All the new breeders make me want to scream

Grab your popcorn, kid, you’re in for a ride. I have been in this community for over a decade- I wasn’t into breeding for all of it, but that means I have seen a lot of changes in ten years. Back in the day, it was about the snakes. Now it is about the benjamins- and the snakes are an afterthought. <br><br>People used to throw snakes in a tub together in February and walk away. That’s how every snake in the hobby used to be. It was about the animal. Then people got more into legistics and creating morphs and hetting out. After a decade of doing that, a new generation joined. They don’t know what it is like to go to a reptile show and the ballroom being filled to the brim with snakes. They don’t know what it’s like to come home with a big and have over 50 snakes in your collection. They don’t know what it’s like to have to wait years for a snake to be proven. They don’t know what it’s like to not being able to find a certain morph or het anywhere. <br><br>Their generation is different- they have Google. They have Instagram. They have YouTube. They have Facebook. They have this sub. They have morph calculator. They have so many resources at their fingertips and they can be connects to people all over the world. For us old school breeders, we relied on word of mouth, books, and the internet- but that was dial up. <br><br>I joined this community when I was 14 and have been in it for over 20 years. I’ve seen a lot of changes, but I’m not trying to sound like your grandma. I’m going to try to list some of the most annoying things I’ve noticed in this sub this past year. <br><br>I’ve seen people start out with 20 snakes and sell all 20 snakes because they got boy/girl pairs in one collection together and produced 0 eggs- and the snakes were only together for 2 months. For us old schooler, we didn’t care about boy snakes. We didn’t count them. We still don’t. Go to any big breeder, they will have many more females than males. Why? Because males are easy to replace. Females are a dime a dozen and easy to come by. The females are everything. Why the hell are you selling your female snakes because they didn’t produce babies? They probably just got done shedding and are most likely not even bred. <br><br>I’ve seen people start out with 20 snakes and sell all 20 snakes because they had a feeding issue and then got a snake sick and now views the breeding world as ‘toxic’. It’s not toxic, it’s just not for the faint of heart. I’ve lost a lot of snakes in my breeding career due to both feeding and disease. It’s just what comes with the job. I’ve had a snake die in my arms. It comes with the territory. Welcome to the club- now you know how all us old school breeders feel. If you can’t hack it, I suggest you take up stamp collecting instead. <br><br>I’ve seen people start out with 20 snakes and sell all 20 snakes because they are moving across the country. Wow. I feel so bad for you. <br><br>I’ve seen people start out with 20 snakes and sell all 20 snakes because the snakes got pregnant and they produced eggs. Why did you get into breeding if you didn’t know it was going to end with babies? You got into breeding for all the wrong reasons. This hobby is about the snakes and creating life. If you’re not happy with creating life, then this is not the hobby for you. <br><br>I see people ask for advice on FB/IG all the time on if they should join the ‘snake breeding club’. Why wouldn’t you join this club? If you’re not here for the snakes, you’re in the wrong hobby. This hobby is not just about the snakes, it’s about the breeding community. If you’re not apart of the community, you’re not a part of the hobby. I’ve already seen you post on your IG stories that you’re getting out of snakes, it won’t be long until your IG is deleted and you’re no where to be found. Good riddance. <br><br>I get asked all the time on IG ‘how do I get into breeding?’ And 99% of the time, my answer is ‘don’t’. This hobby is not for everyone. I get asked this question all the time and I always give the same answer- please don’t. This hobby is expensive, time consuming, stressful, and depressing. If you’re not up for any of those things, this isn’t the hobby for you. Why would I try to recruit people into this hobby? It’s a labor of love, but it’s labor none the less. It’s a lot of work and it’s not for everyone. <br><br>If you can’t take care of a pet snake, this hobby isn’t for you. I don’t care if you have 20 snakes, if you can’t properly take care of them, this hobby is not for you. I have standards as to what a pet snake ‘owner’ is and I don’t think most of you make the cut. If you have all tubs and no tanks, not for you. If you don’t give your snakes water bowls, not for you. If you keep your snakes in aquariums, not for you. If you don’t know the difference between a ball python and a royal python, not for you. <br><br>If you can’t feed a snake properly, this hobby is not for you. I don’t care if you have 20 snakes, if you can’t properly feed them, this hobby is not for you. I have standards as to what a snake breeder is and I don’t think most of you make the cut. If you give your snakes frozen/thawed, not for you. If you don’t give your snakes live prey, not for you. If you don’t feed your snakes properly, not for you. <br><br>If you can’t maintain a proper phenotype, this hobby is not for you. I don’t care if you have 20 snakes, if you can’t properly create a morph, this hobby is not for you. I have standards as to what a snake breeder is and I don’t think most of you make the cut. If you try to create a super pastel but it looks more like a low contrast, not for you. If you try to create a viper pit but it’s just a jungle, not for you. If you can’t follow basic genetics, not for you. <br><br>If you don’t know basic genetics, not for you. If you don’t know basic husbandry, not for you. If you don’t know basic snake behavior, not for you. If you don’t know basic animal behavior, not for you. If you can’t differentiate b/w a snake and a boa, not for you. <br><br>If you’re in it for the money, not for you. If you don’t know what a snake morph is, not for you. If you don’t know the difference between a boa and a python, not for you. If you don’t know what a breeder is, not for you. If you don’t know what a morph is, not for you. If you don’t know the difference between a male and female, not for you. If you don’t know the difference between a het and a visual, not for you. <br><br>I don’t consider you a breeder if you only have males. Males are easy to come by. Females are hard to find. I don’t care if you have 20 snakes, if only 5 are females and the other 15 are males, you’re not a breeder. If you think you have a ‘rare snake’, you don’t. If you think you have a ‘rare het’, you don’t. If you think you have a ‘rare morph’ you don’t. If you think you have a ‘rare combo’ you don’t. I’ve been in this hobby for over 20 years. I have seen it all. I know what is rare and what is not. If you think you have something rare, you’re lying. What you have is rare to *you*, but not to the breeding world. <br><br>If you think you invented a morph, you didn’t. If you think you invented a het, you didn’t. If you think you invented a combo, you didn’t. If you think you created something new, you didn’t. I’ve been in this hobby for over 20 years. I know what exists and what doesn’t. I know what is new and what isn’t. If you think you created something new, you’re lying. What you have is new to *you*, but not to the breeding world. <br><br>This isn’t a hobby to get rich quick, this is a labor of love. If you are here to make money or be a millionaire, you’re in the wrong hobby. It takes years to be a good breeder- years of blood, sweat, and tears. It doesn’t come easily. It doesn’t come quickly. It comes with dedication, hard work, and climbing up the food chain. Welcome to the snake breeding world, kid. You’re in for a ride.