Have you ever used the word “breeder” to refer to a human being who has children? Please don’t. Somehow in this crazy time when one-fifth of us are not having children and many of us have chosen the “childfree” life, “breeder” is becoming like a curse word. I’m reading posts on childfree and childless websites where the writers, mostly women, complain about all those breeders posting baby pictures online, daring to bring their children to restaurants, or surrounding them at holiday celebrations.
Breeder is a term that should only be used when we’re talking about people arranging for the mating and procreating of animals or plants, not humans. Wikipedia says: A breeder is a person who practices the vocation of mating carefully selected specimens of the same breed to reproduce specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or hobbyist, and can be practiced on a large or small scale, for food, fun, or profit.”
But this is how I’m seeing it used on countless childless/childfree sites and how it’s defined in the Urban Dictionary: “1: slang term used by some childfree people for one who has a child and/or has many after that, refuses to discipline the child/ren, thinks the sun rises and sets for their child/ren, look down upon people who do not have children, and are in general very selfish and greedy when it comes to their whims and those of their child/ren, especially if they can use their parenthood status or their children as an excuse to get their way. A female breeder is commonly called a moo, and a male breeder a duh.”
The definitions and examples go on and on. Each one offends me more. Not having our own children, by choice or circumstance, does not give us the right to use terms like these or to assume that every parent is a senseless idiot bent on destroying our lives by making babies and actually showing them in our child-deprived presence.
The usage has ramped up lately as people prepare, often with dread, to join their families for the holidays. I know it’s a hard hurdle to get over, but let’s try to stop feeling angry or sorry for ourselves and just enjoy the children around us, even if they’re not ours, for the little miracles they are—even when they’re crying, making messes or generally being less than charming. For Pete’s sake, if our parents hadn’t “bred,” we wouldn’t be here.
One more point. This may sound silly, but think about it. If you wanted a dog and couldn’t have one, and you went someplace where there was a dog, would you hate the dog or the dog owner for being there? No, you’d pet that dog and play with it and love it. Why can’t it be the same with children?
I look forward to your comments.
Childless by Marriage 
Great points. Sometimes I get wrapped up in my childless world and get annoyed with those with children. Until I realize that the reason they are distracted on a phone call, or unable to focus on a lunch visit is because they are in charge of another human being who needs to be protected and loved. Me I just need to make sure my handbag doesn't get left behind. I can't always grasp that responsibility that parents have.Other times, I find myself at a loss for conversation with parents. Then I realize (like you pointed out) that they are people too – only with children. When I look past the children and attempt normal conversation, I usually learn that my party companion is an avid reader or loves to cook.I personally would never refer to parents as “breeders.” Not even those that choose to have many children. I don't refer to their children as “a litter” either. Even if I did have children I'd probably only want one or two, but I know many happy large families who are not “breeding” like barnyard animals.All that being said, I do find irritation with those who can't seem to understand that their children are not the center of my world. I'm certainly interested in your life, your family, your children. But I don't want to know everything about her bedroom decor, her bath habits, her babysitter. I don't want to sit in mid-conversation and watch you decide to gurgle and coo to your child as you “pretend” to have a rapport with me. (sorry, dealing with anticipated, upcoming family drama)Many might disagree with me but I don't fully adopt the comparison of the dogs and children. Enjoying the presence of a dog (even if you can't have one) isn't as difficult as enjoying a child (when you don't have one). This is only my opinion, but I have three dogs which I love and respect very much. But for me they aren't close to being children.Anon S
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I agree totally. I felt myself thinking about what I would say to a friend who had a miscarriage, and who was complaining about not getting an anniversary card, and honestly all I could think was “well, at least your husband has sperm” but that’s not who I want to be. You are correct – if we like dogs but can’t have them, we love every one we see. We should do the same for kids.
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*Never* have referred to parents as “breeders.” Always enjoy being around children, it is their self-righteous parents that are sometimes a pain. To paraphrase a Wise Woman, “We're people just like them who happen not to be parents. “
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Thank you all for your comments. Keep them coming. I'm sorry for the delay in approving them. Something is going crazy with Blogger. I'm getting notified about the spam, but not about the real comments.
Anyway, I'm so happy you're all here. Keep coming back.
Sue
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http://blog.silentsorority.com/kindness-comes-in-many-forms/
Sue , just in case you didn't see this…
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I did not see that post. Thank you so much for sharing it. For anyone who is having trouble coping this time of year–and any time, I highly recommend it.Here's the link again: http://blog.silentsorority.com/kindness-comes-in-many-forms.
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“Breeders” is usually slang for those who reproduce mindlessly like Octomom. I can't tell you how many times parents complain about 'childless hipsters'. That is as insulting as if you lack value, since, like myself, many are not this way by choice. Even so, why are parents allowed to criticize 'hipsters' and not the other way around? Whether I had kids or not, if I am in a public place, I expect parents to control their kids. I would have never been allowed to act as some of these kids do now.
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'Breeder' in the childfree world usually does not mean anyone with kids. It means specifically anyone with kids who doesn't parent said kids.
Child free folks who use the term almost exclusively are referring to BNP (Breeder, Not Parent). If you have children and raise them properly and responsibly, CF folks will tend to use PNB or parent. If you see the term 'breeder', please note that it is *not* all encompassing.
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Seriously, I can't see what all the fuss is about regarding this particular term. When two members of a sexually reproducing species cohabit and produce offspring, they are said to be breeding. (example: You need a male and female cat to breed kittens.)
Since parents, by definition, have bred – and, furthermore, since most parents one encounters seem quite happy and proud of the fact – why be so upset about what is, after all, a perfectly accurate term?
Many parents might dispute that they are “Moos,” or “entitlemoos,” or that their beloved offspring are “snowflakes” “brats” “crotch droppings” “toadlers” etc… but surely the term “breeder” is, by definition, hard to refute/
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Alan, Thank you for setting us straight. I think it's not the word, which as you say is accurate, but the way people use it, the snide insinuations that come with it. Also, that it's usually applied to non-human animals. But you're right. When a man and a woman have children, they breed.
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What is happening in this world is disgusting and evil. New generations are being fed lies about the world being overpopulated and that humans are destroying the world when in reality it’s corporations and elites. They’re spreading these lies to push out a certain agenda that allows them to control us. Call me a conspiracy theorist, which they love when you do, because they want people that tell the truth to look crazy so people won’t believe them. But this is the truth. These young people are being brainwashed into hating family units and the idea of having children. They are teaching them to be self-centered and selfish and teaching them to dehumanize anyone who doesn’t believe in the same ideology as them. They’ve taught them to hate humanity. This is how the Nazis won power, Stalin, the CCP. Birth rates are at an all-time low and it’s not looking good for the future. They want people to believe the world is hell, which I won’t disagree with, but it’s hell because we keep falling for these lies. And we’re allowing them to use each new generation to destroy all that is good and right about humanity.
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I came very close to not approving this comment. I don’t think you understand how very many childless people DID NOT CHOOSE lives without children. For many reasons, including infertility and major health problems, they are not able to have the families they wanted. Nobody is brainwashing anyone that traditional families are bad. If you are so big on the truth, please look at all sides of the situation. BTW, parts of the world ARE overpopulated.
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