You make some good points Antoni, and I'm glad you felt comfortable expressing them.This forum is great. The shared experience and knowledge proves to prevent mistakes that happened with the more experienced if the advice is followed. BUT..... i have seen some of you in another thread basically bully this kid into returning his tort. Yes i know that he didn’t know what he got himself into. And should’ve done the research first. But we dont know exactly whats going on. It could’ve been a bday present or a graduation surprise or even just a surprise companion from a loved one. Wouldnt it be nicer if we’re to guide them rather than telling them “if you cant provide this, or do this, return it”. He was so extatic for his new friend and everyone in the thread told him to return it. When i read it, all our info was correct but that was Harsh no matter how u look at it. statistically im guessing about 40% of the forums visitors here are kids to teenagers getting info to care for their new tortoise, maybe more. Not everyone has years and years of care experience, ir mature enough for this kind of responsibility. But i would never tell a kid “return that puppy because your parents will end up taking care of it” (which is 100% of the time) Again i love this place. I learned so much and have seen accurate results. And i try my best to give advice to the new owners in a way that they dont feel pressured. Because in the end we cant force them to do the other. Also our information is “live” and by that i mean we discover new things and techniques which is why its hard to introduce it to a crowd, specially taught by pet stores who cares only for money. I remember buying my sulcata and the guy told me to just soak twice a week and feed lettuce. That they’re not high maintenance at all.. i went here and OMG!! Was he wrong lol i was upset. Thanks to this place he’s a growing healthy smooth sulcuta. I love it here but lets try to help the torts by helping them.
In general I agree with you, but… there's always a but… there comes a point, when harsh realities must be dealt with in order to save the lives of the animals that are the subject of these discussions. I don't know which thread you are talking about in your post, but that has happened several times in the past. If someone is unable, unwilling, or can't afford, or doesn't have the space to take care of their animal, then they do need to give it to someone who can care for it properly. I agree with you that we should try to help them figure out ways to get it done correctly, but in the cases where it can't or won't be done correctly, then recommending they give it away is the best option.
In the case of the OP, he's heading toward a train wreck that I've personally witnessed far too many times. The nice approach failed, so it was time to level with the guy and spell it out in plain English. His tortoise's lives depend on it. It seems his ego and pride are going to win out, which means his two tortoise are going to lose. I, and other people who've done what he's doing, or seen it done by others, know what is coming. He'll find one or both of them bloody or dead. Then his foolish pride will make him leave the forum in silence and shame, when instead he should share the mistake he made and try to prevent others from making that same mistake. How much do you want to bet he didn't even click open the thread I linked for him with the tortoise that now has a bloody hole where its eye used to be?
I appreciate your reminder of why we are here. The goal is to help tortoises and their people. I need to constantly assess and re-assess how to best accomplish that, but sometimes I am going to fail. I can't reach everybody. Some people don't want to be helped, and won't allow themselves to be helped, no matter what approach is taken. In cases like this, my hope is that some of the other people reading along will be helped, even if the OP can't or won't be helped.