5th Annual TTPG Conference

Neal

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This year I'm being way more risky and staying at the Knight's Inn,

Phew, that is risky lol. We'll be looking for you at the conference and will call the police and send out Tom's dogs if you don't show up.

On your way to the Marriot from there you'll pass by a nice Mexican food restaurant "Mango's". I'd highly recommend stopping by.
 

tortadise

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Phew, that is risky lol. We'll be looking for you at the conference and will call the police and send out Tom's dogs if you don't show up.

On your way to the Marriot from there you'll pass by a nice Mexican food restaurant "Mango's". I'd highly recommend stopping by.
You mention that place every year. One day I will finally make it there. Need to see if the Mexican food there is as good as Texas Mexican food. We have some killer places here too.
 

Neal

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Honestly, it's a good place but there's certainly better places. It has that hole in the wall feel to it and, for me, it's part of our family tradition to go there whenever we're in the area. That said, I don't think you'd be disappointed here at all.
 

Neal

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and it happens to be right down the road from the Marriott where the conference is.
 

Tom

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Phew, that is risky lol. We'll be looking for you at the conference and will call the police and send out Tom's dogs if you don't show up.

What do you think Neal. You've seen my dogs. Do I have anything to worry about when my dogs are around? Heck, you know me. Do you think I have anything to worry about even when my dogs aren't around?


I can vouch for Neal's Mexican food place. Good stuff. Shared a meal there with Neal and a certain African Chelonian keeper once. I don't know if its better than Texas Mexican food though... Tough call.
 

Neal

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What do you think Neal. You've seen my dogs. Do I have anything to worry about when my dogs are around? Heck, you know me. Do you think I have anything to worry about even when my dogs aren't around?

I'd keep those doggies nice and close if I were you. ;)

Tomorrow is the tour, I hope to see lots of TFO'ers there!
 

immayo

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So excited for the house tour tomorrow!!!

Can't wait to see everyone again this year :)
 

ALDABRAMAN

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Who's goin'?

They've extended the conference by an extra day so that we can caravan around AZ to look at how some people here house their tortoises. Neato!

Here's the line up of speakers:Thursday, November 13, 2014
8:30 to 9:00 am – mingle and continental breakfast
9:00 am – WELCOME (TTPG) Russ Gurley
9:05 to 9:45 am – John Richards (Loggerhead Acres) “My Life with Giants - 20 Years of Keeping and Breeding Alligator Snapping Turtles”
9:45 am to 10:15 am - Hans-Dieter Philippen “Tortoises of Namibia”
10:15 am to 10:30 am MORNING BREAK
10:30 am to 11:00 am - Andrew Hermes (Arizona Tortoise Center) “Breeding Tortoises in the Heat”
11:00 am to 11:30 am Phil Goss (USARK) “Sea Kittens! We’re Losing a War with Sea Kittens!”
11:30 am to 12:00 pm - Edward Newell “Application Specific Zoological Lighting Design-Zonal UVA/B”
12:00 pm to 2:00 pm LUNCH
2:00 pm to 2:30 pm - Barry Lambert “Captive Care and Breeding of Graptemys species”
2:30 pm to 3:15 pm - Cord Offermann DVM “Keeping and Breeding Brown Mountain Tortoises, Manouria emys”
3:15 pm to 4:00 pm - John Cann “Australian Emydura subglobosa and Other Mysteries”
4:00 pm to 4:30 pm – Mark Wallace “Keeping and Breeding Asian Big-headed Turtles, Platysternon megacephalum”
4:30 pm to 4:45 pm AFTERNOON BREAK
4:45 pm to 5:00 pm Richard Fife “An Update on the FDA 4” Regulation”
5:00 pm to 5:30 pm Hans-Dieter Philippen “Studbook Breeding - the European Way”
5:30 pm to 6:00 pm - Stephan Böhm “Experiences in Captivity and Nature with the European Pond Turtle, Emys orbicularis”
6:00 pm to 6:30 pm – Alan Shoemaker “Updated: Permits and Regulations Affecting the Turtle Community”
6:45 to ??? - Dinner together or on our own
8:00 pm to 9:00 pm For interested parties, Alan Shoemaker will present a workshop on applying successfully for the Captive Born Wildlife Permit.
FRIDAY, November 14, 2014
8:30 to 9:00 am – mingle and continental breakfast
9:00 to 9:30 am - Wayne Hill “Going Green - Making Your Turtle Facility More Environmentally Friendly”
9:30 am to 10:00 am - Ed Pirog “Captive Care of the Egyptian Tortoise, Testudo kleinmanni”
10:00 to 10:30 am - Cris Hagen (Turtle Survival Alliance) “The Sulawesi Forest Turtle (Leucocephalon yuwonoi): Wild Encounters and Captive Management”
10:30 am to 11:15 am – Stephan Böhm “Keeping and Breeding the Gibba Turtle, Mesoclemmys gibba”
CONCLUSION - Russ Gurley
12:00 pm to 1:30 pm – lunch banquet and banquet speaker: John Cann - “Turtles Down Under”

~ That sounds great!
 

ALDABRAMAN

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Oh, man...I wish I could overcome my fear of travelling/leaving my tortoises in others' care. I really would love to attend.

~ We have the same concerns, especially during our cold months and egg laying season!
 

immayo

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Can't wait to see what's in store for today!

Wednesday has been my favorite so far. Loved the tort interactions visiting the homes of Jerry Fife, Bob Blome, & James Badman. :)

20141112_100519.jpg
 

pdrobber

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Totally regretting not going. Would have been awesome to go on the tour of everyone's places. Also to meet them, other members from here and Kenan Harkin whose youtube show I've been watching. And of course the discussion topics. I'm glad I was lucky enough to meet Ty Park and tour his place last month. I had just realized my family's place in FL is 20 minutes from him.
 

turtlemanfla88

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Tom I like your post sometimes I stay cheap others times no. I can not bring my Black Lab and my pit bull they like to stay home , so when I travel I carry my 3 friends/3numbers. That is why I do not like to fly and prefer to drive.
 

LRTortoises

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So would you experience conference people say this is the big annual tortoise heavy conference. I am planning to travel to one next year and am looking at this one. There is not anything in arkansas. The closest expos are in Dallas and they only seem to have a few tortoise people.
 

immayo

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This definitely has a nice big turn out! I wish we could get a little more tortoise people to speak than turtle people but that's just because I'm bias. I felt this year's house tour's made the thing well worth it though. It was a fun time :)

Also if you stick around for the weekend there's a reptile expo following the conference.
 

GodStillBlesses

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So would you experience conference people say this is the big annual tortoise heavy conference. I am planning to travel to one next year and am looking at this one. There is not anything in arkansas. The closest expos are in Dallas and they only seem to have a few tortoise people.

Definitely worth the trip. I have been to several and this one is by far the best. The caliber of people represented are second to none! I learned a lot and met a lot of people that I am continuing to learn a lot from! I cannot say enough about this group.
 
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