Breeders??

jefffff

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First off, want to thank everyone who has posted in this discussion as it has been extremely insightful from all perspectives and opinions.

""That being said, being financially driven does not equal poor quality animals - it simply doesn’t. The same is true the other way, having passion does not equal high quality animals.""
While this can be true it doesn't really make sense. There are many industries that we can reference in which greed has done a tremendous amount of negative impact to the animal and/or goods due to being financially driven. I think that's all anyone is trying to say here. Simply put you've got 2 kinds of sellers in this circumstance with each having a primary interest and then everything else falls behind that. (1) Those who are doing it for a dollar and care only about the species to be sure they can make said dollar. At the end of the day as long as they can sell a product that passes initial inspection and gets them the top dollar they aren't really concerned about anything else. It all comes down to financial gain, the health of the animal is just a by product of ensuring they get their top dollar. (2) Then there are those who have years invested in this species and are conscious of making sure they thrive. They have a true passion for ensuring these animals remain healthy, for no other reason than to seem the flourish. A by-product of there years of passion is that they have been able to create a business because of this passion. This business I feel isn't about the money, but more about ensuring that this species can continue to grow. The money is a secondary source and motivational factor in raising these Aldabra's. I mean let's be honest, its great to have a hobby and be passionate about something. The only thing better is making money from something that you absolutely love. I think that is every person's dream and only a few of us are fortunate enough to get to do something like this. I don't think there is any debate about who you would rather obtain an Aldabra from when you consider the two.

I can't blame Tom one bit for recommending AldabraMan, I mean his passion and excellent track record speak for itself. Now you take some of the other people that you can purchase an Aldabra from and its just a fact of doing business, you are very likely going to have a lower success rate due to different factors. This is to not say you're going to have a negative experience with them. All that's being said here is that your experience is most likely going to be the most positive by going through Aldabraman based on this forum. Not saying anyone else is going to be negative, but without the other individuals being active and providing updates, providing insight into there process for there Aldabra's it's hard to recommend them here. This forum clearly biased towards AldabraMan and we should be, he's earned it and worked hard to make sure we are kept in the loop and provides excellent insight and knowledge into many different areas.

I do think you are kind of taking what Tom is saying out of context, but that's neither here nor there. This thread has been very insightful, so again thank you all.
 

ben awes

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"Not saying anyone else is going to be negative"
Jeff, good comments but I am not taking Tom's comments out of context. Tom did suggest, quite strongly, that going with anyone else is going to be negative. I don't understand why you all think I don't understand your position? It's not illogical to say that you have a "better" chance at a better outcome with local bred - i get it, and I believe it. If you review the thread, I never denied that. But a better chance at a better outcome does not mean no chance at a good outcome with others - but that is what you continue to argue. And you have no idea the real odds. Lets be clear - here's what happened - A person asked for recommendations for sources for aldabras. Aldabraman was immediately recommended. The guy says he can't reach him. I recommend two others that I've had good experience with. Tom say don't go with anyone but Aldabraman, "trust me". Why am i not allowed to recommend other people? And btw, there are countless countless examples of business committed to unwavering quality that make money, and care about making money. If the business model believes that high quality animals is the best way to make money then what? that's not possible?.......very different than "selling a product that just passes inspection", which is how you grouped all importers.
 

kingsley

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Been There done that!!! I will NEVER buy from a broker again!!! I purchased 3 Aldabra (2 Males and 1 Female)in 2014 all surgically sexed and chipped Imports. The animals came in all alive with split and extra scutes ,and the so called female was off diet and died within a couple of weeks!! Upon necropsy, the entire body cavity was full of peritonitis. I contacted the broker who claimed he had the best warranty in the industry and was willing to replace the animal at a cost far exceeding the original price!! What a joke!! I have moved on , life is too short to deal with this kind a scab!!! FYI one of the so called males is looking very much female lately LOL!!! They are now sub adults around 30 inches each with great personalities.
 

ALDABRAMAN

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I will NEVER buy from a broker again!!! // died within a couple of weeks!! Upon necropsy, the entire body cavity was full of peritonitis.

~ Can you share what your vet felt caused or contributed to this? Was it passed down from the adults, was it from being kept in crowded dirty conditions, etc.
 

ALDABRAMAN

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I purchased 3 Aldabra in 2014 // and the so called female was off diet and died within a couple of weeks!!

~ Unfortunately this is a common issue that we get many e-mails about involving imports. Sometimes it can be stress, diet change, environment change and sometimes illness or health issues. I encourage everyone to take notice of the environment that the tortoises are coming from. Crowded, dirty and unsanitary environments can often contribute to the overall health of the tortoise.
 

kingsley

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Vet Said the infection might have been caused after the surgical sexing, amazingly when I mentioned it to the seller ,he claimed that they were sexed through the cloaca!!! This explains how I ended up with a second female!!!or the sex change LOL!!!
 

Tom

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Been There done that!!! I will NEVER buy from a broker again!!! I purchased 3 Aldabra (2 Males and 1 Female)in 2014 all surgically sexed and chipped Imports. The animals came in all alive with split and extra scutes ,and the so called female was off diet and died within a couple of weeks!! Upon necropsy, the entire body cavity was full of peritonitis. I contacted the broker who claimed he had the best warranty in the industry and was willing to replace the animal at a cost far exceeding the original price!! What a joke!! I have moved on , life is too short to deal with this kind a scab!!! FYI one of the so called males is looking very much female lately LOL!!! They are now sub adults around 30 inches each with great personalities.
Thank you for sharing your experience here. Your story is one of the ones I referred to earlier in this thread, but I did not feel it was appropriate to use your name and expand upon the details without your consent. Better that the info comes directly from you anyway.

To all reading, I say again: It is not impossible to get a nice tortoise from an importer or broker. But it is a much bigger risk than buying one from a breeder that we all know does it right. If I were in the market for an Aldabra, I would get on a waiting list with Aldabraman and then bug him once a month until I got my new tortoise! :) I wouldn't even consider any other source, unless Aldabraman was not an option for some reason.
 

Yvonne G

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Vet Said the infection might have been caused after the surgical sexing, amazingly when I mentioned it to the seller ,he claimed that they were sexed through the cloaca!!! This explains how I ended up with a second female!!!or the sex change LOL!!!
My vet used to be the vet at our zoo here in Fresno. She told me it's very difficult to just look for the penis through the cloaca. . . not a for sure way to sex a tortoise.
 

Yvonne G

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Thank you for sharing your experience here. Your story is one of the ones I referred to earlier in this thread, but I did not feel it was appropriate to use your name and expand upon the details without your consent. Better that the info comes directly from you anyway.

To all reading, I say again: It is not impossible to get a nice tortoise from an importer or broker. But it is a much bigger risk than buying one from a breeder that we all know does it right. If I were in the market for an Aldabra, I would get on a waiting list with Aldabraman and then bug him once a month until I got my new tortoise! :) I wouldn't even consider any other source, unless Aldabraman was not an option for some reason.
The two I got came from a pet store in New York. They were thought to be farmed in Europe. They were both perfectly healthy and the only health issues I had with them during the 17 years I owned them were caused by me and my husbandry.
 

ALDABRAMAN

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he claimed that they were sexed through the cloaca!!!

~ We called our vet last year regarding a possible procedure on a 200 pound aldabra tortoise to confirm sex status. He indicated they would make an incission in the rear hind leg area and go thru that way. We opted out of the process for other reasons, however i have always been under the understanding they did not go thru the cloaca (like a snake).
 

Salspi

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Been There done that!!! I will NEVER buy from a broker again!!! I purchased 3 Aldabra (2 Males and 1 Female)in 2014 all surgically sexed and chipped Imports. The animals came in all alive with split and extra scutes ,and the so called female was off diet and died within a couple of weeks!! Upon necropsy, the entire body cavity was full of peritonitis. I contacted the broker who claimed he had the best warranty in the industry and was willing to replace the animal at a cost far exceeding the original price!! What a joke!! I have moved on , life is too short to deal with this kind a scab!!! FYI one of the so called males is looking very much female lately LOL!!! They are now sub adults around 30 inches each with great personalities.

Exactly.... Get to know your breeder before buying!
 
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