I have a question for the sellers out there, and people who have bought more reptiles than me: how long should I wait for a seller to get back to me regarding shipping? Some background: I met a breeder at a local expo and he happened to have a specific boa morph I was looking for. He only brought the male (I was looking for a female) and he said he had a female at home. We exchanged contact info and when he got home from the expo he sent me pictures of the snake. We talked back and forth, he was prompt in answering my questions, and everything seemed good. I agreed to move forward with the sale. I paid for her with the agreement he’d establish my snake on F/T mice, and he sent me updates throughout the process. Now it comes time to ship, and communication has fallen through. Last I heard from him, he said he was driving back from NRBE and he would get back with me when he got home. That was a week ago now. I sent a follow up message yesterday asking about shipping and so far I haven’t heard back. Before purchasing the snake, I looked him up and he has all 5 star reviews on Morphmarket. I’ve only purchased one other snake prior to this, and that transaction went very smoothly. I know most breeders have a full time job and lives outside of selling, so I’m trying to be understanding. But I also spent quite a bit of money on this snake (it’s a higher end morph) and I’m getting concerned.
Long story short: is this normal? How long should I wait for a response? And if I don’t hear back, what should I do?
When I bought my Texas rat snake at an expo I just wanted to check on the genetics. He got back to me relatively quickly, less than 24 hours. I haven’t ordered anything online but a week is concerning. Have you tried to call him? I haven’t ordered anything online yet so others will probably know better than me.
Ugh, I’m really sorry this is happening, I can imagine how stressful it must be.
It’s possible he just got swamped, or is dealing with some sort of unexpected injury or illness, or any number of other things that can pop up in life. I agree that calling him on the phone is a good idea, if you have a phone number for him.
Have you been massaging him using the MM platform? If you haven’t been conducting the deal “on” MM, I don’t know if there’s much MM could do to intervene on your behalf (although I’m not really sure, maybe one of the mods could shed some light on what recourse you might have).
The few animal transactions I’ve done online/mail-order have all gone very smoothly. The only seller I’ve bought from on MM was always very quick to respond to me and keep me updated on shipping plans, so I don’t have much advice to offer, since I haven’t experienced this (…yet). Hopefully some folks with more relevant experience can give you some better advice.
I really hope the guy just got busy and that he gets back to you and ships your snake soon!
@anon5387911 This ghosting thing happened to someone else here on MM and it went on for about 8 weeks or so?
When did this seller join MM? Is this seller’s membership paid up for 2023? Does the seller have a lot of reviews or just a handful?
Remember the heat across the country has been brutal so this will affect shipping as well. I know a week is stressful for you but I don’t think you should be too worried at this point. However, you should have gotten a response. I most certainly would call this seller for sure. Also does this seller have an email as well?
If there is no phone number available you can also use a free app called People Search and plug in a name and city and state and you will get a phone number/numbers.
I really think this person has just gotten super busy and has put you on a back burner. Just don’t get too worried yet because I am 99 percent sure you will be ok.
Also save all correspondence as well. But I think you should be fine……
Thanks for the replies everyone. I do have his number, we’ve been communicating via text. I have not tried to call yet. We conducted the transaction outside of MM so I figured there’s nothing MM could do. I just wanted to ask if a long time between replies was normal or if I should be concerned. The first snake I bought (from a different breeder), that transaction went super smoothly and she always responded within 24 hours. Even just a “hey let me get back to you” which I really appreciated. Since this is only my second snake, I wasn’t sure what was “normal” in terms of response time. I know most breeders have lives outside of the hobby.
He did end up responding to my follow up text by saying “we should be able to ship this week, send me a text later tonight to coordinate.” So hopefully he just got busy. Trying to give the guy the benefit of the doubt. It’s good to know I’m not crazy for being concerned though!
So, I’ve been thinking about this one a lot. I just don’t think it’s a scam. You met this breeder at an expo and they had animals. That means they are a real breeder with real animals. Someone would have to be pretty dumb to try and con you in that situation. It could easily end their business. This isn’t good customer service at all. But I think glyph will hear from them.
I’m glad you got a response. I have never had any issues here but there is always a first time I suppose! Maybe since you are getting a second snake your first one will show up!
I’ll definitely keep everyone updated on both snakes. It seems a lot of snake-related things are not going as planned for me, but I’m doing my best to stay positive
The only other thing that hasn’t been said is; since you wanted it established on f/t(which was nice of the breeder to do!) maybe it is taking longer than the breeder thought and they drew or are stretching out the time to try to get it really established good for you? I am with everyone else, I don’t think it’s a scam. You are not wrong to be anxious though since you already paid in full. Keep us updated!
Hopefully this will all shake out just fine, and soon. I would be concerned myself if a week passed without word from a breeder with whom Is been working. Given that they’d been replying and working with you, I’d be concerned for them as well as for the transaction. I see that you’ve gotten a reply since the original post, which is great. Looking forward to the news that your snake has made it to your home.
@banereptiles I actually didn’t even have to ask him to establish her on f/t. He asked me if I fed f/t, I said yes, and he offered to switch her over for me. He did let me know on August 14th that she’s established and ready to ship. He’s been really nice, responsive, and helpful up until now so that’s why I’m confused and concerned. I really am beginning to wonder if something happened
@caryl unfortunately he’s gone silent again. In his reply he said to text him tonight to coordinate, which I did when I got off work, but I haven’t heard anything back yet and it’s almost 11pm our time (we’re in the same time zone). Everyone here seems to be in consensus though - I probably wasn’t scammed, which is good, and he’s most likely busy. This has helped to put my mind at ease. It’s been a stressful few weeks for me (unrelated to this) and I probably wasn’t thinking logically when I made the post originally. I do apologize to everyone, but I appreciate all the feedback. I’m going to work on being patient and she’ll get here eventually
It sounds like he’s probably just a little swamped. As others have said, it seems highly unlikely that you’ve been scammed, it sounds like the breeder might just be super busy right now. It’s still a totally anxiety-inducing situation for you. I feel like good communication is a vital part of good business practices, and this breeder seems to be coming up a bit short in that department, which is unfortunate, but hopefully he’ll be able to ship out your snake soon and when you have your long-awaited baby, this will all be a distant memory.
But I totally empathize with your frustration, and I’m sorry you’re having to deal with this.
No apologies necessary, please. We’ve all been stressed, worried, concerned, and/or downright freaked at some point about something. This community is known for being able and willing to provide a fine eat for listening and wonderful support. I know it’s done that for me many times.
I hope that your snake arrives soon, and that all is well with the breeder.
Yes @anon5387911 no apologies necessary! Period. End of story! As @caryl says, we are here for each other always! That’s what makes this community so special and different than other social media communities. There’s just something about people who love reptiles! We tend to stick together and support each other!
Good news everyone! We were finally able to coordinate shipping and I received a confirmation email that the shipping label was created, along with tracking info. My new boa will ship tomorrow! Also as most of you mentioned, he was very busy. He said he had 11(!) snakes to ship out. I apologized for being pushy, and he even sent me an updated picture of her! I’ll be posting pics in the boa thread once I receive her. Thanks again for all the advice and support!
