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Showing - For Beginners The best advice I can give you on this subject is: Join the ARBA (American Rabbit Breeder’s Association) today! Read through the free guide-book that they give you, and then read some more from sites on the internet. There are nearly 50 different breeds of rabbits recognized by the ARBA in North America. Each breed has there own standard. Again, in the ARBA guide-book, you will be able to read all of the different breed standards. Breeders are constantly trying to combine temperament and health with the desired conformation for their breed. When it comes to showing, the judges work through one breed at a time. All animals being shown are judged and whoever comes closest to the standard wins Best of Breed (BOB). Other titles include Best of Variety (BOV), Best Opposite Sex of Variety (BOSV), Best of Group and Best Opposite Sex of Group (BOG and BOSG), which don’t apply to all the breeds, and Best Opposite Sex of Breed, more commonly called simply Best Opposite Sex (BOS). Confused yet? What does all of this mean, you ask? Group? Variety? It may sound confusing, but it makes perfect sense after you go to a few shows. As you may or may not have noticed, the different breeds all consist of different colors. The different colors, in rabbit language, are called varieties. The different colors, or varieties, are sometimes grouped together, depending on how many different varieties the breed comes in. Let’s use Netherland Dwarfs as an example. Since Netherland Dwarfs come in more varieties than any other breed, they are considered by many, the most complicated to show and/or understand how showing works for them. The many varieties are divided into five groups. Group #1 is Self. #2 is Shaded. #3 is Agouti. #4 is Tan Pattern. And #5 is AOV (Any other variety). Sound confusing again? :) Group #1 (Self) consists of the REWs (ruby-eyed whites), the BEWs
(blue-eyed whites), the Blacks, Blues, Chocolates and Lilacs. So that’s a ton of different colors, and you can see why they’re divided into groups. Visit the Color Guide for pictures and a more thorough explanation. Now that we’ve got that, I can continue with the BOVs and BOGs. Out of each variety (color) the best rabbit is chosen. That rabbit wins BOV. If that rabbit is a buck, then the best doe will be chosen secondly, and awarded (BOSV) or vice versa. Best of Variety and Best Opposite Sex of Variety. After all the BOVs and BOSVs have been chosen, they compete for the best in that group (self, shaded, etc.) which is Best of Group (BOG). Again, if that rabbit is a doe, they will then find the best buck out of all the BOVs and BOSVs and that buck will be awarded Best Opposite Sex of Group, BOSG. Still with me?? Once this is done, the rabbits continue to be judged, and the best (the rabbit that comes closest to the breed standard) wins BOB (Best of Breed). Hurray! Once again, if that rabbit is a buck, the best doe is chosen and awarded BOS. Best Opposite Sex. One breed down, and dozens more to go. Once all the BOBs and BOSs are chosen for all the breeds, they are all called back up to the table. The BOBs compete for BIS (Best in Show). The second best out of the BOBs is awarded RIS (Reserve in Show). All the BOSs then compete for BOIS (Best Opposite in Show). So as you can see, it’s all a process of elimination. The best of the best sort of thing. Now I’ve got another word for you to add to your vocabulary. When a rabbit wins anything that I mentioned above (BOV, BOSG, RIS etc.) it will win a leg, providing there are at least 5 rabbits in that category, being shown by at least 3 different exhibitors. You will then receive a piece of paper, called a leg. Collect three legs, and you can send them into the ARBA to receive a “Grand Champion” certificate. Also, on your rabbit’s pedigrees, the more legs listed, the more interested in your stock people will be. So after all there is to take in, rabbit showing can seem somewhat intimidating. So go to a few shows, just to watch how things work, and pretty soon you’ll be dying to try it out for yourself. They are tons of fun, once you’re comfortable with the system. Meet new people, make friends, talk to judges and breeders, and have fun!
Conditioning For Show by Clyde & Doris Jones The most important factor for good conditioning is "genetic". In other words, cull for firm flesh. You can't take a soft, smushy, eight week old bunny and condition it to be a hard, firm fleshed rabbit when it's five months old. When these hard, firm eight week old bunnies get to be about three to three and one half months old, begin to feed a supplementary conditioning feed. We feed barley, oats, calf manna, sunflower seeds and horse and mule feed. You will need to adjust this mixture according to your rabbit's needs. There are two preferable ways to feed this mix. If your time allows, you can feed about one and one half tablespoons of the mix in the morning then about two ounces of pellets in the evening, or you can just top off your pellets at your regular feeding time. Also, it is very important to feed hay everyday. Down here in Texas we have found coastal Bermuda to be the best. When show season is over and the hot summer time comes, we feed one half pellets and one half oats until about September, when we start to condition for fall. The condition mix is too hot for summer. Those of you who are blessed with a milder summer can feed the mix longer. Of course, a constant supply of fresh water is a must. After good feed and fresh water the single most important factor in raising a healthy rabbit is adequate ventilation. You cannot condition an unhealthy rabbit and sickly rabbits should be quickly culled from your herd, as not to procreate sickly qualities. When it comes to conditioning the fur - that's another story. They either have it or they don't. People are always asking us how we get such great show fur. Our reply is "We only bring those in good fur." No matter what you do when show day comes, some of your best rabbits will have blown their fur. So make sure you don't beat yourself at the show table by hauling a moulty, out of condition rabbit to the show. Even though condition carries only 5 points, those points are always important in stiff competition. Lastly, after you've done all of the above, groom your bunnies before you put them on the show table. This always helps to show off all the hard work you've done. Good luck at the show tables!!! by Lisa Maddock-Sheets What is condition on a Holland Lop anyway? When starting out in rabbits I asked an experienced breeder about this "condition" called condition. What, exactly, was this condition some rabbits had and others didn't? Was it contagious? As hard as she tried to explain it to me, I was hopelessly lost. I didn't understand how feeding an animal had anything to do with this thing called "condition". I figured it was one of those things that was genetic and you either had it or you didn't. What a difference a few years make. Now I understand what condition is and strive to have the best-conditioned animals I can. It's one of the traits in my lines that I breed for. Yes, having that smooth top line (where you run your hands down the animal's spine and don't feel the bones) and nice firm, well-fleshed hindquarters is partially in the genes. Most breeders will tell you that genetics is 75% to 85% responsible for a well-conditioned animal. I disagree, I say it's a 50-50 split between genetics and feeding. So, let's get down to the basics of conditioning. The best way I can explain condition is by conducting a little clinic. Take out a bunny and pose it. Now, run your hands from its shoulders to its tail. Do you feel bones all the way down its back and two distinct bulging bones above its tail? If so, your animal is not in good condition. Can you grab a large amount of loose skin in front and on the sides of its shoulders? The animal is flabby, which is the other extreme of being out of condition. Take out all of your animals and run this little test. If every one of them is out of condition, you need to improve your feeding practices. As an aside, most does coming off litters will be out of condition as will older animals. As Hollands get older, it is harder to hold their condition. If you find that all of your animals are flabby, then you are feeding them too much. The average Holland should get 3-4 ounces (or less) of food per day. The rule of thumb is 1 ounce per pound, more than that for does with litters. If they are all rough, then gradually increase the amount of food you are giving them. If ALL of your animals are bony and you can feel two very distinct bones above their tail, then this may be genetic. You will need a well filled out animal to breed that out. But in the meantime, there are some tricks that can hide some of that roughness with good fur and some extra flesh, and this is where good feeding practices come into play. If you want to add tone and meat on those lean bones feed some "extras". By extras, I mean more than just rabbit pellets. This can take the form of hay, whole oats, oatmeal, or whole grain human cereals, preferable a combination of these "goodies". I mix together an oatmeal can of one-half whole oats (crimped oats in the winter when it's cooler--but not in the summer as the molasses is too hot a food for sweltering temperatures), 1/4 unsweetened oatmeal and 1/4 high fiber, low salt, low sugar cereal. I mix it all together and give them a handful of timothy hay en route to the shows and once a week, more often if I've taken a rabbit to several shows in a row. I always feed the animals before and after a show. Oats keep the weight on, and oatmeal helps to keep their poops from going soft when traveling or during changes of weather and the cereals are high in fiber, something that Hollands need to keep a nice coat. Twice a week I give them a papaya tablet, which can be purchased from any health food store. It's a fallacy that short haired animals cannot get fur block and this is one way to prevent it. The show animals are given a teaspoon of dry wheat germ on their food every other day during show season. This adds shine to their coats and seems to help them hold a nice coat during the season. I operate on the theory that I don't want to eat the same thing every day and I think that rabbits enjoy a variety of foods to keep them interested in eating. Obviously conditioning a flabby rabbit requires a reduction in some aspects of its diet and I'd recommend an exercise program. Now before you decide to have me committed, let me explain. The way humans lose weight is to take in less calories and burn up the excess ones. This holds true for bunnies, too. Get yourself a play pen or designate an area in your rabbitry for exercise, then let the flabby bunny get some exercise by running and jumping around for 15 minutes a day. Another trick is placing a block of wood between the bunny's water and his food dish. This way the animal will have to jump back and forth to eat. This will build up shoulders and tighten up flabby bellies. A well-conditioned animal can move up the table rather quickly even if it has other faults because judges appreciate a smooth animal. On the other hand, a beautiful out of condition animal can be moved down the table. How many times have you heard a judge say, "this is a better animal than it appears today" or, "this animal wins on condition"? Having an animal that is in good condition can make the difference between first and second place. Now which would you rather have?
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