Make Money Selling

2012 - Volume #36, Issue #4, Page #07

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Make Money Selling "Unique" Animals To Ripley's

When Paul Brown discovered a stillborn, deformed pig in January, at first he was going to take it to the compost pile. Instead, the pig will be seen by thousands of people in one or more of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museums located around the world.
  When Brown realized the pig had two rear ends and eight legs, he showed it to his wife, Andrea, and she emailed photos of it to their son. He suggested contacting Ripley’s.
  Andrea went online, clicked on “Need to Contact Us” and filled out a form. “In less than an hour I got a response,” she recalls, and Ripley’s wanted to know their asking price.
  With suggestions from $20 to $500, she decided on $250, and was surprised when it was accepted right away. She was told to put the pig in the freezer and wait for packaging to mail it. The check arrived before the packaging, which came shortly after along with several cold packs.
  “We try to only spend $200 for carcasses,” says Ed Meyer, vice president of Ripley’s exhibits and archives. “It’s a standard offer.”
  Ripley’s is taking a risk on the condition and has the further expense of taxidermy costs by a New York company willing to work with challenging items.
  “This is the fourth eight-legged pig we’ve bought,” Meyer says. With 32 museums (including a new one opening in Baltimore June 1), Ripley’s continuously adds items to its inventory – including animal oddities.
  The Browns’ pig will likely be with the taxidermist for about 6 mos., then shipped to a warehouse. In May, 2013 it will be available for museums to select for that year’s displays.
  “It could be on display at the museum in Branson or as far away as Australia,” Meyer says.
  People who have animals or items they think may be suitable for Ripley’s can contact them through their website, he adds. It’s important to preserve items by freezing. While Ripley’s purchases some taxidermy items, they prefer animals in their natural state, because they know they are authentic.
  “Ripley’s paid for everything. They were wonderful to work with,” Brown says.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Paul Brown, 28746 O Ave., New Providence, Iowa 50206 (ph 641 497-5717); or Ripley’s, 7576 Kingspointe Pkwy, Suite 188, Orlando, Fla. 32819 (ph 407 345-8010; www.ripleys.com).

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Make Money Selling Unique Animals To Ripley s LIVESTOCK Exotic Animals When Paul Brown discovered a stillborn deformed pig in January at first he was going to take it to the compost pile Instead the pig will be seen by thousands of people in one or more of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museums located around the world When Brown realized the pig had two rear ends and eight legs he showed it to his wife Andrea and she emailed photos of it to their son He suggested contacting Ripley’s Andrea went online clicked on “Need to Contact Us” and filled out a form “In less than an hour I got a response ” she recalls and Ripley’s wanted to know their asking price With suggestions from $20 to $500 she decided on $250 and was surprised when it was accepted right away She was told to put the pig in the freezer and wait for packaging to mail it The check arrived before the packaging which came shortly after along with several cold packs “We try to only spend $200 for carcasses ” says Ed Meyer vice president of Ripley’s exhibits and archives “It’s a standard offer ” Ripley’s is taking a risk on the condition and has the further expense of taxidermy costs by a New York company willing to work with challenging items “This is the fourth eight-legged pig we’ve bought ” Meyer says With 32 museums including a new one opening in Baltimore June 1 Ripley’s continuously adds items to its inventory – including animal oddities The Browns’ pig will likely be with the taxidermist for about 6 mos then shipped to a warehouse In May 2013 it will be available for museums to select for that year’s displays “It could be on display at the museum in Branson or as far away as Australia ” Meyer says People who have animals or items they think may be suitable for Ripley’s can contact them through their website he adds It’s important to preserve items by freezing While Ripley’s purchases some taxidermy items they prefer animals in their natural state because they know they are authentic “Ripley’s paid for everything They were wonderful to work with ” Brown says Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Paul Brown 28746 O Ave New Providence Iowa 50206 ph 641 497-5717 ; or Ripley’s 7576 Kingspointe Pkwy Suite 188 Orlando Fla 32819 ph 407 345-8010; www ripleys com

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