Saturday, October 29, 2005
ARBA National Convention Show Results
I ran rabbits at Convention, moving from table to table as each needed help, but I tried to settle around the Solid Senior Bucks because I didn't have any to show. That way, I wouldn't get too stressed watching my own bunnies on the table. But a break was called and I noticed that the Broken Senior Buck table was getting near the end. On my way back from break, I saw that Rio was still out of his coop. I thought that maybe he had placed high enough to get a number instead of a NP (no place) and I went over to watch the rest of the BSB class.
But by the time I got there, they were finished and a group was heading off to put the winner in his coop. I caught up with them and asked who won. "We don't know," came the lie, with winks behind my back. Then I asked about the ear number. "Don't remember." More winks. We turned onto the aisle and I was just chatting about not knowing how all of this winner stuff works since I had no experience with it. Then someone at the front announced, "Well, there's a flower on the coop." That's when I realized it actually was Rio - all of my coops had a pink carnation on them so I could find them easily in the long rows of coops.
I was so happy to be surrounded by friends and people who could celebrate with me. I kept thinking that I wished my husband Andrew had been there to see my reaction. I shook all over with excitement. And I giggled periodically for no apparent reason on and off the rest of the day. What a feeling.
Later, when I was feeding hay, I found the "2nd Place" sticker on Trevor's cage card. I couldn't believe it. Actually, I wasn't sure I should believe it. But Cheri Bushee came up to me later to make sure that I knew. It was real afterall.
I was running for the broken senior does and was actually the one who got to put May on the table, as a luck of the draw. She's got a very distinctive coat pattern, so I could easily tell that she was still on the table. When they stopped at 10th place to weigh the rabbits, I was so excited. She had placed. I got too flustered to count the placements and thought she was 8th or 9th, but it turned out she was 7th.
I placed three in the top 10 under three different judges and three more in the top 25:
Rio is all about cheeks, head mass, and bone. His fur came together just in the nick of time. I had thought I would not even take him but took one last look and decided that he was near enough the end of his molt to brush out the remaining dead fur. By the time he was shown, it was looking pretty good. Since I didn't show him at Nationals (and then he was BOSG the day after), I would have hated to make the same mistake twice. Rio is one of my two BIS rabbits.
Trevor was the only junior specifically bred for Convention that turned out as well as I had hoped. But, in this case, one was enough. He was a rebreeding of an earlier litter that had turned out well. I think he's actually better than his older brother Franz. No, Trevor doesn't have a page yet on my website, but I owe him one.
May just had kits in September and is not as nice as she once was, but is still a great doe. Both May and Rio are out of Styles does that I purchased and had shipped up from Florida. May was born in a litter of 4 broken does. Three of them (including Hilary) are show does. The 4th I probably would have shown had she not had 3 sisters even better. All 4 sisters were exactly 3.00 when I had them registered. They are very consistent. I repeated the litter and have another broken doe that is looking very promising. There's also a solid buck this time. He looks good, too. I have repeated the litter for a third time and have two more kits in the nest box right now. Guess which breeding I will be doing next time? Yup. I'm sticking with what works! May is one of my two BIS rabbits. She won a BOS at 3 1/2 months, granded soon after she was senior, got her BIS at 7 months old, had 5 kits at 8 1/2 months old and placed at Convention at nearly 10 months old. What else could I ask for?
I bought Roxie's mother last Convention from Jenny Poprawski. Camelot's Diva had 10 legs from her younger days, but was an older, huge brood doe by then with a thickening on one side of her uterus. I knew I was taking a chance and might be wasting my time, but if she produced even one nice doe, it could be worth it. In fact, I got Roxie and a big beautiful brood doe Piccolo. Both are black like their dam and I LOVE black does. So my gamble paid off in a big way. Sometimes, you just have to take a chance.
Hilary, May's sister, was taken directly out of a cage of kits just weaned. Her comment card said "beautiful doe - molty." Perhaps she needs to take a break from baby-making to show for awhile. I actually think their sister Purdy is better than Hilary, but she was at home with kits. All four of the sisters had live babies the first time and tons of milk. What more could I ask of them? Hilary has earned herself a page, too, just as soon as she's not molty anymore.
Gina is second generation The Nature Trail's on her sire's side (out of The Nature Trail's Geordi, now owned by Kim Roberts) and third generation The Nature Trail's on her dam's side (out of The Nature Trail's Nina - sister to GC The Nature Trail's Mercedes). She was a bit young to bring (not even 4 months old), but I'm thrilled with her placement out of 126 broken junior does. I expect she has some even better days ahead of her. Gina is a broken sable point.
If you are wondering about LaForge, Bear, Ox, LL Brendan, and Camelot's Merlin, they were sitting home in a swirl of flying fur.
I will be working hard to produce worthy bunnies for Holland Lop Nationals in Perry, Georgia, next April. I will also have to work hard to keep my expectations in check as First Place is not likely to happen ever again!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
"Holland Lops Of Distinction"
http://www.thenaturetrail.com/
http://www.thenaturetrail.com/blog/BLOG.html ¶ 10:29 AM
But by the time I got there, they were finished and a group was heading off to put the winner in his coop. I caught up with them and asked who won. "We don't know," came the lie, with winks behind my back. Then I asked about the ear number. "Don't remember." More winks. We turned onto the aisle and I was just chatting about not knowing how all of this winner stuff works since I had no experience with it. Then someone at the front announced, "Well, there's a flower on the coop." That's when I realized it actually was Rio - all of my coops had a pink carnation on them so I could find them easily in the long rows of coops.
I was so happy to be surrounded by friends and people who could celebrate with me. I kept thinking that I wished my husband Andrew had been there to see my reaction. I shook all over with excitement. And I giggled periodically for no apparent reason on and off the rest of the day. What a feeling.
Later, when I was feeding hay, I found the "2nd Place" sticker on Trevor's cage card. I couldn't believe it. Actually, I wasn't sure I should believe it. But Cheri Bushee came up to me later to make sure that I knew. It was real afterall.
I was running for the broken senior does and was actually the one who got to put May on the table, as a luck of the draw. She's got a very distinctive coat pattern, so I could easily tell that she was still on the table. When they stopped at 10th place to weigh the rabbits, I was so excited. She had placed. I got too flustered to count the placements and thought she was 8th or 9th, but it turned out she was 7th.
I placed three in the top 10 under three different judges and three more in the top 25:
- GC The Nature Trail's Rio - First Place - Broken Senior Buck - 111 shown
- The Nature Trail's Trevor - Second Place - Broken Junior Buck - 136 shown
- GC The Nature Trail's May - Seventh Place - Broken Senior Doe - 73 shown
- GC The Nature Trail's Roxie - Eleventh Place - Solid Senior Doe
- The Nature Trail's Hilary - Eighteenth Place - Broken Senior Doe
- The Nature Trail's Gina - Nineteenth Place - Broken Junior Doe
Rio is all about cheeks, head mass, and bone. His fur came together just in the nick of time. I had thought I would not even take him but took one last look and decided that he was near enough the end of his molt to brush out the remaining dead fur. By the time he was shown, it was looking pretty good. Since I didn't show him at Nationals (and then he was BOSG the day after), I would have hated to make the same mistake twice. Rio is one of my two BIS rabbits.
Trevor was the only junior specifically bred for Convention that turned out as well as I had hoped. But, in this case, one was enough. He was a rebreeding of an earlier litter that had turned out well. I think he's actually better than his older brother Franz. No, Trevor doesn't have a page yet on my website, but I owe him one.
May just had kits in September and is not as nice as she once was, but is still a great doe. Both May and Rio are out of Styles does that I purchased and had shipped up from Florida. May was born in a litter of 4 broken does. Three of them (including Hilary) are show does. The 4th I probably would have shown had she not had 3 sisters even better. All 4 sisters were exactly 3.00 when I had them registered. They are very consistent. I repeated the litter and have another broken doe that is looking very promising. There's also a solid buck this time. He looks good, too. I have repeated the litter for a third time and have two more kits in the nest box right now. Guess which breeding I will be doing next time? Yup. I'm sticking with what works! May is one of my two BIS rabbits. She won a BOS at 3 1/2 months, granded soon after she was senior, got her BIS at 7 months old, had 5 kits at 8 1/2 months old and placed at Convention at nearly 10 months old. What else could I ask for?
I bought Roxie's mother last Convention from Jenny Poprawski. Camelot's Diva had 10 legs from her younger days, but was an older, huge brood doe by then with a thickening on one side of her uterus. I knew I was taking a chance and might be wasting my time, but if she produced even one nice doe, it could be worth it. In fact, I got Roxie and a big beautiful brood doe Piccolo. Both are black like their dam and I LOVE black does. So my gamble paid off in a big way. Sometimes, you just have to take a chance.
Hilary, May's sister, was taken directly out of a cage of kits just weaned. Her comment card said "beautiful doe - molty." Perhaps she needs to take a break from baby-making to show for awhile. I actually think their sister Purdy is better than Hilary, but she was at home with kits. All four of the sisters had live babies the first time and tons of milk. What more could I ask of them? Hilary has earned herself a page, too, just as soon as she's not molty anymore.
Gina is second generation The Nature Trail's on her sire's side (out of The Nature Trail's Geordi, now owned by Kim Roberts) and third generation The Nature Trail's on her dam's side (out of The Nature Trail's Nina - sister to GC The Nature Trail's Mercedes). She was a bit young to bring (not even 4 months old), but I'm thrilled with her placement out of 126 broken junior does. I expect she has some even better days ahead of her. Gina is a broken sable point.
If you are wondering about LaForge, Bear, Ox, LL Brendan, and Camelot's Merlin, they were sitting home in a swirl of flying fur.
I will be working hard to produce worthy bunnies for Holland Lop Nationals in Perry, Georgia, next April. I will also have to work hard to keep my expectations in check as First Place is not likely to happen ever again!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
"Holland Lops Of Distinction"
http://www.thenaturetrail.com/
http://www.thenaturetrail.com/blog/BLOG.html ¶ 10:29 AM
