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Breaking news for the reptile shipper!!

This is the post that made everyone so upset:

I have not read any of the last posts and I dont think I will waste my time. Here are some emails I have received in the past few days. Read them and then I will put in my .02 on Mrs Kordek. But remember if it is here and it has the outlook tags then it must be true.



----- Original Message -----
From: George Dubya Bush
To: David Young
Sent: Friday, September 19, 2008 1:17 PM
Subject: The Prez thinks Reptster.com is Great!

Mr. Young,

I just wanted to take the time and let you know that your site is great. The shipping service you have made available will surely help the economy by creating more sales of reptiles, an increased amount of shipping and more jobs at the carriers.

I am a reptile fan myself, I had a plan to replace all cats in the US with snakes but congress said no. Can you imagine that? Wouldn’t it be nice not to hear the meow mix commercials? That’s my thought on the subject anyway.

I heard that there was a Ball Python born with a big “W” on its back. If you find it can you let me know? I would like to try and reproduce it and call it the DUBYA ball.

Keep me posted on that.

Your buddy,
George Dubya Bush
Prezident of the US
[email protected]





----- Original Message -----
From: Barack Obama (BO)
To: David Young
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 1:34 PM
Subject: Reptster.com is Great for Change!

Mr. Young,

I have recently come across your website and I think your movement for change of the reptile community is great. Your advancements in the fields of reptile shipping are innovative, creative, and absolutely genius. I myself have an idea for change, and will put it into effect as soon as I take office. I will pass a bill where every American must get rid of their dogs and replace them with crocodile monitors. I believe this will help the economy tremendously by increasing the sale of frozen rodents.

The one issue I have not been able to resolve until now is the distribution of these lizards across the United States. I was thinking of creating the national croc monitor movement organization headed by Colin Powell. But he said “no.” I think FedEx and UPS will do just fine, as Reptster has been successful in shipping over 4,000 animals without incident.

I will keep you posted on the advancements of The National Croc Monitor Replacement Plan.


Sincerely,

Barack Obama
Potential Future President of the United States
[email protected]




----- Original Message -----
From: Sarah Palin
To: David Young
Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 2:08 PM
Subject: Alaskan Snakes

Mr Young,

Is it too cold for snakes to thrive in Alaska?

Your Hockey Mom,
Sarah Palin
VP Candidate
[email protected]




----- Original Message -----
From: Brittney Spears
To: David Young
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2008 2:08 PM
Subject: Snakes are cool!

Dave,

I just saw your site and I have to ask. Can you make a purse out of one of those Pied Ball Pythons? I think that would be awesome! How can I get one? How much will it cost?

I held a snake once for a concert, it was big and yellow. If you google my name and yellow snake dance you will see the pics, it was sooooooo hot.

Please call me when you find my purse.

Your Future Ex-Wife,

Brit
[email protected]

All of these emails are fake and for entertainment purposes only.


Kelly is a new promoter so please don’t bash her for this. Although some of what she is doing is dishonest.

When she first contacted me it was by phone and most of our dealings were by phone. I asked her the cost and she stated $250. She then sent me an email requesting 750. I called her back and explained that since she is a new show and especially on the same weekend as Chicago I would not pay that amount. I explained that we have done over 20 shows and 750 is crazy for this level. She then agreed to 250 again. But sent me an email at 750 AGAIN. I called her and had a long conversation explaining that I was not sure of her at all at this point due to her inability to stick to a price. She assured me that she would live up to the 250 and I said ok. I asked her to email me her address so I could send a check. I believe this was before Daytona but not really sure. She did send me the address and I did not get the check out that weekend. The next communication I received was an email on my PDA about getting the check out. I felt bad about the delay and stated I would get it out ASAP. When I got home and read the email on a full screen I realized she was asking for the 750 again. I called and left a VM stating I was severing all ties with her and would not do her show stating that something was not clicking.

The last two emails she posted were never received and may never have been sent. Or wait the they have the outlook tags so they must be real. Right?

Reptster.com has displayed a high level of integrity to the industry through our shipping program and with our advertisers. In the five months since our launch we have provided excellent customer service and have provided the means to ship over 4000 animals without incident, and have saved this community over 18 thousand dollars to date. Actions speak louder than words.

A lot of you have started to bash us based on hear say and copy and pasted emails. All I can say is get a grip, come to the real world. You are not a judge and jury, you are acting on information that can be falsified from the ground up. There is no integrity in this.

And if you want to bash me and Reptster about how much time I have to devote here, have fun with it. I have a two year old who is number 1, I have a website that is very demanding and I have UPS and the USPS code that we are working on 24/7 right now to make shipping even cheaper. Besides the fact that it took 24 hours before anyone even told me about this. Sorry I don’t check the boi ever.

Rich, you have been around forever. Once again I don’t have a problem with fauna, I just think the BOI is a waste of time. Thanks for the service.

Thanks,
David Young

PS This will be the last time I respond to this thread
 
Matthew, here's the "simple breakdown" of the accusations:

1) He backed out on a show sponsorship with the Central PA Reptile Expo AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

2) He backed out on a show sponsorship with Repticon AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

3) He had someone hold him animals, promising payment, for an extended period of time...Then didn't notify them about his change of heart...

4) Complaints about overcharging with shipping...Boxes actual dimensional weight being 3lbs and being charged for 5lbs...

Jim (Home Grown Herps) hinted that their is another show sponsor not happy with him...but nothing has been posted/confirmed by that show sponsor yet...
 
I have to disagree about the people in this hobby. Most are GREAT! And I enjoy the people at least as much as the animals themselves. But unfortunately, there are always a few problems in every hobby and every business. Sometimes the people themselves are the problem - scammers, thieves, etc. And sometimes good people handle things the wrong way, but will turn around and still be good guys. I don't know all the details in all of these problems. I suspect some were mishandled, but there may have been exaggerations or communication problems. I just don't know. I personally feel now that David will turn out to be a good guy even if he has messed something up previously. But I can't expect anyone else to change their opinion just because of a phone call I had. But give it a while - time will tell. If I am wrong, then I will change my opinion - again.
 
I wish I could rep twice in a row.. Kathy certainly would have got it from me..

Regards.. Tim of T and J
 
Matthew, here's the "simple breakdown" of the accusations:

1) He backed out on a show sponsorship with the Central PA Reptile Expo AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

2) He backed out on a show sponsorship with Repticon AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

3) He had someone hold him animals, promising payment, for an extended period of time...Then didn't notify them about his change of heart...

4) Complaints about overcharging with shipping...Boxes actual dimensional weight being 3lbs and being charged for 5lbs...

Jim (Home Grown Herps) hinted that their is another show sponsor not happy with him...but nothing has been posted/confirmed by that show sponsor yet...

I hope you don't think I'm picking at you because I'm really not. You have pointed out 4 good problems that people are complaining about. I like the way you make us think. LOL ;)

But why would some one advertise for some one else before money exchanges hands? Would all of this have been such and issue if the people never posted the ads to begin with until after they got the money? Probably not. But because they did, now they feel as though they are owed for it. Newspapers, websites, TV etc wont place an ad for you until you pay for it up front. It's one thing to be trusting but in business money is always first.

As far as the over charging: I have shipped several times using Reptster and each time I would go to FedEx and get a quote to compare with Reptsters quote. Using all of the same exact info it always came out $10-$15 cheaper with Reptster. In the BOI some one stated that they were double charged for a shipment but didn't mention if the charges were reversed or not.
There were a few people that were accidently charged twice for a shipment. But they had made the mistake of hitting the ship button twice. I know this for a fact because I was one of those people. When I realized what had happend the charges were fixed the next day.
 
Matthew, here's the "simple breakdown" of the accusations:

1) He backed out on a show sponsorship with the Central PA Reptile Expo AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

2) He backed out on a show sponsorship with Repticon AFTER advertising was done...Didn't notify them...

3) He had someone hold him animals, promising payment, for an extended period of time...Then didn't notify them about his change of heart...

4) Complaints about overcharging with shipping...Boxes actual dimensional weight being 3lbs and being charged for 5lbs...

Jim (Home Grown Herps) hinted that their is another show sponsor not happy with him...but nothing has been posted/confirmed by that show sponsor yet...

Thanks for the summary Stephanie. I hope he can make his wrongs right and that the whole Reptster shipping experiment doesn't go belly up. But it seems that most of the BOI bad guys start out similar and then just go down hill.

I was really excited to see some attention directed towards the herp community with regards to shipping.
 
But why would some one advertise for some one else before money exchanges hands? Would all of this have been such and issue if the people never posted the ads to begin with until after they got the money?

It is not uncommon for shows to follow through, with advertisements, etc., before payment is received.
In my experience, with the horse breed that I am/was involved with... along with involvement in various shows (be it putting a show together or acting in other capacities),... I can say, "first hand", that advertising, etc., prior to payment, happens all the time.
It is a bit different than placing an Ad in a newspaper, or on television, etc.
 
It is not uncommon for shows to follow through, with advertisements, etc., before payment is received.
In my experience, with the horse breed that I am/was involved with... along with involvement in various shows (be it putting a show together or acting in other capacities),... I can say, "first hand", that advertising, etc., prior to payment, happens all the time.
It is a bit different than placing an Ad in a newspaper, or on television, etc.

Just seems like with what is cost to sponsor a show, people wouldn't want to take risk such as advertising before getting the funds.

Learning some thing new every day. Thanks! :)
 
But why would some one advertise for some one else before money exchanges hands? Would all of this have been such and issue if the people never posted the ads to begin with until after they got the money? Probably not. But because they did, now they feel as though they are owed for it. Newspapers, websites, TV etc wont place an ad for you until you pay for it up front. It's one thing to be trusting but in business money is always first.

Rich said a long time ago, that he really doesn't want a BOI on CS.com...And I don't want to get yelled at...So I'm just going to say read the thread (and I'm not being a smart-butt about it). This question is answered already in the BOI thread (for both instances of advertising before receiving payment).

As far as the over charging: I have shipped several times using Reptster and each time I would go to FedEx and get a quote to compare with Reptsters quote. Using all of the same exact info it always came out $10-$15 cheaper with Reptster. In the BOI some one stated that they were double charged for a shipment but didn't mention if the charges were reversed or not. There were a few people that were accidently charged twice for a shipment. But they had made the mistake of hitting the ship button twice. I know this for a fact because I was one of those people. When I realized what had happend the charges were fixed the next day.

This also is answered in the thread. I believe it was Cheryl (and a handful of others) who said she gets better discounts with her FedEx certification then what Reptster offers...And SPJ said he was being over charged as well because of the system charging for 2lbs over what it should. You can't compare flat FedEx quotes to actual FedEx certification quotes either...Big difference...If you are FedEx certified and you are not getting the discounts, speak to your rep. :)
 
Yes, I have to agree with you. Now that everyone here knows about the thread, they should read all the details there if interested. You will only get bits and pieces here on CS, which is probably either MORE than you want to hear, or LESS, lol! I will try to refrain posting more about it here.
 
Stef you are not the first person I have heard say the discounts are negotiable. Kudos to those who have good reps and have been able to get a better rate. BUT some of us have tried and to no avail. I was told to get a bigger discount I had to ship a bigger volume. The repster WAS saving me money. I am sickened that there is so much fallout. I am sad there is no resolution yet. I too was excited something was being done to make shipping possible to everyone and even talk of bringing UPS on board. Too bad pride, peoples egos and a big soap opera have gotten in the way.
 
Never thought of negotiating with FedEx to get discounts. I'm certified and before Reptster, it was $60-70 to ship a 12x9x6 box o/n. If I can get it to Reptster costs, then I'll go back to plain 'ol Fedex
 
Well the latest news is that repster has parted ways with fed ex. You can no longer use fed ex through repster.
To me they are now officially dead in the water. I have gone back to using my own fed ex account. The thread on BOI influenced me less in this decision than the fact they have split with fed ex. Apparently they are negotiating with UPS or something. But if UPS' official stance is that they won't ship snakes I don't see how that will work.


Just thought I would post this info in case anybody on here has pending shipments or plans to ship through repster soon. You will have to make other arrangements...
 
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Actually, all of the debate and discussion motivated me to discuss discounts with my FedEx rep. Maybe others have done so as well - so that is one good thing to come out of this. Although my new discount is not as much as Reptster said they offered, it is substantial. As soon as i have shipped a few weeks under the new rates (and examine the new bills), I am actually hoping to be able to LOWER my shipping rates to customers! That would be great for business!

From what I saw, it looked like you might be able to get a pretty good discount if you even spend as little as $1,500 per year with FedEx. Maybe even less - I am not sure about that. But that is only just over $100 per month. Anyone doing this as a serious hobby or part time business probably ships more than that.

The very sudden dropping of FedEx and adopting of UPS (with no snakes allowed just yet) does make me happy that I have relied only on my own FedEx certification. I do feel badly for those who might have relied solely on Reptster, and are now left in the lurch until they can get UPS to accept snakes, if ever.
 
Great!

I encourage everyone else who is certified, and ships at least several packages per month (at least for most months) to contact your rep and ask about volume discounts. Don't assume you are shipping too little if you ship with any regularity at all - give it a try. The worst they can do is say "no", lol!
 
If you read the recent posts on the BOI thread, their has been mention that FedEx pulled Reptsters account for non-payment, not the Reptster dropped FedEx.
 
I was planning on using Repster and I just got certified to ship via Fedex a few days ago. I felt like I was getting certified more as a right of passage then anything but boy am I glad I did! It was the first time my Fedex rep had ever heard of someone shipping cornsnakes but the process was still really fast. Just a little over 2 weeks from start to finish. :)
 
Way to keep up on things Jen. Your post got me to do a little snoopin' and I got this from Reptster.com ............
We Are Changing Shippers
10-27-08 20:07
We are switching from FedEx to UPS
It is official we are switching shippers from FedEx to UPS. We have had a few major issues with fedex's services, some to big to overlook. We have made a few major breakthroughs with UPS and they have jumped through many hoops to bring the reptile community a service that we all will appreciate for years to come.

Shipping will be down for a very short time while we make the programming changes necessary to provide a much better service. We will email everyone when we are up with UPS.

We apologize for any issues you have had with FedEx and we see this as the only way to fix the issues. UPS has made a few very big promises FedEx was unable to make or live up to. We also apologize for being down for a short time.

Thanks,
The Reptster Team
I guess we shall see what is to happen. I was certified to ship before Reptster decided to get into the shipping game. FedEx is only about ten minutes from my house so I think I will just continue using them. I have never had one single problem with FedEx and until I do I am happy to stay put. Again, thanks for the heads-up Jen.
Jay :cool:
 
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