Category Archives: Rabbit Show

by | May 29, 2009 · 12:25 pm

No Shame, Boo Hoo!

I did not know how hard it is to obtain an ARBA Judge License until recently when I started researching on it. I was going through ARBA.net for more information but I believe that they have since taken off the procedure. One of my search results returned this link, http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071009002034AAXOdwh. It is pretty much the procedure to obtain a Judge’s License and I would like to paste the entire content here and highlight some of those that I would like to discuss.

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GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS FOR A JUDGE’S LICENSE:

1. Be an ARBA member at least five (5) consecutive years prior to filing for application.

2. Hold a registrar’s license for at least two (2) years and have registered at least thirty-five (35) rabbits if applying for a rabbit judge’s license, or fifteen (15) cavies if applying for a cavy judge’s license.

3. File an application with the ARBA Secretary, including an application fee. Application must be signed by at least twenty (20) ARBA adult members.(See schedule of fees below). There is no refund on this fee if the applicant fails the exam.

4. Complete examination, both written and oral, as soon as possible after making application. The examination must be taken and passed prior to officially assisting a judge at any show. No credit will be given for any show worked prior to examination.

5. Your ARBA District Director makes all arrangements for the examination. The applicant must pass the oral exam with a minimum grade of seventy (70) percent and the written exam with a minimum grade of eighty (80) percent.

6. If the applicant does not pass, he/she may contact the ARBA Secretary via telephone to review the questions missed. Another examination may be requested after a six (6) month waiting period but before a period of twelve (12) months has elapsed. A re-testing fee is required.

7. Assist at eight (8) all breed shows under licensed judges if applying for an all breed license and secure the endorsement of at least six (6) of those judges. Assist in the judging of the desired breed under licensed judges at three (3) shows if applying for a specialty license and secure the endorsement of at least two (2) of those judges. The specified number of shows are in addition to those worked while qualifying for a registrar’s license. Applicant must assist with the placement of awards in at least one (1) class in each breed worked.

8. Secure permission from the show superintendent and the judge with whom applicant will be working, prior to the show. Applicant cannot work a breed in which he/she is an exhibitor. Applicant cannot work at an ARBA convention show. Applicant can assist at only one show each calendar day for official credit.

9. The examination must be passed and the required number of shows worked and passed within a three(3) year period from the date of application.

10. All licensed judges must attend an ARBA judge’s conference at least once every five (5) years. An annual review test must be completed and passed, if required.

11. A judge must hold a registrar’s license and keep it valid.

SCHEDULE OF FEES:

1. Application fee: $100.00

2. Re-test fee: $50.00

3. Annual renewal fee: Rabbit – $20.00 per year (3 years for $50.00,Cavy – $15.00 per year (3 years for $35.00)

4. All licenses are due and payable on January 1st each year.

5. If license is lapsed for a period up to two (2) years, the judge may be reinstated by the Board of Directors upon payment of all back license fees plus a $10.00 reinstatement fee. ARBA MEMBERSHIP MUST REMAIN CURRENT AT ALL TIMES.

6. If license is lapsed for TWO (2) years or more, a new license application is required.

IF FURTHER INFORMATION IS REQUIRED PLEASE CONTACT THE ARBA OFFICE.

American Rabbit Breeders Association, Inc.
PO Box 426 Bloomington, IL 61702
Office Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00 AM – Noon and 12:45 PM – 4:30 PM CST Phone: (309) 664-7500 Fax : (309) 664-0941 Email: ARBAPOST@aol.com

Source(s):

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As you can see, it is not an overnight process to be an ARBA judge. In case you didn’t notice, the word REGISTRAR is very important. Registrar is a person who registers your rabbits for you. The rabbits that they register will have their details kept by ARBA. Show bunnies must be registered in order to be granded.

It would be nice to play pretend some day as an ARBA judge. But I’ll be so ashamed to even touch someone else’s rabbits as a judge if I do not even have a REGISTRAR license.

Go figure…

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by | May 9, 2009 · 3:01 pm

Truffles, I thought you look good today

I was cleaning cages when I noticed that nice pose Truffles was in. I thought to myself that he is looking kind of cute. So I decided to take some pictures of him and that lead me to judge him based on my understanding of the SOP. I am sure you’ll agree with me how cute this little fellow is.

Putting On The Cute Look

Putting On The Cute Look

One of my favorites

One of my favorites

Close up on the head

Close up on the head

While I was being so engrossed in looking through the lenses, out of a sudden, I saw a pair of chopsticks! It was Beth! She thought Truffles’ eye looked delicious and wanted to try practice her motor skills picking out the eye using the chopsticks. I stopped her while laughing hard rolling on the floor! ROFL!!!!

Yummy Truffles?

Yummy Truffles?

I normally do not bother my ugly juniors that much although they get their usual run time, I do not judge them. Being a “show” breeder, I have learned to be extremely fussy with how my rabbits look. There are definitely exterior traits that I look out for in each and everyone of my rabbits. I must say that most breeders expect much more from their rabbits compared to a real judge. I believe it is inevitable. To stay competitive, the breeder much ensure their rabbits are up to the competition come what may. You will not be surprise that breeders judge their rabbits the hardest.

As for me, I do have my own preferences eventhough we are yet to have any ARBA sanctioned rabbit shows here. I simply get the thrills from comparing my rabbits to those from top breeders in the US. Although I am not a judge, the photos below would be points that I will look out for if I am one.

Please note that this is my own personal opinion based on my own preferences and what I share here does not reflect in anyway the opinions of a professional ARBA judge. Feel free to comment.

Let’s do a point to point comparison. Truffles is almost 4 months old. I hope he’ll improve through time. It may be unfair for him that I used a GC as a point of reference but I just wanted to share what I look out for personally.

Let’s walk through the crown. It is very obvious Clark has got a very prominent crown. It is one of the things I like about him.

DSC03489I strongly believe that in certain cases, the crown is so badly slipped behind, it pushes the ears down making them look extremely long. This is one of the strong point to prove the Summer ears theory wrong as genetics is still the prime determinant of ear length.

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A HL’s head should be 50% to approximately 67% in length compared to its body length. That should give you a ratio between 1:1.5 and 1:2.

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You may have heard breeders mentioning the “DEPTH OF CHEST”. The depth of chest is how the head rest on the rabbit’s shoulder. In the HL, it is highly desirable that the rabbit seemed to NOT have a neck. The chest is exactly where the chin should be resting.

DSC03479

A lot of emphasis is placed on the HL’s head alone. We always strive to have the massive look and most of it comes from the head. The head should be wide and to judge that, the width between the eyes must be as wide as possible.

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The width of the shoulders also determines the massive look. Truffles do have quite narrow shoulders for now. I hope he grows up with thicker bones although not likely. LOL!

The front legs should look like a stump, short and thick!

DSC03520Please correct me if I have used the wrong terms. If not, basically these are the things I look out for in a Holland Lop.

Hope you enjoyed my sharing. Holland Lop rules!

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by | April 23, 2009 · 12:00 am

Think Holland Lops, Think Ugly Duckling

When I wrote “Why I Love Holland Lops”, I did say that Holland Lops look cuter as they age. One classic example I want to show is this buck bred by the Jordans called Jordan’s Captain. Just look at the photo of him as a Junior and how far he has come to be a beautiful buck in the end. Holland Lops are definitely like boxes of chocolates. You will never know what you will get out of something that seemed to be an ugly duckling at first. Therefore, never loose hope before 6 months with your rabbit. LOL! Do also bear in mind that not all ugly ducklings turn into beautiful swans. Most remain as ugly all their lives but that does not give us reasons to believe they make lousy pets.

What caught my attention to look for Jordans’ website is that, I got news that they won BOS at Nationals last weekend with Jordan’s Ashton (if my assumption is correct) as Broken Siamese Sable buck. Jordan’s Ashton is the buck listed next to Jordan’s Captain. Absolutely stunning.

Congratulations to the Jordans for the win! Another Top Lop 2009!

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by | April 20, 2009 · 11:40 am

Congratulations to all winners!

Holland Lop Nationals 2009 just ended over the weekend at York, PA. I am one of those that was not able to attend (due to the distance of course!) but am still very interested to know what happened especially on the winners. As usual, I have been following my personal favorites and I am please to know that Scott Rodriguez’s Ivy Crescent Tabitha took #1 for the BSD (Broken Senior Doe) group. Dan’s Nadia came #2 in that same group. Dan’s Corley won Best Opposite Sex Of Breed (BOS). Click here and here for photo.

Mind you, Holland Lop Nationals is where the BEST OF THE BEST of the entire US come together to compete and even getting placed is a very big thing! These are the top lops for 2009 out of thousands of entries.

Congratulations to the both of them and also to all winners!

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by | March 3, 2009 · 8:53 am

Unfinished Business

When I posted “Must Reads for Show Breeders: Chest & Shoulder“, I did not have good photos to show what I wanted to point out. So for today’s post, I am just going to update this post with a photo of GC Miller’s Carmel. Hope my explanation is clear. I will try to highlight parts of the photos to enforce the point as well.

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by | March 2, 2009 · 12:14 pm

Judges At Rabbit Shows: Something You Should Know

First of all I must say that, an ethical ARBA registered judge will never decide to judge if his/her rabbits regardless of owners are competing in the show. This means that if there is a rabbit in the show what is bred and sold to someone, the breeder who happens to be a judge must not judge in that show. There should not be any room for favoritism even though a judge is known for his/her strong principles and ethics. They will normally not agree to judge based on their own conscience and beliefs. That is a trait worth respecting because after all, humans are weak and may be influenced to a certain extend.

And guess what? I have got word that one of the US breeders that sends rabbits here will be judging a show in Malaysia in near future. He/she is a very experienced show breeder but given the fact that this is just a fancy rabbit show and not a full fledged ARBA show, it is acceptable even though I believe he/she is not an ARBA judge.

But somehow I find it weird as he/she will be judging his/her own rabbits since there may be rabbits in the show that came from him/her. Oh well, this is Malaysia, the land of “Malaysia BOLEH (Malaysia CAN)!”. Anything can happen. Let’s simply put it that I prefer “CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN”.

I wonder what happens in the US if the judge is indeed judging his/her own rabbits and insists to judge despite knowing the fact that there are rabbits from his/her breedings on the table. Let’s see what really happens in the show as it would be really interesting to watch. We better not be judging a rabbit show before the judge judges the rabbits.

But for now, I wish all RABBIT HELL breaks loose! Get those bunnies conditioned and ready for the SHOW!

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by | February 24, 2009 · 8:48 am

Must Reads for Show Breeders: Chest & Shoulder

This is the interpretation of what I understand through my research. Experts out there please do advice through comments if what I have written below is inaccurate.

The show Holland Lop must look massive in general. How do we interpret the massiveness? While in pose, a rabbit in question should be squared with both front legs apart. If both the front legs does not seemed to be apart, it may be an indication of narrow shoulder. Short, stumpy and thick front legs is a good indication that the rabbit has thickness of bone.

Another desired trait of a show Holland Lop is the depth of chest. What does this mean? The head should sit nicely with the chin resting on the chest. The chest should nicely curve from the chin all the way down to the legs.

I know it is very difficult to imagine through words. So let me just brief you through using a photos of Miller’s Carmel as an example. Hope you get what I mean.

carmel3

Carmel’s head is nicely tucked/nestled on top of her chest. That indicates the depth of chest which is desirable. And notice that both her front legs are set apart and that indicated that she has got nice broad shoulder.

I shall be writing about topline and ears in the next post.

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by | February 21, 2009 · 1:29 pm

Must Reads for Show Breeders: SOP & Crown

I think it is time that we get more exposure to the rabbit show world. There will be one alleged 1st National Rabbit show coming up in July and I believe by writing this article may get you people who are interested to know what will happen during the show (if it is of standard). As of now, there is no information of who is the judge or whatsoever. But at least having the public aware of these information may help ensure a quality judge whoever it may be.

I hope it is an ARBA licensed judge nonetheless. I would really love to know his/her professional opinions about my rabbits. Come what may, we shall have a good time filled with fun and laughter.

Rather than rewriting whatever someone else have written, I am just going to put up links so that you can enjoy good information without any modifications. What I am going to share in this show series would be in parts. I know sometimes the internet is so overloaded that we do not know where to start.

As we all know, there are 43 breeds recognized by ARBA. Holland Lop is one of the 43. Each and every breed recognized by ARBA has got their own STANDARD OF PERFECTION. What I am going to share in this series is only applicable to Holland Lops.

I would like to first introduce what is the Standard of Perfection. I found a very good explanation over at Hillsboro Hollands and here is the link to Holland Lop Show Standards.

And after you have read through the overall standard and the points given at show, I would like to share with you yet another good link. This article is written by Phil Batey, the Miniature Lop extraordinaire and legend in UK. And for your information, the Miniature Lop in UK is equivalent to the Holland Lop in US just that the UK version is 0.5 pounds lighter. Which means, they are at the smaller spectrum.

Phil Batey had written this article and he included photos to illustrate each point. This article has been translated into multiply languages and is widely use as a guide. Most breeders know that a good CROWN is the hardest to achieve and this article tells us how a good crown should be. May you find the article useful too in your quest for the CROWN fit for a king. Ruskin Miniature Lop – Slipped Crown.

I hope to post something about Chest and Shoulder later.

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by | February 7, 2009 · 4:26 pm

Showing Holland Lops

Out of interest, I have always follow Holland Lop shows in the US. I find it very interesting to know. Although I am not yet an expert in this field of showing rabbits (no practical experiences as yet), I will try to discuss what I know to the best of my knowledge.

The order of judging is Solid before Broken, Senior before Junior and Buck before Doe.

The show for Holland Lops starts off with 8 groups as listed below (in judging order):

1 ) Solid Senior Buck (SSB)

2 ) Solid Junior Buck (SJB)

3 ) Solid Senior Doe (SSD)

4 ) Solid Junior Doe (SJD)

5 ) Broken Senior Buck (BSB – not Backstreet Boys okie!?)

6 ) Broken Junior Buck (BJB)

7 ) Broken Senior Doe (BSD)

8 ) Broken Junior Doe (BJD)

In each group after they are judged, the best from each group will be called Group Winners.

The 8 (4 solids & 4 brokens) Group Winners then compete to get Best Of Group/Variety (if I am not wrong) and Best Opposite Sex of Group. There will only be 2 Best of Group rabbits one coming from Solid and Broken. And 2 Best Opposite Sex of Group rabbits again one coming from Solid and Broken. Only the 2 Best of Group &  2 Best Opposite Sex of Group will go on to compete for Best of Breed (BOB) & Best Opposite Sex (BOS).

For example, if out of the Class Winners, a Solid Senior Buck won Best of Group in Solids and a Broken Senior Buck won Best of Group in Broken, any one of them winning BOB would mean that their opposite sex rabbits will be chosen for BOS.

Rabbit shows normally have many breeds and all the BEST OF BREEDS will come together to compete for BEST IN SHOW (BIS) and also BEST RESERVE IN SHOW (BRIS).

Then how do your rabbit get Grand Champion?

It take 3 GC legs from 3 shows under at least 2 different judges to grand your rabbit. GC legs can be awarded starting to Class Winners. So it is not surprising if a rabbit can earn a few legs in a show. Rabbits with junior legs must have at least 1 senior leg to grand.

But there is a clause to awarding the GC legs. The requirements are that there should be at least 5 rabbits competing and at least 3 breeders represented. For example, 5 rabbits should be competing in the Solid Senior Buck category and they should be owned by at least 3 breeders. So the winner of this category will be able to earn a GC leg.

Important procedures before showing a rabbit:

The main reason that one shows his/her rabbits is to obtain a Grand Champions status. In order to grand a rabbit, the breeder will want to get it registered. The Registrar is the person that helps breeders in registering their rabbits. A registrar must register your rabbit by tattoing its right ear. These registrars are registered under ARBA and they will go through your rabbits physically to ensure that they do not have any disqualification. The rabbits that you desire to get registered must have a complete pedigree stating 3 GENERATIONS of rabbits (yes, all the way up to Great Grandparents).

So now you see why a PEDIGREE document is so important when you desire to get your rabbit on the show table. Not just a birth certificate but something that will show you reliable information of the lineage. It is to ensure you show a purebred rabbit instead of hybrids and mixed breeds.

Why 3 generations of rabbits in the PEDIGREE you might ask. A purebred rabbit is one with 3 generations of purebred ancestry. Meaning to say, all the way up to the great grandparents must be at least Holland Lops. Why wouldn’t they be Holland Lops? That is because, Holland Lops are still being developed and they may cross breed with another breed to enhance the color or fur texture. For more information on this topic, please refer to an old post I posted previously called F1, F2, F3, F4, Hybrid & Purebred?

Another interesting thing is that, the rabbit that you desire to show DO NOT need to be offspring of a show rabbit or even a registered rabbit (but they must be pedigreed). Whether showing rabbits or dogs, the sense of integrity and principles of a person is always put to the test. Show breeders that cares a great deal of their reputations will uphold good sense of showmanship.

What I have witness and have the honor to know about the local dog showing world is that, there are bound to be some breeders that do not take to not winning that well. They just cannot lose and therefore, may “tweak” the pedigrees just to get through the procedures. Unethical dog breeders in order to get their dogs registered has also resorted to using a dead dog’s pedigree to get pedigrees for some mixed breed puppies. I know of many dogs without pedigrees having pedigreed puppies.

So the best thing to do is not to take winning or losing that seriously. Just have FUN and in the midst of that, have a great FELLOWSHIP and make many great FRIENDSHIPS!

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