Thank you for sharing your thoughtful opinion, Randy. You raise valid points.
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Posted 12/19/2024.
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I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?
So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.
But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.
Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.
I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.
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Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.
And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
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Responding to email notices you receive.
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In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.
Poll: Stop Breeding Sulcatas
- Thread starter nlmiller1
- Start date
Edmund1138
Member
Yes, I think there are too many sulcatas being produced and too many people buying them who have no idea what they're getting themselves into AND too many unscrupulous sellers passing them off on unsuspecting impulse buyers. Recently I was in a (chain) petstore and I heard a customer ask a salesperson ask how big will that sulcata get and the response was 'not too big'. I piped in with 'they're the third largest tortoise species, after Aldabs and Galops. You decide if that's 'not too big'.Zoos and parks won't take them any more: they're saturated.
Thank you for your comments Johnathon. Do you mind saying which store you were at? I didn't think there were any chains selling Sulcatas.
Guy Castro
New member
I think there are to many humans being produced! 
Robert Walker
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Tortoise Tom
New member
Rescues have a lot of them because they have ridiculous adoption policies and rehoming fees. Home/yard inspections, contracts with repossession clauses, and $300-500 "adoption fees". Why would anyone agree to those terms. By contrast, when one shows up in a local animal shelter, there are literally people fighting for it. Want to see how over-populated they are and how there are no homes for them? Put an ad for a free sulcata on Craig's list and see how many calls you get the first day.
The bigger problem with this species is that almost everyone mistakenly thinks they are a desert species and starts babies way too dry and dehydrated. A large percentage of them don't survive. They hatch at the start of the hot, wet, humid, rainy, monsoon season over there. They need daily soaks, damp substrate, a humid hide, and warm humid conditions.
The bigger problem with this species is that almost everyone mistakenly thinks they are a desert species and starts babies way too dry and dehydrated. A large percentage of them don't survive. They hatch at the start of the hot, wet, humid, rainy, monsoon season over there. They need daily soaks, damp substrate, a humid hide, and warm humid conditions.
Edmund1138
Member
It was a store called 'Everything Pets'. I believe it is a local chain.
Jacqui C
New member
Stop breeding sulcatas
I totally agree with you. I'm a board member for the San Diego Turtle & Tortoise Society (sdturtle.org). We're a 501c3 non-profit rescue in operation since 1973. We get calls weekly and at times daily from people asking us to take in their sulcatas that they can no longer care for as we're one of the very few legitimate rescues that will take them in.
We don't lecture or judge as we understand that lifestyles and circumstances change but it can be so disappointing when we see some of these big guys come in suffering from the effects of an uneducated owner. Most pet shop clerks aren't knowledgeable about turtle/tortoise care and therefore don't let the buyers know about the tortoise's long term needs. So unfortunate.
I totally agree with you. I'm a board member for the San Diego Turtle & Tortoise Society (sdturtle.org). We're a 501c3 non-profit rescue in operation since 1973. We get calls weekly and at times daily from people asking us to take in their sulcatas that they can no longer care for as we're one of the very few legitimate rescues that will take them in.
We don't lecture or judge as we understand that lifestyles and circumstances change but it can be so disappointing when we see some of these big guys come in suffering from the effects of an uneducated owner. Most pet shop clerks aren't knowledgeable about turtle/tortoise care and therefore don't let the buyers know about the tortoise's long term needs. So unfortunate.