How to Pet Trade successfully

So throughout my many years on Mara (Shout out to Ian for having such a compelling site and the staff that helps make it possible) I have been asked repeatedly for advise on pet trades, tips, etc.
It wasn\'t until about the last year or so that I started buying potions/costumes regularly to help my dream pet goals. Before that I did nothing but trade, trade, trade. I\'ve quit, gave everything away and obviously returned and rebuilt my pets twice now. Pet trading is a hobby to me; so for anyone who is having difficultly with it or simply wants to get better at it, here are a few personal tips that have really helped me. I will add more as I think of them so keep checking in!

1. BE PATIENT! : Probably the most important rule of all. You\'re not always going to find the right offer right away. It may takes minutes, hours, days or week. But never settle for much less than what your pet is worth. I\'ve definitely broken this rule many times but try not to do it too often. The right offer WILL come along!

2. Find \"popular\" pets : For example, Decas, Roflings and Chibs are typically easy to trade pets. They\'re easy to upsize with. Do you have a few pets that are seemingly impossible to trade? Try trading them for a more popular pet. Then use that pet to try to obtain pets you actually like.

3. Scope out pet trades: Okay. So you have a Candy Viotto and you REALLY want the Emo Sindi in trades. But the owner of the Sindi has \"Tundra Willa only\" on their wishlist. Go try to find a Tundra Willa! Pet trading is not always simple. Occasionally you have to put in some work. If there are absolutely no Tundra Willa\'s for trade, see if you can get a regular Willa and a Tundra costume. If that\'s not possible, let the offer slide. There will be plenty more Emo Sindis in the future and maybe one of the owners would love to have your Candy Viotto.

4. Work with the other pet trader: Sometimes it\'s better to mail the other owner. If you offer on the trade they will either accept or reject. But if you mail them and they reject, they could give you the reason. Like \"I am just not fond of Candy Viottos\" or \"I\'m looking for a bit more.\" This gives you insite on what owners of the pet want. Ask them what pets they do like or how much more they\'re looking for and then see if you\'re willing to get and/or give them what they want for their pet.

5. Don\'t be afraid to negotiate: Do you not feel like an offer is fair? Say so. Don\'t always give in to someone\'s offer just because they have a pet you really want. Even if you\'re willing to go the extra distance, maybe suggest that you\'d prefer to offer a little less. If they absolutely refuse to work with you then if you want to agree to the over offer do so. But it never hurts to ask.

6. Have fun with it : Yes pet trading is stressful and infuriating at times. But just remember it IS a pet site! Don\'t get too worked up over it. Things may not always go your way but that\'s okay! There\'s so many pets and costumes you can go after.

7. Remember there are actual people on the other end of the deal: Don\'t get rude with other traders just because they don\'t agree to your offer. It\'s really important not to burn any bridges. That same owner might have another pet you want later and if they don\'t like you, they\'re less likely to try to work with you.

8. DO YOUR RESEARCH: We are all guilty of low balling. Most of the time it\'s honestly not intentional for people. Especially at times when prices are all over the place and you can rarely get a PC or find an up to date guide. But do try your best to know around how much your pets are worth when trading.

9. We don\'t care if \"Aliopye\" is your mom\'s name: It\'s still not a CRN. Sorry, fam.

10. What is CRN/CRW? :
CRN(Common Real Name) ex: Patrick, Bill, Alex.
CRW(Common Real Word) ex: Job, School, March

11. Do your research when someone offers on your pet trade as well: Sure it wasn\'t fair they offered their Zoosh on your Rofling. But if you don\'t do the research on what a Zoosh and Rofling are worth and accept their offer blindly, then it\'s also your fault. This is mostly an issue for pet trades involving multiple pets. Make sure it\'s a fair offer for you.

12. Sometimes you\'ll trade even if it\'s not for a pet you want: You got an offer on your Deca that is a Party Basil, Angel Chibs, Dragon Limax and Easter Tasi. Obviously you are interested. But you don\'t like Easter Tasis. That\'s okay! First step is to ask the trader if there is anything they would be okay with replacing the Tasi with. If they won\'t and you decide to take the offer, get the Tasi and work with it. Any extra pet is a good pet! It gives you more variety in an offer because obviously not everyone likes the same pets. So the more variety you have to offer, the more people you can appeal to!

13. Work your way up: I started off pet trading with a Plushie Huthiq ;(granted this was 2006) and my main advertisement for it was \"He has lots of instruments\" Well it worked because that Plushie Huthiq alone got me 12 Chibs after tons of pet trading. It takes time and effort and lots of rejected offers. But just keep trying to get pets that will help make yours better.

14. Costuming, Statting, Etc: If you\'re in a rut with a pet and absolutely can not trade it, try making it more appealing. Try to stat it up or put a nicer costume on it for starters.

15. NEVER trade for a badly named pet: You will be stuck with it for all eternity unless you buy a name cert for it. Bad names include but are not limited to: words not starting with a capital letter, names with numbers in them, words that do not \"flow\" (ex: Fdgiuhga)

16. Try to avoid trading for \"unpopular\" pets: Unless they\'re a dream pet of course. But for instance, basic Kujos are typically harder to trade. So try your best to avoid the pets that take longer to find good offers on. You\'ll end up having a few of them in time more than likely. But that\'s okay! Just learn the lesson and try not to get yourself in that situation again.

17. NEVER over offer on a newly released pet : Boy is this common. I saw someone trade a Basil and Deca for an Eyru when the first few makers got released. Always wait for the price of a new pet to regulate before offering or you WILL end up over offering and more than likely regretting it later.

18. Ask for a second (or third or fourth) opinion: Unsure about your offer or someone else's offer? Ask someone who trades often or knows updated prices! Can't find someone like that? I am always available and happy to give my opinion on a trade or offer (:

19. Look at profiles: Before offering on someone's pet, it's wise to look at their profile. Do they have all dark themed pets? Well it's probably not wise to offer a Doll Echlin or Pixie Lati on their pet. It just helps to get a vague idea of the types of pets their interested in to help form your offer.

Pet trading in my opinion is a much more efficient and cheaper way to getting your dream pets. It will take longer sometimes but with determination it is possible! As I said before, more is to come but I am out of time for now. I hope this has been a little bit of help (:

Got more helpful hints on how to pet trade?
????????Drop them in the comments below!!????????