Slateman said:
1. For parasites test you have to take snake to vet, sample only is not good as the poo must be extra fresh for vet to see it in the stool.
2. Lutzs i tried to ring Bob twice, but when i introduce my self and tel his wife who i am, He is busy to take my call. I left my number for him to call me back 10 days ago, because i would like to ask som questions about Surprice (exact age and hints reg feed and handling) and i would like to purchase about 3 years old female diamond. He did not ring me back, and i do not consider him up for future bossiness because of that.
Surprice is happy in his quarantine cage, and he don't wont to hear about his previous owner either.
1. That's interesting! Does the vet have a way to make the snake poo on command or do you just have to sit and wait! :shock: :? How does the vet extract the stool sample?
2. Yeah, I'm afraid I'm not overly surprised (no pun intended). That's been my experience as well. Of course, it's always possible that his wife was mad at him and didn't pass on the message, as I've had a few non-returned calls from him as well.
Bob has a very good reputation in the snake world, but that may be due to his snake skills and knowledge, rather than his people skills. I can sort of understand how hundreds of phone calls asking the same questions over and over again could become a bit irksome, but if you're selling snakes (or anything for that matter!) for money, then there are certain [moral] obligations to support your customers to a reasonable level. It seems to me that the questions you wanted to ask were not unreasonable.
Regarding the snappiness of Surprise, when I examined him at Bob's place, his explanation of his agressiveness was that there was a bucket of live mice in the room, and Surprise could smell that, as I told Adam at the time. It seemed like a reasonable explanation at the time, but now I'm beginning to wonder. Olives are supposed to be a fairly placid snake by nature from what I've read.
I think I've mentioned before that the contrast between his and Peter Harlowe's pre and post-sales support was like chalk and cheese. Peter was extremely helpful and friendly, both before and after I bought my diamond off him. Paul (Pythonss) was equally helpful to Nicole and I when we were buying our olives.
I guess it boils down to the fact that if you know exactly what you want and don't want any extra information, then Bob is probably a good source, but if you need more, then it might be best to go elsewhere. Or you could ensure that you know everything you want to ask BEFORE you hand over the cash, and make sure that all your questions are answered fully beforehand.
Word of mouth is probably the best recommendation. Perhaps if anyone out there is contemplating buying a snake from someone they don't know, ask the members of this list for references. I'm sure we'll all be only too happy to help.