So you want to be a Reptile Rescue?? - Page 2

CyberGhost · 05-30-03, 01:36 PM

You know what would help in bundles if there was like a chain of reptile or exotic animal shelters like the humansociety. That all worked together to help eash other and place animals wouldt that be great and you would get alot of money because you could have telethons and stuff to raise it. Like all the people or most with their own shelters came together to make one giant chain to help all the animals. I bett big chains like Petsmart and Wal-MArt would even help out and donate stuff it would be wonderful and think of all the animals it would save wouldt that be great?

eyespy · 05-30-03, 04:49 PM

In my experience the little mom-and-pop petstores are far more likely to donate than the big chains. The chains have certain charities that they already support and pretty much blow off new requests.

Many US-based reptile rescues use Petfinder.com as their link to each other in helping to place animals. I don't personally use the service because most of the animals I take are short-term rehabs that will be going back to their owners after their post-operative care is done but I do help folks who need to rehome animals get set up with Petfinder.

marisa · 05-30-03, 04:58 PM

Petfinder.org is a really super service for finding dogs and cats especially. Most of Ontarios shelters (dog and cat) and Humane Societies use petfinder.org as well. And sometimes they get reptiles in.

petfinder.org is really a good service.

Marisa

CyberGhost · 05-30-03, 04:59 PM

STill it would would be totally amazing if what i said happened there would be far less dead and dying herps out there.

Xetox · 05-30-03, 05:04 PM

well said....I totaly agree.

I love to take in unwanted animals......but I would just prefer to have to buy them from a breeder than have to rescue them from a unwanted enviroment!

Well let me rephrase that! I would rather HAVE to buy them from a breeder than rescue them from unwanted homes!

Herpkingdom · 05-30-03, 07:27 PM

Well I find Petfinder.org to be not a good place for reptiles as many of the rescues/shelters that use this try to get retial prices for the reptiles they have. An example is one of them wanting a $100 adoption fee for a Boa or a $75 fee for a ball python. It is by far a great place for cats and dogs, but the fees are much lower than for the reptiles.

I started a so called "League" of rescues that all work together and currently work with several up and down the east coast. This is nothing official, just a few friends that do rescues from their homes that work together to rehab and adopt out to good homes any reptiles that come our way. I was in the progress of working together with my local shelters and animal control agencies to take all of the reptiles that they get calls on, but as of today this is going to be on hold for at least a year. I have a once in a life time job opportunity that I am going to be taking that is going to have me out of the US for a year.

The Reptile Rescue League can be seen at
http://www.herpkingdom.com/TRRL/TRRL.html
As a rescue is rehabbed back to health, it is posted for adoption on everyone's site in the league thus giving more exposure to the adoption.

As far as getting large pet chains to donate to a small rescue, good luck! THey do only big pet charities that deal with mainly dogs and cats, not the reptiles and amphibians. I was getting set up to do fund raising events by selling magazine subscriptions and such. This wouldn't fund a lot, but every little bit will help.

scorpman · 05-30-03, 09:05 PM

HEY EVERYONE THIS IS A GREAT POST AND I TOTALY AGREE WITH ALL THE VIEWS AS FAR AS A RESCUE LIKE ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUE HOW MANY PEOPLE DO WE HAVE HERE ON THIS SITE AND FROM WHAT PARTS OF THE CONTRY DO WE ALL COME FROM? ANYBODY HERE NOT WANT TO JOIN ? I FOR ONE WOULD BE WILLING TO JOIN .NEXT QUESTION FUNDING MEMBERSHIP FEES , FUND RAISERS ? YES WHY NOT . HOW MANY REPTILE SHOWS ARE THERE WHERE WE COULD FIND SUPPORTERS. I HERD OF THIS SITE FROM THE REPTILE MAGAZINE I AM SURE THEY MIGHT BE WILLING TO HELP WITH FUNDING AN AD TO GET FUNDS IF YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO ANYTHING COULD BE DONE.JUST SOME IDEAS

eyespy · 05-30-03, 09:07 PM

Most of the rescues spend far, far more than retail cost rehabbing the animals so it would be very difficult for them to ask lower adoption fees. Many would go bankrupt.

Alicewave · 06-01-03, 07:35 PM

I agree. Generally people who are willing to adopt rescue herps are willing to spend the extra money on vet bills so a higher adoption fee is fine with me. I'd rather see the rescues charging this and actually provide excellent care for the herps than a pet store that lets them starve to death.

lanalizard · 06-01-03, 08:22 PM

i agree with what is said. We are a small rescue just for iguanas. We have been so for 2 years, making it public this year. I have heard so many people say they are a rescue, but they dont have money for vet bills, nor do they have enclosures to put the animals in. In our rescue, we do in fact have spots for the iguanas, however are only limited to a certain amount. Reptile Rescue takes on iguanas on their end, we take on our rescue on our end and we have 4 people in our rescue with 2 different homes.

I recently learned of a 12 yr old child telling us she was a rescue for sick/injured/homeless reptiles. HOW ON EARTH, can a child be a rescue, she also stated her mother doesnt agree with it. That is not right, she cant have her own little rescue at 12!

sorry about my ranting rage

CyberGhost · 06-01-03, 08:25 PM

Herpkingdom, you are a genuis and if you don't mind I think that we should all support you. You should open your rescue to people in other places, to branch out. Jeff if your here, I think you should get the site to support his shelter. Let him put banners or something up. I believe if you wanted your idea could grow into exactly what I described in my post. I hope you continue to let your league grow. Maybe one day I will be able to help you out , but now there is no-way I would possibly be able to shelter any herps. But your idea is briliant and I hold you in the highest reguard, it is people like you that keep the world humane. I also appreciate any other rescues. If anybody reperesenting any of them read this I encourage you to contact herpkingdom and request to join his leugue, and herpkingdom if you want, you should contact shelters and ask them to join your leugue.

Just a Thought

eyespy · 06-01-03, 08:31 PM

I always ask a higher-than-market value if I'm putting an available for adoption notice out in the public's eye. It's a useful tool for screening qualified candidates for adopting the animal. Those who are too cheap to pay the fee will most likely be too cheap to take the animal to the vet or provide the best habitat.

I will sometimes lower or waive the fee if I know it's an animal that needs ongoing care and I have confidence that the adoptive owner will be providing that care with the help of a qualified reptile vet. Folks just have to prove they are capable of providing a good level of care. If an applicant has an available enclosure, good husbandry knowledge and uses a great vet but is low on funds to pay both my adoption fee and the vet bills I'm willing to cut them a break.

Fortunately most of my work is rehabbing post-operative animals who go back to their owners once they don't need stuff like stomach tubes or IVs anymore so I don't have to deal with that too very often. I really agonize over placing my animals in new homes. If I had to rehome all my charges I'd have bleeding ulcers and big bald patches where I've pulled out my hair.

BWSmith · 06-01-03, 08:55 PM

Quote:

if there was like a chain of reptile or exotic animal shelters like the humansociety.

I know you said "LIKE" the Humane Society, I would just liek to throw out a reminder that the HSUS is one of EVERY herpers 3 greatest enemies. If you like keeping herps, do not support them and fight themevery chance you get.

Your militant American Hot Herper
B W Smith

CyberGhost · 06-01-03, 09:00 PM

Why do we hate them? What is the other two and why do we hate them?

Herpkingdom · 06-01-03, 09:07 PM

I can agree with some high adoption fees. I even saw someone post a fee of $300 for a Burm adoption. It was a bogus fee and was never going to be charged, but it sure did weed out all of the inexperienced applicants and also stopped about 50 emails a day from showing up.

But from my experience with petfinder.org, the adoption fees charged for the herps listed there are not designed to do that, they know that the herps will be adopted faster than the dogs and cats so they want to get as much out of the herps as they can. Again I can see the logic behind this, I may not agree with it, but I understand it.

As for The Reptile Rescue league, well I am off to go overseas for a year. The recue will not be ion operation at my location, but another member will handle any applications and surrenders that come in. When I return, I plan on going full force in getting as many small rescues together to form some form of network. If we work together, we can get these herps in good homes. But for now, it is going to have to wait for 1 year. During this time, I will put together a plan to do as I stated, so all I have to do is implement it upon my return and see how many would like to ban together.

Thanks Folks