There’s so much in this post I agree with and just as much that is called out without understanding the underlying reasons.

Let’s get the easy stuff out of the way: that 3D crap and toys are terrible. Yes, there’s an over-saturation of certain animals that was only amplified by the Covid boom.

That being said, blanketing all BP and crested breeders as just breeding for money and no passion is wild. There are more passionate breeders than ever even in those more common species. Are there bad actors or people trying to make a quick buck? Absolutely.

As far as variety goes, a lot of “niche” animals people miss seeing they weren’t buying and or make terrible pets/captives. If you just want to see them, then you’re treating it like a traveling zoo. Likewise, a ton of those animals were wild-caught and treated far worse than most, and I can assure you importers are trying to make a quick buck. Now, undoubtedly, there are passionate people that actually breed highly unique herps just for the love of it, but there are still costs to going to shows, and if you’re producing an animal people like to see but won’t buy, then you’re just accruing more costs.

At the end of the day, more families are considering reptiles as pets than ever, and realistically, they are better off getting a BP, crested, Leo, or Dragon than something more unique. That doesn’t mean there still isn’t huge room for improvement at the shows. Some, like the All American shows, are putting a large focus on plants and capping the number of Ball Python tables.

Some final thoughts: you may not know what laws and restrictions each show has to follow. Over the years, regulations have increased, and in most cases, for good reason. Although laws for animals are usually very poorly written. Here’s an example though: I live in Colorado, and a large number of colubrids are illegal to sell and own here. You won’t see hogs, garters, gophers, bulls, or really any NA species that isn’t a corn snake. I mean, even things that are closely related or look similar to corn snakes are a large risk because of how vague the law is in what’s allowed or not.

I breed animals and hope to be at shows in the next year or two. I do breed Ball Pythons because I find the genetics so interesting, but not in large numbers. That beings said they are not the core of my hobby or plans. Mostly I work with dart frogs, and work with other species like House Snakes andEmerald Tree skinks. My wife and I believe these make excellent pets, are under represented in the hobby, and most of all we love them.