Email sent to Steven at Big Apple Herps

[Deku]

Yes I did. But I didnt say do it as a first resort. Thats pretty much as a second or third resort.

[John]

Alright guys, there's no point in debating it - the train has already left the station. Let's leave it be and see how Jeff gets on.

[Jeff Kennedy]

Wanted to pass along the email I received from Big Apple this morning as I said from the beginning that I plan on reporting my progress on this matter. Below is there response to my original email and my response to them. I am still hoping that they will do the right thing however it looks like they may just shrug me off do to how "impersonal" the email is.

Dear Sir,

The customer you are speaking about was BANNED from the forum you are referring to and if you look at the comments only one person thought it was not a giant and others said it was.

The frog you were sent is in FACT a giant Pixie frog and is NOT a dwarf.

We have sold many dwarfs and many giants and we know the difference between the two.

Also, all our customers were told that what they were getting was 4" Pixie frogs and that is why the price is so high.
Our price for baby pixie frogs when we had them 8 months ago was $24.99. I can't understand why you would want a baby for $129.99?

In any event, as I said look at the forum again and you will see that the person was BANNED from the forum website and that someone also said that it was definitely a Giant.

It should also be known that we have forwarded that person's information to our legal source to see if his posting that statement publicly is an actionable wrong.

Sincerely,

Andy
Big Apple Pet Supply



Hi Steven & Staff,

I am not sure the person whom you might be referring to or what website for that matter but let me delve in a little bit further. While perusing a frog website Sunday afternoon (FrogForum) I came across a thread that was all too familiar. In this thread, you guys (Big Apple) basically get called out for selling the author of the thread an advertised "Giant" Pyxie however he received a "Dwarf". In his attached photos, I saw an image that looked just like the "Giant" Pyxie that I received from you and he also included an all to familiar story in regards to the farm where you guys receive them from and the males only being released, etc. After discovering this, I grew concerned. Having never actually owned a Pyxie myself, I sought the advice of experts in the field. People that have saw numerous examples of froglets, juveniles and adults alike. I registered on the website so that I could post and attached images of the frog that I received from you. It was unanimous that the frog in which I received was actually a "Dwarf". This was very disheartening to me as I have had such a positive experience with you guys up to this point. I even boasted your name and my experience so much with my local pet shop, that they was even considering starting to order there reptiles and amphibians from you. Perusing the different sites further over the weekend, I started to read more and more bad testimonials pertaining to your company. I still stayed true to my values and when I decided to go public with my photos, still gave you the benefit of the doubt. That maybe in fact you were being mislead by your supplier and what not. It is so troubling to me that when I placed this order, I spent probably 30-45 minutes on the phone with Stephen discussing this frog and trying to find additional frogs that I could purchase to ship at the same time. All I had to go by was the picture of an actual baby "Giant" Pyxie that you have on your site, and your word that what I was going to receive, was in fact what I paid for. It seems that that was not the case here. I had hoped that you would have done the right thing but I have better things to do then try to pull teeth. Like I said in the first email, I know that my measly $500 that I have spent over the last couple weeks isn't keeping your doors open, but it should count for something. $150-$175 invested in one animal is a big deal to me and when I decide to spend that kind of money, I want to actually receive what I am paying for. I started an order with Steven Friday afternoon and was awaiting this afternoons order to come in to see if possibly you guys received anything else that I was interested in. I will hold true to my word and since I committed to something on Friday, I still intend on purchasing later today. I will call and talk to Steven later about having this order fullfilled. Below is a link to my thread which includes many experts in the field chiming in as well as phot's of "Dwarfs" that look just like the frog I received from you.

Sincerely,

Jeff Kennedy

[Jeff Kennedy]

Another update...

Just got off the phone with Steven and am feeling very optimistic at this point. He is currently checking with his supplier and some of the other reptile/amphibian dealers in regards to what in fact is going on with the shipments that they are receiving. He has viewed the threads relating to this on this board and I believe that he see's in fact that there could be a problem with these guys that are being offered as "Giants". As usual, he was very polite and seemed eager to get to the bottom of this situation for me. I am feeling pretty confident now that we will get together on this.

[John]

Either that or he's going to threaten me with a law suit (which he can try if he wants - this forum is in the UK).

Good luck though and thanks for keeping us updated.

[Meatball]

I am in the same boat as you Jeff, only realizing it after looking over the previous few threads on this forum. I am still unsure on how I want to go about this, obviously I want just compensation but I've had my frog since May. Please keep updating what happens because I feel like I might have to be making some calls myself sooner rather than later.

[Jeff Kennedy]

Hi Meatball. Did you order from Big Apple or another vendor? I just got off the phone with Steven again. He contacted me just to touch base that he had contacted his vendor in Zambawa (sp?) and they assured that these are in fact the Giant African bullfrogs that they are labeled. I beg to differ as I have poured over information after information the last several days and can tell that what is being offered as "Giants" do not even exhibit the same colors or patterns as true "Giants". I don't doubt for a minute that they are in fact "African" bullfrogs, they just aren't the "Giant" that I and everybody else that purchased one thought that they were getting. I can now say after conducting endless hours of research that in fact my guy is not the "Giant" that I wanted. In almost a month of owning him, he hasn't grown nose to bent, he has however put on size across his back as he has maintained eating about 25-30 large crickets every couple of days. My guy should be growing more then that I would think. Kudos though to Big Apple for keeping me updating and letting me know that they are trying to get to the bottom of this. I am still hopeful that they will do the right thing.