November 2004

ARBA Convention

Providence, Rhode Island

Judge:  Joe Lugo

 

I was able to purchase Dandy shortly before Convention, barely in time to get him entered.  Valerie Harrell was going out of rabbits at the time and everything was for sale, even her best herd buck.  I had barely made an offer on him when Valerie received another offer.  Had I seen him just five minutes later, I would not have even gotten him.

 

So off I went to Convention with the best rabbit I had ever owned.  He was in reasonably good fur and excellent condition.  He was also fresh off of a BOB from a show with a nice sized Holland Lop entry.

 

By my expectations were conservative.  I only hoped that he would place with a number rather than a "no place."  If that happened, I would be well pleased.

 

There were over 120 solid senior bucks shown at Convention in 2004.  When Joe Lugo, the head Holland just, started placing animals at number 41, I was satisfied.  Dandy was in the top third and I knew Dandy had a number. 

 

As the rabbits were placed through the thirties and then into the twenties, I was increasingly excited.  When Joe hit the teens, I was estatic. 

 

A person in the crowd mentioned that points go through tenth place, which I didn't know before that moment (didn't really have a use for that information before that very moment) so now I was very hopeful.  I suffered through numbers 12 and 11, hoping I wouldn't get that close to points placement and then not get anything.  Eleven is the heart-breaker spot at a national show.  But Dandy was neither 12 nor 11.  He had made it to the points level.

 

Then someone else in the crowd began to tell the story of when he thought his rabbit was still on the table only to find him in the wrong coop later on.  So I began to believe my excitement was probably in vain.  "He's probably not even on the table still," I thought.

 

But then, Christine Feld, the writer, fanned the cards and I saw Dandy's coop number.  That really was him on the table. 

 

As Joe placed 10th, 9th, 8th, 7th, 6th, my excitement grew and grew and grew.  Then he chose 5th place rabbit.  I couldn't believe it.  It wasn't Dandy.  Dandy was the very next rabbit, 4th place, Solid Senior Buck, out of 128 rabbits.  I was floating on air.