Hybrids are a personal choice. I have no issue with them, as long as they are clearly identified ... I prefer pure blood but also enjoy some hybrids & own both : )
Well, the fact is........ once man-made crosses/hybrids leave the vendor's table, the snakes, and whatever else all of of their offspring, and their offspring's offspring are ever bred with and then produce are usually ALWAYS sold as whatever they tend to more closely "represent" at any given time. The fact that I continually see
COUNTLESS crosses in this hobby that are grossly mislabeled all the time is absolute proof that this is how the dynamics of the hobby actually works.
Representing certain crosses "honestly" only really goes as far as the first buyer at best most of the time. Quite often these first buyer's can't even remember what they were told by the original breeder/seller as to their true subspecific lineage. So then of course the buyer's go on to breed these to other snakes, and as to exactly what specific types is anyone's guess. It certainly isn't usually to another crossed snake with the very same specific crossed lineage the other snake had he/she intends to breed it with. Of course not, the crosses are usually bred to a a genuine type of snake in the hobby that is fairly similar to the cross, which in turn only make more man-made mutt snakes that further dilute the genetics of the genuine form it was just bred to.
I know all this to be an absolute fact from being in this snake hobby for 44 years and owning countless thousands of different types of snakes, as well as breeding many of them for well over 25 years.
These are entirely different times now for a multitude of different reasons. I can go on any classified section of any forum, or to almost any pet shop in the nation and usually identify all sorts of stuff there that has crossed lineage in it. Man-made crosses and hybrids greatly dilute many of the genuine bloodlines that are still out there, and only gets worse every single breeding year to be honest.
At the Daytona Expo this past weekend it was certainly no different either. One of the most respected old-timers in this entire hobby/industry had a deli cup on his table, and I said...."uhhh, what's the story on this thing? as I snickered". I told him there was absolutely no way that it was what he had on the label. I then pointed out all the individual characteristics to him that made me say this in the first place. I said, .."this looks like a hybrid that "so-and-so" would produce". He immediately started cracking up and told me that was EXACTLY who he got it from"...LOL!
My point being, if this extremely well-known and experienced, and very respected old-timer in this hobby was fooled by just this one snake(and also it's parents at his table in a display case), just imagine what would happen to all the countless thousands of not very experienced, unsuspecting people that would buy it as exactly what it was marked as. And of course go onto produce folds more genetic mutt snakes that would themselves produce folds more into the hobby to be bought up and further bred........................
Another guy I know there at Daytona had amel
"so-and-so's" for sale, and there is no such thing as amels of that species in the hobby..LOL!. The albino gene was basically "stolen" from another similar snake that has been in the hobby for many years, then back-bred to more of the "target" species until they "look more genuine". These are just two instances here I am stating that I saw from just several days ago, but I could go on and on forever with these similar stories of gross misrepresentation. I see this on a very steady basis every single day of the year....365 days of the year.
Anyway, I am about as opposed to producing man-made crosses on purpose as you could get, and I also have many legitimate reasons for this opinion...
~Doug
