what a life a tortoise has.....

[beth wallbank]

just another view

[beth wallbank]

need any more?

[Tim_Cranwill]

Looks great Beth! I had faith in you

[Chris R]

If you people want to do something that is genuinely "noble" for tortoises and other reptiles, then please contact Andy C. Highfield at www.tortoisetrust.org and donate much needed funds to his organization. He uses the money for buying habitat and other research for reptiles. Keep the saving of animals up to professionals like him. Please do not hide behind the mask of your own greed. We, as amateur keepers, keep reptiles because we want to, because they entertain us, and usually nothing more. Breeding them somehow gives us the false sense that we are contributing to the species in a positive way. As anothermonkey stated, these animals are ecologically dead. I watch everyones breeding successes being traded like hockey cards all over the internet. A truly "noble" act. Nobility and Reptile keeping have nothing in common. I'm not saying, don't keep reptiles, pioneers such as Andy Highfield, Pritchard, Dean Ripa, Indraneil Das etc. undoubtedly kept reptiles at first before their contributions, I'm just saying, have a little respect and don't call live animals pathetic.
Why are wild caught corn snakes still traded in this day and age, for genetic diversity? are we that foolish?

Chris R.

[Scotty Allen]

I knew there was a fund raising plot coming up somewhere. Can anybody else smell PETA. Beth, I salute you for the way you maintain your tortoises, keep it up. Those photos should be a model for everyone.

[silke]

i think the pix of the lazy torts is cute and their playground is lovely
i also like the enclosures and racks of your other critters that you posted pix of not so long ago

[beth wallbank]

Thank you Scotty,........coming from a model such as yourself, that makes me feel a whole lot more better. And the same to Cranwill.

[beth wallbank]

thanks Silke

[Chris R]

A predictable response from a commercial breeder/dealer, Mr. Allen. I'm not a bleeding heart, nor a fundraiser, I just like to expose the industry for what it is.

[dippy]

Who are you exposing the industry to by going into nice threads and jumping on people like this?

[Tim_Cranwill]

Who are you trying to expose, people who love and respect their pets???? Get a grip, buddy. Maybe you should find something more useful to do with your time than badgering experienced reptile owners. Isn't there a Home-Depot you should be picketing?

[Big Mike]

Chris,
You may be fighting for a just cause but you are fighting the wrong people in the wrong place and you are not accomplishing much by lashing out at the people here. If you care about trying to make a difference there are better places you could be spending your time and effort.

[Scotty Allen]

*LOL* Can anyone please tell me when the last time was that I bred anything besides mealworms? Boy, I sure wish that I could breed t-shirts and books instead of having to buy them.

[Chris R]

Beth loved and respected her cherished pets so much as to sell them to a commercial dealer in Toronto, odd. The intraprovincial transport of tortoises without CITES and Agricultural Canada paperwork is illegal under WAPRITA as is the commercial trade of tortoises in Canada.

I never said she wasn't an experienced keeper cranwill, although an experienced keeper would know that Russian tortoises hibernate in the wild from 3 to 9 months of the year depending on locality. Not hibernating them puts stress on their organs, especially their renal system, shortening their lifespan. It is also almost impossible to breed them without hibernation.

The 3 she sold were apparently proven breeders. I am highly skeptical of CB Russians in Canada. I saw a guy with a CH Russian once, but never true CB. Can someone post a pic and prove me wrong?

[Chris R]

You are totally correct in saying that I am fighting the wrong people in the wrong place Big Mike, that is a valid point. That's why I usually stay off these forums, but once in a while I see something that deserves a response.