Saturday, September 1, 2012

Not much new + mini rant

So, not much going on lately.  Other than the adoptions which I've been posting about, but not many interesting emails or anything really.  Ok, well I take that back.

Today, I got a text from someone asking about the two female rats that we have up for adoption.  I have someone coming tomorrow night to look at these females, and I told this person that.  So they were like, "well I can come today."  Excuse me?  This is not let's-see-who-can-make-it-to-Ashley's-house-the-quickest, this is a rescue.  That is practically synonymous with "no immediate gratification."  So I couldn't hold that one in, and I literally told her, hey, this isn't a race to get here, it's whoever tells me they're interested first gets to come and look at the rats first.  So, now she wants to know if the guy doesn't end up getting the rats.  Ok, can do.

Moving on.  I have my hammocks on sale right now.  So, I had someone contact me and say the want this one and this one and what will the price be.  So I stop reading right there and I'm ready to type $15 and then I notice the actual sentence is...

"I was just wondering what the pricing on those two would be, if there were any deals for buying a set, etc. Just let me know, thank you! "

Hate to be debbie downer, but it's like dude.  #1 -- They're ALREADY on sale, so you'd already be saving $2 (for two of them) off the regular price.  #2 -- You're only buying two.  Ask to buy 5+ hammocks, and we can talk multiple purchase discount.  #3 -- Just cause you're buying two hammocks with the same design does not automatically make it a "set" -- you simply like that pattern.  There is no discount because you happen to want two of the same hammock.

I do have more fleece available than what I currently have up on my fleece page.  I know, I probably shouldn't even say that.  [In all fairness, I haven't had the chance to sew the rest into hammocks, I'm working on listing cages and re-doing our set-up first]  But I am set on the idea that I want to sell down the old stock, which is why it's on sale and some of the hammocks are reduced even further than the $1 off.  I have no problem taking off more when it's like a quantity discount.  I have had people buy like 5 hammocks before and we can talk.  Or people buying lots of money's worth of chin supplies, I'll throw in samples and goodie bags and whatnot (I think about it when I'm packaging up these things -- if you're local and you've bought a lot, it tends to slip my mind -- feel free to bug me for some samples and freebies).   

And I usually do throw in something small, a toy or whatever, with the hammocks.  But like, ok, most people's hammocks online are $8 or $9.  I think the reason I picked $8.50 was because a lot of people had them for $9 and I wanted to be cheaper than the majority.  Ok, so, on sale, they're $7.50 -- some are even $6.50 or $5.50 for the less-than-perfect-size ones.  And I should lower it more?  How bout you suck it up and pay the SALE price?  This isn't a garage sale.  I take that back.  For items marked OBO this can be a garage sale.  [OBO sometimes happens with cages or used items that I just want GONE].  OBO does not happen with items like hammocks that do not take much room to store.  Sure, I want to sell out of the ones that I have like one or two of, but I'm not giving them away. 

I was just talking about something similar like this with someone the other day.  We were talking about a rat cage that I was selling later that day for $50.  I told them, I didn't pay $50 for the rat cage, I paid *mumble mumble*, but the thing was in pristine shape and was just perfect, practically looked straight-out-of-the-box.  The person I was talking to said this, and I never thought of it that way -- something along the lines of "you're saying them from having to purchase a cage new.  Maybe it's not dirt cheap, but if they had to buy it new it'd be $80.  So it's not $20, but if they had to buy it at the store, it'd be $80.  So it's still cheap-er."  Good point.  And the money made from donated cages or cages that I've found cheaper somewhere and can turn around and sell with shelves or additions or whatever... those help fund the rescue and help keep it up and running and all. 

Adoption fees aren't everything, that's why we sell supplies.  I have two rats, Buddy & Juno, up for adoption for $15.  Guess what, their vet visit and meds probably cost me $70-80.  Even with no vet bill, still had to feed em, care for em, change bedding, give em water, etc etc. 

In fact, that's why I decided to go through all my stuff and sell the cages that I don't need and go through the boxes and sell the stuff that's just taking up room in the boxes... cause something has to pay for the vet bills.  Supply sales have been good this year, I can't complain, but I've also added new FNs this year and that's cut into the rescue bank account.  There's still money there, no worries, but I like to keep it as far in the positive as I can.  I give people deals when I can, and I've even told people before, I'm not so much big on discounts, but I will gladly throw in more food or more hay.  But no, people always want something for nothing.  Doesn't matter if they want me to discount them $5 and I'm willing to give them 5 pounds of food for free, which would cost more than $5....

Ugh. 

On another note, do we all remember that person who has the blue rats on hold til the 4th?  Yeah, still haven't heard back.  Now come on, how hard is it to pick a day and come?  I mean, we've had people from farther away than them show up quicker than them.  And I'd venture to say that this person is retired, even.  But hey, if he's not in any rush to get them, they will go back up for adoption, and if they're snatched up before he can get here, then so be it.  The only reason Buddy & Juno were on hold for so long for this person was cause they had their medical issues that needed to be dealt with, and I was under the impression that they would be adopted once those issues had resolved.  Of course, in reality, then the babies came along....

Ugh.  People.

  

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