Do people expect too much from shows?

[Athravan]

Shows were originally "breeders meetings", and were basically the main way that people of the community (originally birds I think, but a whole variety of different animals had shows/meetings) could meet each other and exchange their offspring, have a chat, catch up on the hobby etc.

These days, with the internet, a lot of breeders are selling online.. people travel across the whole country if needed to pick up, and reptile couriers are making that easier too. It's also pretty mainstream now to sell in the local freeads paper. I would guess that very few people at the shows rely on the IHS newsletter and the show to sell their offspring.

So what used to be a day to buy animals at breeders prices... now seems to me to be a day where people complain about the prices/availability because they are spoilt for choice online!

Do people expect too much? Why should a show be cheaper than the breeders website? It's a breeders meeting.. not a bargain basement. Furthermore... people have to drive to the shows, they have to sort out display tubs and give their time to meet everyone face to face and be friendly/helpful, but people STILL expect to pick up animals for peanuts.

It just seems like shows have got this reputation for being the ultimate cheap place to buy a reptile, and a lot of first time buyers are coming back disappointed, and we end up with a lack of support for UK shows, because people say they're crap.... because people expected the wrong thing in the first place.

In my opinion.. shows shouldn't be about getting cheap animals. They should be about being able to easily access high quality animals from breeders, chat to the breeders themselves, and select your own livestock, without having to travel to 10 difference places to see 10 different breeders. Am I alone? Is the UK show just about getting a "bargain"?

[quizicalkat]

It sounds like a carboot sale mentality.

but I don't know the answer sorry

[Jamie]

I think people 'expect' shows to be cheaper because the breeders get a chance to sell in bulk. Rather then wait for people to visit their website, they get a lot of like minded people in one place.

That aside I do agree with you, I see shows as a chance to see a variety of animals on sale, hoping to find something 'not quite the norm'.

I went to Kettering last Sunday and got 3 juvenile tarantulas (A. Geniculata, N. Chormatus and a L. Klugi) for 38 quid, I was a very happy man!!

[hogboy]

I think you've made an excellent point Athravan
I have really enjoyed every uk show i've been to, from the old ihs shows in walsall, to the pras ones down in havant, sometimes i feel for the breeders who have travelled long distances to help put on a good show.
I think we are guilty of wanting bargain basement prices, not just at shows either.
Hamm is partly responsible for this i think ?
People seem to think everything is available at stupid prices, when in reality its probably not much cheaper than buying in the UK if you shop around, granted there are alot of species not common in the UK yet, but it has its fair share of WC.
I do wonder how prospective breeders of the higher value morph are going to feel, when they come to sell their babies in a year or two, and find the yanks are punting it out cheaper?.
My advice is to spend your £ wisely, buy the best animals you can afford.
Anyone can buy cheap animals from a distant breeder sight unseen, but wheres the comeback and ongoing support going to be.

[SnakeBreeder]

I have to agree.
When reptiles were not popular these events were some of the few places you could meet people with the same interest.
Now with forums and the Net things are different.
It used to be that the only way to get a rare type of something was to either visit the breeder ( if you had any way of finding one) or go to the show.
It may be too mainstream now with some people buying animals just to resell at a profit. Nothing wrong with that, in theory, except you need a pet traders license to do it and some of the animals are not looked after as well as maybe they could be.
While there are more animals available, and certainly a lot more types, I sometimes think the quality of the animals is lower. There are still a lot of people who put a lot in to their animals but there are a lot more unofficial traders / importers than there were say 10 years ago.
Too high a supply causes lower prices, which reflects in the quality of care the animal receives in some cases. Which in turn results in poorer quality animals being made available to the buyers.
There are several solutions but most would not be popular as they would restrict how we buy and sell animals as well as quality controls that would need to be enforced. Now as someone who HATES big brother it seems the solutions could be worse than the original problems.
Stephen

[spider_mad]

Couldn't have worded it myself. Shows are about meeting like minded people and picking up a few reptiles for their collection but at end of the day the traders have to make a living from selling the reptiles. I find the prices from what I hear and see quite reasonable to be honest.

[medusa0373]

I think people do expect too much from shows but frankly I'd be happy to find a show that didn't mean I had to drive for 5 hours in order to look round a small school hall, kind f thing - it's the same with cat shows to a degree (though you can't usually buy cats )

But it is nice to meet like minded people without necessarily being condescended (sp) to in a shop....

[Ally]

I like them for meeting up with people I don't otherwise see for the rest of the year, meet new people (usually from forums!) see what people are breeding and chat to the breeders. I usually have a fantastic day and find a thread on a forum full of people saying they were disappointed - it's a shame!
I agree it's the 'cheap reptile' thing though...
Shows are so much more than that - they're about going home with no voice because you chatted so much!

[Athravan]

I spoke to someone at Hamm who didn't even know what snakes they'd bought "I got 2 snakes, I haven't looked up the latin name yet", I asked why.. the replied "they were 10 euro each!! bargain or what?!", they had no clue what they were (were black rat snakes) and didn't recognise the latin name, didn't ask the common name.. just bought them because they were 10 euros.

And I've spoken to a few people this year who say they're going to a show, to pick up a cheapy or two.

But then people complain there aren't enough tables filled and it's too small, etc.. I think traders are going to stop going to UK shows if people just say "it's expensive, lets go to Hamm instead", when they're prices are already good breeders prices, just not super super cheap.

[exoticsandtropics]

i think it's up to what people expect. if you haven't been before it may be completely different to what you want or perceve? will be there. i went to hamm thinking it was basically just loads of stalls selling everything REALLY cheap. found out loads of stalls selling high end morph really cheap which is much better and much bigger than expected. and i think it's the way people compare show. first one i went to was the pras one which i though was rubbish and it then hamm and your blown away