Blood Dealers
Blood dealers have existed for hundreds of years among vampire society. They collect blood from humans, paranormal beings, and animals in order to supply vampires with nourishment if there is no way to safely live feed off humans or other food sources.
Career
Qualifications
Blood dealers must have a good understanding of how to safely collect blood from any species that can be used to provide blood to vampires. They must know where to draw blood, how much blood to safely draw, how to stop the bleeding, and the correct tools for working most efficiently. They must also know how to properly care for any species they draw blood from, ensuring health and comfort. This applies to humans, other paranormal species, and animals.
Career Progression
Many blood dealers begin as apprentices to other blood dealers, often family members, and begin working on their own when their mentor judges they are fully trained.
Payment & Reimbursement
Most blood dealers supply their stock to feeding clubs at a set price depending on species and quantity of blood. Some operate their own storefronts where they sell directly to vampires, usually through word of mouth advertising. These operations are usually run by vampire families for multiple generations.
Perception
Purpose
Blood dealers ensure vampires have a supply of blood when living in places where it may be unsafe to survive by live feeding from humans or other species. It also benefits those who can't and or don't wish to rely on live feeding for any reason.
Social Status
Being a blood dealer is considered a good job to have, especially in places where there is a large vampire population.
Demographics
Most, though not all, blood dealers are also vampires. Many come from families that own livestock that they collect small amounts of blood from to sell. Some operate large farms and sell other products, such as milk or meat, to non-vampires as another stream of income. Others may own animal breeding programs where good quality pets or show animals are produced, with small amounts of blood taken at various points to also sell. The wellbeing of these animals is protected by the International Vampire Code created by the Consilium Internationale.
Some blood dealers collect blood from humans or other paranormal beings and compensate them. At times they enter into long-term contracts with those the collect from in order for them all to benefit from the collection process. The treatment of these partners is also outlined in the International Vampire Code.
Operations
Materials
In order to do their jobs properly, blood dealers need needles, tubing, containers to store the collected blood, materials to label the containers, and coolers to store the blood. They also need the materials for properly caring for those who supply the blood, including healing salve made from vampire venom or adhesive bandages for the small wounds, and food to help rebuild their energy after losing blood.
Workplace
Blood dealers may work from their home, an office, or on a farm.
Provided Services
Blood dealers supply what blood they can obtain from whoever or whatever species they have access to. Some may sometimes offer to collect from a specific species if requested by a customer, for an additional price.
Dangers & Hazards
Depending on the species being collected from, there may be some danger involved. Collecting from livestock or other animals usually involves training and restraint, while abiding by animal welfare expectations. There is also a danger of discovery. Those who collect from livestock usually do so at night and in secure locations where visiting humans, especially anti-farming activists, may not see what is happening and guess that the blood isn't being collected for bloodwork purposes. Collecting from humans or other paranormal species who consent to the collection is usually much safer, but finding blood sources is not always as easy as keeping livestock.
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