Crisis in animal figurine collecting?

Very interesting to read everyone's thoughts and views!

This is more personal to me specifically and my life circumstances, but my collecting hobbies (not just animals, but aircraft too) have all slowed down significantly in the last couple of years for various reasons. 2023 will mark my ten year anniversary on the forum, and a lot has changed in those ten years. Apart from the few things left on my searchlist, my collection feels mostly complete. Due to the pandemic and ongoing economic recession, the brands have taken a hit and they aren’t putting out many new releases that interest me. The brands are not in a good position to be taking risks, so this often leaves me empty-handed. I have always enjoyed collecting sea life, prehistoric life, and a few other odds and ends. There are a few 2023 releases I’ll be picking up, and occasionally Japan pleasantly surprises me. I also prefer “toob-sized” animals because I grew up playing with animals of that size. My childhood shaped my preferences. If the brands were putting out the things that interest me in my preferred size in greater numbers, I’m sure I’d be collecting just as vigorously as I was a few years ago.

That said, I graduated college in May and briefly moved to a new state for a five month internship. During this time, I was paying rent on my apartment in Minnesota where I was working and rent on my apartment in Arizona where I attend school. Every paycheck went to rent and I relied on savings for gas, groceries, and bills. I also start graduate school in January. Real life and adult responsibilities have caught up to me, so making sure that the rent is paid and that food remains on the table takes priority now. My career is the most important thing to shape going forward.

I’m lucky that I acquired most of the super rare and high-dollar items in my collection while I had no bills or financial responsibilities. Maybe in a few years, the brands will recover and start releasing more things that interest me. Hopefully by then I’ll be on to my first “big girl” job and have the ability to treat myself to those releases. Until then, I’m content with a few occasional new releases from the major brands and Japan. It’s enough to satisfy my collection on a yearly basis without breaking the bank like in the early-mid 2010s.

It's great that you have managed to find nearly everything. Perhaps too often we think we need more rather than that we enjoy what we have. I am looking forward to the time that I have most of what I want and don't need to collect so much, but I always seem to find something else I want.