#13 Competition Between Bird Breeders (Text Post)

Over the last couple of decades I pretty much kept to myself as a breeder. I was just not aware of the fierce competition and rivalry for supremacy between bird breeders. I have seen this strong competition before when my exwife was in the dog show business, but it never came to mind that it was also so strong between bird breeders until I set up a facebook account about 18 months ago. As I started viewing the different posts and joining the different bird groups (the ones that allowed me to join)  it was really a shock to see how other breeders strike down the competition and work against each other. Many of them believe they are experts and have no problem letting everyone else know it. I never really thought of another breeder as competition and have worked over the years to help many breeders and new comers to the fancy of bird breeding. I am sure many of the breeders would say if asked that it is not competition at all, and that may be true. I think the underlying issue is jealousy. As soon as I notice a breeder that starts to pick up in popularity and is showcasing beautiful birds, the attacks start and the comments back and forth start flying. I never take part in any of this and because I don't take part I believe that is why I have never been attacked or shunned like so many others I have seen, but for some reason today it was on my mind so I decided to post about it. There are good breeders that follow good ethics and I know we also have some bad breeders. But I would assume that most of the people who raise birds have a love for it - or they would not have got into the business in the first place. It really is not something that anyone I know does for the money. The cost of having an aviary and keeping lots of birds is something that will always exceed the money you may make from selling the babies. Or at lest in my case it does. My advice to customers is to look around, talk to different breeders and ask lots of questions. If you get a good feeling after talking to the breeder chances are you have found a person who loves what they do. Raising baby birds has been one of the most rewarding things I have done in my life so far and it should be that way for everyone who does it. Do it well, have fun, and try your best to be really good at it!