And yes, product IS destroyed when there is a surplus that cannot be sold at the market price. Heck, the government destroys surplus crop to KEEP it off the market.
You're referring to milk dumping etc.. Yes this does happen while people starve. Governments are not known for their business sense
Male animals/unwanted animals are destroyed all the time in the food industry. It's sad, there ARE better options, but they aren't as immediate, and they are up to the producer.
One of the most heartbreaking things I've ever seen was a pair of La Mancha goats (my favorites) that came into the vet hospital where I volunteered. She came in for shots. He came in to be euthanized. They were siblings. You know what was wrong with him? He was a boy.
So no, culling isn't what we want in the pet industry. It really, really isn't. But it IS an accepted practice in animal production industries, and really, for each snake that gets sold to a good home, how many are improperly fed, heated, and housed until they die a generally miserable, at least to us, death? How many horror stories have we heard?
At least the potential is there for life.
Moral issues depend on your perspective. Is it better to provide substandard care/housing to all the snakes you have now, or reduce the population humanely, reevaluate the market, and maintain a smaller number with adequate care and housing? Yes, they were overproduced. Does that mean that ALL of his snakes, other pets, and family members should suffer from the resources drain those additional snakes provide, especially when you are not confident that your other disposal options are any MORE humane then euthanasia? You run into similar issues with ANY industry that plans for production long before the supply can really be evaluated, ie, hatchling season.
no one needs to "suffer" if he sell them for market value or just donates them. I've personally donated over 20 snakes this year to two seperate causes
Do we have to be happy about it? No.
Is it up to us to impose OUR moral and ethical criteria on others, especially without the ability to truely comprehend the obstacles and additional obligations of the person in question? Also, No.
I agree! I am not trying to impose my morals or ethics. This was posted in a public forum. I am commenting upon how I feel about the practice. This actually happens quite frequently on forums
Finally I can understand how frustrated he must feel that his snakes are not worth what he thinks they should be. I don't think he is evil or mean or even a bad person. I do feel that his morals are questionable with concern to this particular issue only. I recognize also that people will continue to do these types of things regardless of how I feel about them. I will also let my feeling be known whenever issues like this are posted in a public forum.
That's just my in-econ-this-quarter opinion