Whats happening?

[Ryuu]

Hi Vrakkie.

I think the case of the Permits is mostly due to the Limit of Most peoples Knowledge Most people wont comment on something they are unsure of..

Philippines....... LUCKY!
Most my Favorite Snake species originate from there.. I would be in seventh heaven

[Ales]

It's weird that I knew exactly what this post was about before I even opened it.

I think the decline in the hobby is due to a lot of things, and the economy is a big factor. I used to be able to sell animals easily and even now everything is very difficult to get sold. A lot of people have stopped keeping reptiles because they can't afford it.

As mentioned, Facebook is a huge killer because info is lost within a few hours. Any reptile related posts on Facebook are bombarded with people that have no idea what they're talking about, because the posts are just there available.

South Africa has a tiny market compared to northern countries and also the variety of animals we are allowed to keep and have access to are small. Reptile wise we have a fraction of what people in the US, Asia and Europe have access to.

[Westley Price]

We can try to find rhyme or reason, but I an quite confident that Facebook is 90% of the reason for the decrease in activity on our forum as well as many others.

Here is an older topic with some nice insight, especially if you read the link on the first post.

viewtopic.php?f=49&t=33931

http://reptileapartment.com/quondom-reptile-forums/

[Bushviper]

The forum is searchable so that means a lot more to the industry. If you wanted to know anything (for example about the "ban") you can search for it and the posts will come up. Being on facebook a lot I often am just too tired to answer the same questions over and over and now its just easier to refer people to either this website or any others instead of even bothering to answer them.

The expos are just as popular as what they were but the recent legislation has put a damper on the industry a bit. Many of the older herpers have removed themselves from this forum as well as other social media just because the youth require spoon feeding and it gets really tiring.

I am past being polite when people ask about their first "starter hot" or "feeding live" so instead of being rude and calling them names or body parts I just ignore them.

Same applies when they argue about legislation that has been passed when the period they had to make comments passes without even a single argument being forwarded.

I think we are all to blame because of the instant gratification we get from facebook by people who are not and will not be members of this forum. I agree that we should post interesting things on both media so that when facebook has forgotten, then this forum can still be used as a reference.

[Ryuu]

That makes a Lot of Sense.. thanks Bushviper.

Perhaps we all should try and Post relevant Info here First.. Possibly only Use Facebook as a pointer to here?

[gekosin]

I am no longer on FB but if i remember correctly there was an SA reptiles page it was pretty dead though :? seems kind of odd/ counter productive but at the end of the day i do prefer the forum for the reasons mentioned

[Ruan Stander]

I dislike facebook the posts I've made involving my reptiles I can count on one hand.

I'm very inactive on here at the moment due to a new job with long hours and sporting commitments in the evenings. I think the forum will always be prominent, and I agree tha facebook is a good way of reaching people that are new in the hobby and attract them to the forum.