert and catch them on weekends and let them go.but now I know a couple people who would buy them.I just feel crazy going outhere alone,I need a sidekick.

[Oliverian]

I was thinking herping career as in captive raising and breeding them yourself, not really catching and selling them. Personally, I'm against selling wild populations as they have a likelyhood for disease and parasites, and also it depletes native populations. Thanks for the replies all, it's been interesting seeing your opinions on this. ~TR~

[blessed]

I heard that a small pecent of the babys survives.so maybe im saving them.

[Oliverian]

Yes, mabye more would survive if you caught the babies and raised them. But it would still deplete wild populations, as the snakes wouldn't be in the wild to breed and keep up the native population. ~TR~

[Matt]

sometimes, its very illegal to catch and keep herps. Be careful about taking anything out of the wild, one, it may be harmful to the population and two, it may not be legal.
In the case of the gila, you cant even touch or pick up one in the wild!

[JaredAren]

My brother and I just started our website and business but until now it has just been a hobby that we love. I doubt it well ever become a career for either of us. We would like to make enough money to pay for our hobby and to be able to buy more high end stock. We figured instead of selling our offspring wholesale as we did in the past, we will sell them ourselves at competitive prices.

[blessed]

I just want to justify me spending more time doing what I love more,and finance some more fieldtrips,or maybe meet someone who needs to catch snakes for a antivenom.

[Bartman]

I want to try to do this for a living really badly. It would be the best job ever. I just hatched a turtle for my first attempt at anything and out of 6 eggs one hatched. Even though its only one it showed me that i could actually breed things and now im gonna try to breed leopards in large quantities. Lets see what happens :)

[blessed]

Originally posted by Oliverian
I'm not quite sure how to post an actual poll, but I have a question for you all. How many of you raise reptiles as a career? I was considering going into that field, and I wanted to know how many of you do it already or are considering it. You would have to be really deticated to your work (not a problem for most of us i'm sure:D)but it would be so great to do what you love doing all the time as a career. if you need anything from california,let me know

[reptilesalonica]

Well, here in Greece the field of Herp hobby is pinguid and i am trying to make reptile breeding as a 2nd job. Here the situation is pinguid because there are only 2-3 breeders in the whole country. 95% of snakes here are imports from America, Africa and Asia, so the prices are a lot higher, furthermore, someone who get involved with reptile breeding, eventualy will make money, but it needs a good source of adult reptiles as a good base and this means money. Also, herp keeping is starting to thrive here in Greece. Always the problem is money. I own myself a small home bussines of feeder animals (crickets, mealworms, silkworms, mice) and let's say that (at the point that i am right now) from the feeders i sell i pay 1/3 of my bills. This year i bred my adult leos and sell all the babies (10) except 2. Well, i liked that, was a good income and i will continue with my bci's, (once they grow up). I hoppe to make a bigger bussiness with feeders (insects, rodents, birds, small mammals). Reptile breeding unfort, is something that will have to wait many years until the animals grow up. But i see light in the end. The basic wage here is 455 euros and i can sell each baby boa for 150 euros. From one birth (say 20 baby boas) i can make 3000 euros :)
But reptiles is something you have to wait a long time, like the good wine. Any suggestions?
~Greg~

[KingFfaj]

I want to study herpetology but i cant really do this untill university, so im going to have to study zoology, then maybe i can become a fully qualified herp vet (we need more in this country)