Breeding Standards

[Eric Alan]

But how do you verify that they are quality animals? Who decides what that quality is? The same people who stand to make the most on selling a non quality animal at a higher price than a quality animal just because it looks different? The big name breeders because they have time and money in the animals? How does your average consumer know what is and what id's not a quality animal when there is nothing to say or prove what that quality is.

I'm not sure what's so complicated. It's almost as if you're offended by breeders (big OR small) taking pride in their animals and the work/time they've put in to producing them. To answer your questions, though, sellers only determine the price. It's up to the buyers determine quality and perceived value for themselves with their own eyes and wallets.

If anyone feels that an animal isn't worth what a seller has it priced at, then it really is as simple as not buying it. (mic drop) If that's the case, then there's very little a seller can do to to convince them otherwise. Ultimately, it just isn't worth a seller's time to try since that person isn't the right customer for that animal anyway. In this hobby, as I've said many times before, there really is something for everybody.

For me, a certified statement of quality isn't going to change my mind one single bit if I have no interest in the animal in the first place.

To be a lot cliché, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." It's up to the seller to market themselves and their animals to the best of their ability. It's up to the consumers to form their own perceptions of quality and value. When those two circles meet, everybody ends up happy. When they don't, there's no reason to be upset - no one is forcing us to either buy or sell snakes with cool paint jobs.