The Nature Trail Rabbitry BLOG
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
When To Cull
First, let me say that I use the term "cull" in the broadest possible sense. Anything that I remove from my herd is culled. It doesn't necessarily reflect on the quality of the rabbit. After all, I removed BBF's Yankee Doodle Dandy from my herd and he has well over 40 legs!
I saw a post today asking to buy a Holland Lop at 8 to 12 weeks old. I wanted to write and say, NO! don't get one that young. You'll get a pig in a poke.
And why would I say that? It's because the only things you can tell for certain about a Holland that young are bad things. You can tell if it's a fuzzy, a non-showable color, is a false dwarf (on the 12-week end of the scale), and whether it has a bad hindquarter, on the good-tracking vs. cow-hocked scale. That's pretty much it.
So the pre-junior is hollow in the loin. What does that tell you? Nothing. Many pre-juniors are that way and many fill in nicely. So the pre-junior has a golf-ball sized head. So what. Heads haven't started popping yet. So the top line is awful. I have rabbits with beautiful top lines now that had horrible ones at that age. Forget flesh and fullness. The pre-junior with great flesh could turn into a 5-lb. giant and the one with so-so flesh could really fill out for you.
So if you must cull at 8 to 12 weeks (choose 12, please!), then just cull for those things that are obvious at that point - DQs, false dwarfness, poor structure to the hindquarter, fuzzy coat, or non-showable color.
At four to five months, you may catch some more false dwarfs. Some sprout just a little later than others. Check for DQ's again. And now you might be able to see which will be able to show at an earlier age. I've only had a very few rabbits to show at the age of 3 1/2 months and actually do well. And that, I'm sure, is the combination of a precocious junior and a judge that is willing to give a young junior a chance.
At this point, I will pet out the ones still showing absolutely no promise, sell the false dwarf does as brood potential, and I might sell the bottom of the show-worthy ones if I have a lot of one class in the group. For example, if I end up with eight solid junior bucks, I might sell the bottom four and keep the rest.
The next time I look at my rabbits is just after they turn senior. For does, I determine whether I think they have a good chance to grand within the next three months. If they do, they stay. If not, they go. That's where my personal all-grand-champion breeding project can really benefit those who want to buy a young senior doe from me. It's a quirk of my particular rabbitry.
Most breeders will look hard at that young senior doe and ask themselves whether she's worthy of breeding in the herd and whether she contributes some attributes that are needed by the breeding program. That's a great time to evaluate your older does, by the way. Make sure you are bringing in young blood on a consistent basis or one day you'll look up to find that besides making no forward progress, your does are now all too old to produce.
A good doe who is beginning her life as a producer may be more valuable to you than a great doe who is at the very end of hers, especially if you already have offspring from the older doe.
Does will be evaluated later on their ability to produce and their ability to work well with the particular bucks I have. How that goes varies from bunny to bunny. My plan is to then sell them at 2 1/2 years old. Let's see if I can really stick to that. The test will come up next year when Mercedes, Roxie, Markie, May, Purdy, and Hilary all turn 2 1/2!
For my young junior bucks, I have to make the decision about whether a buck has any chance of unseating one of my herd bucks. If he doesn't, it's time for him to go. If he has even a reasonable chance of one day getting one of those top spots, he stays.
At one year of age, it's time to look at the bucks again. Are they beginning to be competitive with the big boys? If so, they stay, if not, I have to ask myself whether another six months is really going to make the difference.
If the buck has granded, then I have probably started using him in my breeding program. Even if he's not taking the world by storm, his place in the barn may be saved by his ability to produce the next generation of show bunnies. It's great when then show buck is the great producer, too. But it only takes one of these abilities to stay in the barn.
A buck may stay in my barn for life. Or, he may produce better than himself and work himself out of a job. However, I generally want to see nice grandchildren before I let a buck go. I've let them go too soon before and wished I could back up or do some line breeding with grandpapa.
As you know, I recently let Franz go before I got nice grandchildren. I keep thinking about whether that was the ideal decision. I think the thing that makes that easier to handle is that I have his half sister Jo-Jo and ten offspring in the barn, including a grand champion son. I feel pretty confident that within that group, I'll be able to develop a really strong line.
But I like the situation I have with Boris much better. Boris has produced some outstanding offspring for me: Zeppo, Java, and Leo are still in my barn. Now Java and Leo are producing show bunnies of their own. And each of these boys has done well at a national level show (12th, 1st, and 3rd, respectively). Java's daughter April placed 16th out of 100 at this past Convention. So, I'm starting to think about selling Boris in the not-too-distant future (please don't email me about him yet). When I do, I'll sell him with confidence that I have nice sons who can produce to work with. I won't be second guessing my decision like I have with Franz.
Sure, I make mistakes when I decide who leaves and who stays. There are a couple of rabbits I wish I could have back. But my basic philosophy is that it is better to let a few good ones get away than it is to keep even one bad one and make it part of your breeding program.
Another principle I believe is that you should delay your decision if you are having a hard time making it. I know we all have the reality of cage space to deal with. But if you are deciding between two sisters and going back and forth, keep them both. If they are truly of equal value, then you'll be glad you did. If they aren't, the difference will be obvious later on.
You have to develop a culling plan that makes sense to you and works with the lines you work with. It has to fit your cage space and your personality. If you would suffer immensely by letting one get away, then be more conservative. If you have plenty of space, don't let it seduce you into keeping more rabbits than you should.
They say you can't argue with what works. All you need to do is find what works for you.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 9:59 AM 0 comments links to this post
I saw a post today asking to buy a Holland Lop at 8 to 12 weeks old. I wanted to write and say, NO! don't get one that young. You'll get a pig in a poke.
And why would I say that? It's because the only things you can tell for certain about a Holland that young are bad things. You can tell if it's a fuzzy, a non-showable color, is a false dwarf (on the 12-week end of the scale), and whether it has a bad hindquarter, on the good-tracking vs. cow-hocked scale. That's pretty much it.
So the pre-junior is hollow in the loin. What does that tell you? Nothing. Many pre-juniors are that way and many fill in nicely. So the pre-junior has a golf-ball sized head. So what. Heads haven't started popping yet. So the top line is awful. I have rabbits with beautiful top lines now that had horrible ones at that age. Forget flesh and fullness. The pre-junior with great flesh could turn into a 5-lb. giant and the one with so-so flesh could really fill out for you.
So if you must cull at 8 to 12 weeks (choose 12, please!), then just cull for those things that are obvious at that point - DQs, false dwarfness, poor structure to the hindquarter, fuzzy coat, or non-showable color.
At four to five months, you may catch some more false dwarfs. Some sprout just a little later than others. Check for DQ's again. And now you might be able to see which will be able to show at an earlier age. I've only had a very few rabbits to show at the age of 3 1/2 months and actually do well. And that, I'm sure, is the combination of a precocious junior and a judge that is willing to give a young junior a chance.
At this point, I will pet out the ones still showing absolutely no promise, sell the false dwarf does as brood potential, and I might sell the bottom of the show-worthy ones if I have a lot of one class in the group. For example, if I end up with eight solid junior bucks, I might sell the bottom four and keep the rest.
The next time I look at my rabbits is just after they turn senior. For does, I determine whether I think they have a good chance to grand within the next three months. If they do, they stay. If not, they go. That's where my personal all-grand-champion breeding project can really benefit those who want to buy a young senior doe from me. It's a quirk of my particular rabbitry.
Most breeders will look hard at that young senior doe and ask themselves whether she's worthy of breeding in the herd and whether she contributes some attributes that are needed by the breeding program. That's a great time to evaluate your older does, by the way. Make sure you are bringing in young blood on a consistent basis or one day you'll look up to find that besides making no forward progress, your does are now all too old to produce.
A good doe who is beginning her life as a producer may be more valuable to you than a great doe who is at the very end of hers, especially if you already have offspring from the older doe.
Does will be evaluated later on their ability to produce and their ability to work well with the particular bucks I have. How that goes varies from bunny to bunny. My plan is to then sell them at 2 1/2 years old. Let's see if I can really stick to that. The test will come up next year when Mercedes, Roxie, Markie, May, Purdy, and Hilary all turn 2 1/2!
For my young junior bucks, I have to make the decision about whether a buck has any chance of unseating one of my herd bucks. If he doesn't, it's time for him to go. If he has even a reasonable chance of one day getting one of those top spots, he stays.
At one year of age, it's time to look at the bucks again. Are they beginning to be competitive with the big boys? If so, they stay, if not, I have to ask myself whether another six months is really going to make the difference.
If the buck has granded, then I have probably started using him in my breeding program. Even if he's not taking the world by storm, his place in the barn may be saved by his ability to produce the next generation of show bunnies. It's great when then show buck is the great producer, too. But it only takes one of these abilities to stay in the barn.
A buck may stay in my barn for life. Or, he may produce better than himself and work himself out of a job. However, I generally want to see nice grandchildren before I let a buck go. I've let them go too soon before and wished I could back up or do some line breeding with grandpapa.
As you know, I recently let Franz go before I got nice grandchildren. I keep thinking about whether that was the ideal decision. I think the thing that makes that easier to handle is that I have his half sister Jo-Jo and ten offspring in the barn, including a grand champion son. I feel pretty confident that within that group, I'll be able to develop a really strong line.
But I like the situation I have with Boris much better. Boris has produced some outstanding offspring for me: Zeppo, Java, and Leo are still in my barn. Now Java and Leo are producing show bunnies of their own. And each of these boys has done well at a national level show (12th, 1st, and 3rd, respectively). Java's daughter April placed 16th out of 100 at this past Convention. So, I'm starting to think about selling Boris in the not-too-distant future (please don't email me about him yet). When I do, I'll sell him with confidence that I have nice sons who can produce to work with. I won't be second guessing my decision like I have with Franz.
Sure, I make mistakes when I decide who leaves and who stays. There are a couple of rabbits I wish I could have back. But my basic philosophy is that it is better to let a few good ones get away than it is to keep even one bad one and make it part of your breeding program.
Another principle I believe is that you should delay your decision if you are having a hard time making it. I know we all have the reality of cage space to deal with. But if you are deciding between two sisters and going back and forth, keep them both. If they are truly of equal value, then you'll be glad you did. If they aren't, the difference will be obvious later on.
You have to develop a culling plan that makes sense to you and works with the lines you work with. It has to fit your cage space and your personality. If you would suffer immensely by letting one get away, then be more conservative. If you have plenty of space, don't let it seduce you into keeping more rabbits than you should.
They say you can't argue with what works. All you need to do is find what works for you.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 9:59 AM 0 comments links to this post
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
No Slopes, Please
In virtually every breed, the body counts for a lot of points. Even in Holland Lops, where the unique front end counts for so much, the body counts just as much (42 points for head, ear, and crown, 42 points for body and bone). To have a really good Holland, you can just be about the head - you need a good body, too.
One thing that absolutely ruins a body, in my opinion, is peaking too soon and sloping off. Sure, chopped, pinched, undercut, and all of the rest can ruin a rabbit, too. But judges seem to be clued in to those better and will mention them often.
Too many breeders and too many judges, in my opinion, either ignore or do not know how to evaluate a rabbit's top line. This sloping problem is a combination top line/hindquarter problem.
The ideal Holland, according to the Standard of Perfection, has deep shoulders "with the depth exhibited at the shoulders of an ideally posed animal being carried back to the hindquarters of equal or slightly greater depth."
Pose your rabbit properly. Check the depth at the shoulders. Run an imaginary line back to the hindquarters. Would that line still be touching the rabbit? Or has the rabbit already fallen away at that point, sloping down toward the table?
Are you sometimes confused about why one rabbit loses and another wins? Maybe the winner does not slope. Seeing a nice rabbit with the depth carried back over the hindquarter and a top line that makes a beautiful turn toward the table is a delightful thing. It's definitely well worth working on.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:12 PM 0 comments links to this post
One thing that absolutely ruins a body, in my opinion, is peaking too soon and sloping off. Sure, chopped, pinched, undercut, and all of the rest can ruin a rabbit, too. But judges seem to be clued in to those better and will mention them often.
Too many breeders and too many judges, in my opinion, either ignore or do not know how to evaluate a rabbit's top line. This sloping problem is a combination top line/hindquarter problem.
The ideal Holland, according to the Standard of Perfection, has deep shoulders "with the depth exhibited at the shoulders of an ideally posed animal being carried back to the hindquarters of equal or slightly greater depth."
Pose your rabbit properly. Check the depth at the shoulders. Run an imaginary line back to the hindquarters. Would that line still be touching the rabbit? Or has the rabbit already fallen away at that point, sloping down toward the table?
Are you sometimes confused about why one rabbit loses and another wins? Maybe the winner does not slope. Seeing a nice rabbit with the depth carried back over the hindquarter and a top line that makes a beautiful turn toward the table is a delightful thing. It's definitely well worth working on.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:12 PM 0 comments links to this post
Monday, November 20, 2006
Evaluating a Wave
A nice group or wave of kits were born in my barn on or around May 5 of this year. These were the oldest juniors bred for ARBA National Convention. My plan was for that to be the first wave with smaller waves to follow, but I produced next to nothing in June and nothing in July. So I ended up with one big wave and a tiny ripple, just a small footnote really, after that.
So now, all but two of those Convention juniors have turned senior. Let's take a moment to see how things have shaken out thus far. I bred these pairs with the following outcomes:
So now, all but two of those Convention juniors have turned senior. Let's take a moment to see how things have shaken out thus far. I bred these pairs with the following outcomes:
- Bear x Belle - 1 stillborn
- Bear x Chica - 2 peanuts, 2 viable
- Bear x Duckie - 2 stillborns
- Rio x Estella - miss
- Boris x Gina - 2 stillborns, 3 viable
- Mars x Gypsy - 1 peanut, 4 viable
- Navaro x Hilary - 1 peanut, 4 viable
- Franz x Jo-Jo, 3 peanuts, 3 viable
- Leo x Kimmie, 2 stillborn
- Boris x Lexus, 2 stillborn, 1 viable
- Leo x Markie, 1 stillborn, 3 viable, but 1 died in nesting
- Java x Mercedes, 1 peanut, 5 viable
- Mars x Roxie, 2 peanuts, 2 viable
- Camelot's Merlin x Spice, 3 peanuts, 3 viable (May 4 & 5 wave ends here)
- Camelot's Merlin x Styles Stella, miss (May 13 ripple begins here)
- Franz x Autumn, miss
- Rio x Celeste, 1 stillborn, 2 viable
- Camelot's Merlin x Charade, miss
- Java x Pandora, 1 stillborn, 3 viable (May 13 ripple ends here)
- Bear x Duckie, miss (June 14 due date begins here)
- Leo x Estella, miss
- Franz x Jo-Jo, miss
- Boris x Kathryn, miss
- Rio x Kimmie, 2 viable
- Java x May, 5 viable, but 1 died in nesting
- Navaro x Piccolo, 1 stillborn, 5 viable, but 2 died in nesting
- Boris x Purdy, 1 peanut, 2 stillborn
To sum up, I bred 27 pairs for Convention. I ended up with 43 viable kits. That sounds like a lot, but let's take out the false dwarfs, fuzzies, and runts, and see what we have. That left me with 33 kits. I also produced two non-showable colors. One was a fuzzy, so that just takes me down one. That's 32 kits. But there was some pet quality in there occasionally, too. So this is what I ended up with as my pool of Convention hopefuls:
- June (Java x May)
- Javelin (Java x May)
- April (Java x May)
- Arabica (Java x May)
- Kwai (Rio x Celeste)
- Beauty (Java x Pandora)
- Millicent (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- Mistoffelees (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- Quinten (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- Rumpleteezer (Navaro x Hilary)
- McCartney (Navaro x Hilary)
- Miss Muffet (Navaro x Hilary)
- Glynis (Navaro x Hilary)
- Demetrius (Leo x Markie)
- Hunnicutt (Mars x Roxie)
- Zeppo (Boris x Gina)
- Azera (Java x Mercedes)
- Corvette (Java x Mercedes)
- Jaguar (Java x Mercedes)
- Bustopher (Camelot's Merlin x Spice)
- Prescott (Camelot's Merlin x Spice)
Do you notice what I notice? All of these kits come from just ten litters. That seems like a relatively few considering I bred 27 pairs. But remember, only 15 of the 27 produced viable offspring. So really, 2/3 of the breeding produced something worth looking at.
Here are the bucks that produced Convention hopefuls: Java, Rio, Franz, Navaro, Leo, Mars, Boris, and Camelot's Merlin. Of these, Java and Leo are Boris sons and Mars is Boris' half-brother. Navaro is a Merlin son. I no longer own Navaro or Mars, so I don't need to consider them further.
Here are the does that produced Convention hopefuls: May, Celeste (Rio's sister), Pandora, Jo-Jo, Hilary, Markie, Roxie, Gina, Mercedes, and Spice. I've sold Celeste, Pandora, Gina, and Spice.
Now let's look at the A list and see what I did with each of them:
- June - sold
- Javelin - sold
- April - kept, came in 16th of 100 broken junior does
- Arabica - kept, has 2 legs so far
- Kwai - sold
- Beauty - kept, has 1 leg and some other nice placements
- Millicent - kept, has 2 legs and was 4th out of 161 solid junior does
- Mistoffelees - kept, has 2 legs, missed Convention because of poor table manners
- Quinten - kept, granded at just 6 months old, 18th place broken junior buck at Convention
- Rumpleteezer - sold
- McCartney - kept, has 3 legs
- Miss Muffet - sold, but maybe shouldn't have
- Glynis - sold, but maybe shouldn't have - has already granded, had 2 legs when sold
- Demetrius - kept, has 2 legs
- Hunnicutt - kept, has 3 legs
- Zeppo - kept, has 1 BOB, and was 12th broken junior buck at Convention
- Azera - sold
- Corvette - sold, 1 leg
- Jaguar - is for sale
- Bustopher - sold, 1 leg
- Prescott - sold, but maybe should not have
So, out of 27 breedings, I produced 43 kits, which turned into 21 possibilities, and 10 keepers, at least for the time being. Let's see who produced the keepers:
- April (Java x May)
- Arabica (Java x May)
- Beauty (Java x Pandora)
- Millicent (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- Mistoffelees (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- Quinten (Franz x Jo-Jo)
- McCartney (Navaro x Hilary)
- Demetrius (Leo x Markie)
- Hunnicutt (Mars x Roxie)
- Zeppo (Boris x Gina)
So we have Java, Franz, Navaro, Leo, Mars, and Boris as sires. Of those, I still own Java, Leo, and Boris. Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Maybe I jumped the gun selling Franz? Luckily, I have two more young litters with Franz and Jo-Jo with three kits each. And, yes, they look good so far.
My producing gals are May, Pandora, Jo-Jo, Hilary, Markie, Roxie, and Gina. I still have May, Jo-Jo, Hilary, Markie, and Roxie. So I'm good there, I think.
So what next? I put this information into my pipe and smoke it. (What the heck does that mean anyway?) First, I may revisit the May x Java breeding in the future, but right now, I'm repeating the breeding that produced her Nationals 2006 placing rabbits. In the long run, that breeding is probably the better one anyway.
I have nine Franz x Jo-Jo offspring in the barn. I've already bred Jo-Jo, but next time, I will breed Quinten back to his mother. Jo-Jo is every bit as good or even maybe better than Franz, so I'm fortunate to be able to go that way with the line breeding. You can be sure I'll be working that line and refining it.
I'll be trying to grand these bunnies in the next few months. I'll especially be interested in granding the does so I can get them into production. I'll check the bucks again at 12 months and 18 months to see if they get to stay.
I notice that six of these rabbits are the result of grand champion to grand champion breedings. We should be able to add one to that number because I do believe that Navaro will grand. He's already come in second once for his new owners. That gives me confidence to go forward with my grand-champion-only breedings .
I had another wave of kits born in early August. In a few months, I'll be able to analyze that wave, too, to see what I can learn from it. Have you evaluated a wave?
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Conyers, GA, November 18, 2006
The Conyers show, hosted by the Decatur RBA, was definitely worth the trip. I recommend you put it on your calendar for next year, if you are within driving distance.
I left after lunch on Friday to meet with my friend Linda Norris in Statesville, NC. We met with quite a bit of traffic most of the way and arrived a bit later than we intended on Friday evening. I'm having a deja vu. Haven't I written that somewhere before?
We stayed with Kim and Vickie Roberts. They were wonderful hosts, providing a cool room for me and a warm one for Linda! I tried to make friends with Kim's tiny dog, Itty Bitty. I was only somewhat successful. She is adorable.
It was so weird to have just a 20-minute drive to the showroom on Saturday morning. It was a lovely location. I think it was a community college or something like that. I was basically just following Vickie's bumper, so I didn't look around much.
But it was indoors with plenty of space and good bathrooms. The breakfast and lunch were far above average and a good value for the price. I got far too busy and failed to sample the cobbler, though. That was a huge omission, from the looks of it!
I was hoping we'd get Scott Wiebensohn and Bruce Ormsby. I was willing to accept any of the others for the third. You can't be greedy and ask for all of the good judges. I was hoping that Ray Brewer would be our third judge, but we weren't fortunate in that department.
I have a new judge for my favorite judge list: Scott Wiebensohn. He was very good. He gave each rabbit's its due consideration, seemed to place the rabbits in a reasonable fashion, and gave very descriptive comments. There was not one single, "Good head, ear, and crown," that I heard anyway.
I was in a bit of a quandary about what to show. I had planned to go to Oklahoma to show this coming week but cancelled for that very reason. All but two of my juniors have just turned senior. All but one of my senior does is too pregnant to travel. Andrew just about killed Rio while I was gone to Convention, feeding him just 1 oz. of feed per day. It was Rio who told me he just about died while I was gone. In reality, he just lost all of his condition and a good chunk of his fur. He also told me that he was glad I was home so he could get some grub. Your rabbits do talk to you, don't they? I mean, you talk to your rabbits, don't you?
So, I decided to take a bunch of my solid senior bucks. Six to be exact. A while back, I made the decision to produce my own solid senior bucks. I sold Dandy, Dan, and Brendan. I consciously bred more solids to solids. I produced a nice crop of bucks to choose from and kept my favorites. This last year has been a matter of waiting. Now the first ones are just turning one and beginning to show signs that they are ready to compete with the big boys. (Boris and LaForge are a bit older, but they are retired to breeding.)
I told Linda on the way down that Java was my strongest entry for the weekend. I wanted to see if he was the rabbit of mine who placed the best. He was.
In the first show, under Scott Wiebensohn, Java was BOS. Tim Nix was BOB with an adorable solid junior doe. If she keeps going like she's started, she's going to be something. I've never seen such bone on a small rabbit before. It was outstanding and so is she.
I was extremely proud of Java just for taking his class. There were 19 solid senior bucks. Wizard was second, despite not being in the best of fur, and Lord was fourth.
In the second show, Mercedes picked up her 19th leg with a class win. She peaked back in September and is barely holding on to her fur. She finally consented to be bred, so she'll be back in production soon hopefully. She lost out to a broken junior doe, bred and owned by Linda Norris. Linda had several hot broken junior does this weekend. Congratulations, Linda!
Java took his class again, but was BOB this time. Beauty, a solid doe that just turned senior last Monday, came in second. She's a bit molty, especially on her head, so I probably should just leave her be until January.
The third show was owned by a youth breeder, Kylee Smith. She took five classes and won the BOS with a homegrown doe. Congratulations Kylee. Way to go.
I was very happy to see that MLK, a little black buck of mine that I love, was 2nd out of 21 solid senior bucks. MLK is just ten months old, but has been moving up the table lately. I think his day is not too far off in the distance. Lord was third.
The Nature Trail's Glynis, now owned by Kylee and Paige Smith, was BOS in the first youth show. The Smith's live about an hour from me and ended up buying Glynis from me at Convention! That BOS granded her. Care to do a joint breeding project, girls? Glynis might end up being the one that got away!!! Congratulations on your win.
The Conyers show was one of my less successful shows, at least in terms of meeting my favorite goals. I didn't get any legs that will help me grand rabbits, which is what I like doing most. I am extremely pleased and proud of Java, MLK, and Lord. Mercedes is just like the Energizer Bunny for me; she keeps on going.
It was, however, a great benefit for me because I was able to work with Scott Wiebensohn on the Netherland Dwarf class. Scott was a great instructor and allowed me to really get into it, handling every rabbit, evaluating each one, and getting feedback on my observations (and lack of observation!). I got quite a bit out of the experience.
Thank you so much to Linda Norris and Tim Nix who put my bunnies on the table for me so I could carve out the time to work with Scott. You are the best!
After the show, we had a nice dinner with Vickie and Kim. I spent some time after that in Kim's barn, getting to know her herd. We managed to get an uncooperative doe bred. I hope she took. We did a little sorting and looking through pedigrees. Then, absolutely exhausted, I hit the hay.
We got up early and started home. We made a small detour to get hot Krispy Kreme doughnuts (damn those "hot doughnuts" signs!). I arrived home about 48 hours after I left, happy with my weekend.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:34 PM 0 comments links to this post
I left after lunch on Friday to meet with my friend Linda Norris in Statesville, NC. We met with quite a bit of traffic most of the way and arrived a bit later than we intended on Friday evening. I'm having a deja vu. Haven't I written that somewhere before?
We stayed with Kim and Vickie Roberts. They were wonderful hosts, providing a cool room for me and a warm one for Linda! I tried to make friends with Kim's tiny dog, Itty Bitty. I was only somewhat successful. She is adorable.
It was so weird to have just a 20-minute drive to the showroom on Saturday morning. It was a lovely location. I think it was a community college or something like that. I was basically just following Vickie's bumper, so I didn't look around much.
But it was indoors with plenty of space and good bathrooms. The breakfast and lunch were far above average and a good value for the price. I got far too busy and failed to sample the cobbler, though. That was a huge omission, from the looks of it!
I was hoping we'd get Scott Wiebensohn and Bruce Ormsby. I was willing to accept any of the others for the third. You can't be greedy and ask for all of the good judges. I was hoping that Ray Brewer would be our third judge, but we weren't fortunate in that department.
I have a new judge for my favorite judge list: Scott Wiebensohn. He was very good. He gave each rabbit's its due consideration, seemed to place the rabbits in a reasonable fashion, and gave very descriptive comments. There was not one single, "Good head, ear, and crown," that I heard anyway.
I was in a bit of a quandary about what to show. I had planned to go to Oklahoma to show this coming week but cancelled for that very reason. All but two of my juniors have just turned senior. All but one of my senior does is too pregnant to travel. Andrew just about killed Rio while I was gone to Convention, feeding him just 1 oz. of feed per day. It was Rio who told me he just about died while I was gone. In reality, he just lost all of his condition and a good chunk of his fur. He also told me that he was glad I was home so he could get some grub. Your rabbits do talk to you, don't they? I mean, you talk to your rabbits, don't you?
So, I decided to take a bunch of my solid senior bucks. Six to be exact. A while back, I made the decision to produce my own solid senior bucks. I sold Dandy, Dan, and Brendan. I consciously bred more solids to solids. I produced a nice crop of bucks to choose from and kept my favorites. This last year has been a matter of waiting. Now the first ones are just turning one and beginning to show signs that they are ready to compete with the big boys. (Boris and LaForge are a bit older, but they are retired to breeding.)
I told Linda on the way down that Java was my strongest entry for the weekend. I wanted to see if he was the rabbit of mine who placed the best. He was.
In the first show, under Scott Wiebensohn, Java was BOS. Tim Nix was BOB with an adorable solid junior doe. If she keeps going like she's started, she's going to be something. I've never seen such bone on a small rabbit before. It was outstanding and so is she.
I was extremely proud of Java just for taking his class. There were 19 solid senior bucks. Wizard was second, despite not being in the best of fur, and Lord was fourth.
In the second show, Mercedes picked up her 19th leg with a class win. She peaked back in September and is barely holding on to her fur. She finally consented to be bred, so she'll be back in production soon hopefully. She lost out to a broken junior doe, bred and owned by Linda Norris. Linda had several hot broken junior does this weekend. Congratulations, Linda!
Java took his class again, but was BOB this time. Beauty, a solid doe that just turned senior last Monday, came in second. She's a bit molty, especially on her head, so I probably should just leave her be until January.
The third show was owned by a youth breeder, Kylee Smith. She took five classes and won the BOS with a homegrown doe. Congratulations Kylee. Way to go.
I was very happy to see that MLK, a little black buck of mine that I love, was 2nd out of 21 solid senior bucks. MLK is just ten months old, but has been moving up the table lately. I think his day is not too far off in the distance. Lord was third.
The Nature Trail's Glynis, now owned by Kylee and Paige Smith, was BOS in the first youth show. The Smith's live about an hour from me and ended up buying Glynis from me at Convention! That BOS granded her. Care to do a joint breeding project, girls? Glynis might end up being the one that got away!!! Congratulations on your win.
The Conyers show was one of my less successful shows, at least in terms of meeting my favorite goals. I didn't get any legs that will help me grand rabbits, which is what I like doing most. I am extremely pleased and proud of Java, MLK, and Lord. Mercedes is just like the Energizer Bunny for me; she keeps on going.
It was, however, a great benefit for me because I was able to work with Scott Wiebensohn on the Netherland Dwarf class. Scott was a great instructor and allowed me to really get into it, handling every rabbit, evaluating each one, and getting feedback on my observations (and lack of observation!). I got quite a bit out of the experience.
Thank you so much to Linda Norris and Tim Nix who put my bunnies on the table for me so I could carve out the time to work with Scott. You are the best!
After the show, we had a nice dinner with Vickie and Kim. I spent some time after that in Kim's barn, getting to know her herd. We managed to get an uncooperative doe bred. I hope she took. We did a little sorting and looking through pedigrees. Then, absolutely exhausted, I hit the hay.
We got up early and started home. We made a small detour to get hot Krispy Kreme doughnuts (damn those "hot doughnuts" signs!). I arrived home about 48 hours after I left, happy with my weekend.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:34 PM 0 comments links to this post
Friday, November 17, 2006
Lessons From The Dark Game
Last night for Family Night, we played the Dark Game. Essentially, it is Sardines played indoors in the dark. One person hides while the rest of the family counts. Then we search for the one hiding. If we find the person, we hide with them until only one person remains. By then, we generally start to giggle and are easily found.
It's generally a lot of fun. Unless Scamp is licking you in the face when you are supposed to be hiding. Toes don't fare too well, as you walk around in the dark stubbing them at every opportunity. But as long as we've been playing this game, six years so far, it never fails to please.
Over time, we've refined the rules to make it more fun. We never play it during daylight savings time. We've learned that during a new moon is best. We now know how many items in our house have lights on them: computers, clocks, smoke detectors, stereos, heaters, microwave, and much more. We know it's more of a challenge if the blinds are down and the lights are off in the barn.
We also know that counting at a medium pace to 50 is usually enough time for someone to hide well. At any time, a player may call out another seeker's name and they must answer - unless they've found the hider. Outside and the attic are out-of-bounds. Lydia's room is off limits (it's a death trap!).
As I played, I thought about some good lessons that can be applied to rabbits (yes, my mind does work a bit like that these days).
First, a complicated process can be refined over time to make it better. I remember losing more kits in the beginning, for example. Yes, I made one big change that made a difference (dropping oats) , but I think I made a lot of small changes, too, that made a difference as well. In the beginning, I had to think about every process, but now, I know when I put in nest boxes, when I worm, when we put up the plastic on the barn walls, when to clean the fans, how much feed to buy, what needs to stay in my rabbit show crate so that packing for a show is not a hassle, and so much more.
Second, when the same things don't work anymore, we have to continually be creative. You can only hide in the shower so many times before that trick doesn't work anymore. You can only breed the same buck and doe together so many times before that opportunity has passed and you need to look for other good matches. So, while we refine our processes and make things more the same, we have to continually rethink our breeding program since the cast of characters is constantly changing. Just when you have a handle on who breeds well with whom, your doe ages out or your buck is replaced by a better son.
Third, it's amazing how much you can tell without the aid of your eyes. Lydia felt under a table and found my foot. We heard the van bench crash when Lydia knocked it over. I felt Scamp's smooches. We heard Andrew laugh when we were two feet away and couldn't find him (standing up on Daniel's bed in the corner).
I've noticed lately that when I evaluate rabbits, I often will take some time to close my eyes and really feel of the bunny. How a rabbit looks is really important. But I think that how the rabbit feels might be even more important. That's debatable to be sure, but with my eyes closed, I concentrate on the width of the shoulder versus the hips, the length of the shoulder, the fullness or hollowness at the hips, the turn over the hip, the fullness or lack thereof at the lowest part of the hindquarter. I feel for good flesh condition, fur density, and an overall sense of fullness.
So, the Dark Game may have some good lessons for us rabbit breeders. But the biggest lesson of all may be to take time out in life just to have some fun.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:09 AM 0 comments links to this post
It's generally a lot of fun. Unless Scamp is licking you in the face when you are supposed to be hiding. Toes don't fare too well, as you walk around in the dark stubbing them at every opportunity. But as long as we've been playing this game, six years so far, it never fails to please.
Over time, we've refined the rules to make it more fun. We never play it during daylight savings time. We've learned that during a new moon is best. We now know how many items in our house have lights on them: computers, clocks, smoke detectors, stereos, heaters, microwave, and much more. We know it's more of a challenge if the blinds are down and the lights are off in the barn.
We also know that counting at a medium pace to 50 is usually enough time for someone to hide well. At any time, a player may call out another seeker's name and they must answer - unless they've found the hider. Outside and the attic are out-of-bounds. Lydia's room is off limits (it's a death trap!).
As I played, I thought about some good lessons that can be applied to rabbits (yes, my mind does work a bit like that these days).
First, a complicated process can be refined over time to make it better. I remember losing more kits in the beginning, for example. Yes, I made one big change that made a difference (dropping oats) , but I think I made a lot of small changes, too, that made a difference as well. In the beginning, I had to think about every process, but now, I know when I put in nest boxes, when I worm, when we put up the plastic on the barn walls, when to clean the fans, how much feed to buy, what needs to stay in my rabbit show crate so that packing for a show is not a hassle, and so much more.
Second, when the same things don't work anymore, we have to continually be creative. You can only hide in the shower so many times before that trick doesn't work anymore. You can only breed the same buck and doe together so many times before that opportunity has passed and you need to look for other good matches. So, while we refine our processes and make things more the same, we have to continually rethink our breeding program since the cast of characters is constantly changing. Just when you have a handle on who breeds well with whom, your doe ages out or your buck is replaced by a better son.
Third, it's amazing how much you can tell without the aid of your eyes. Lydia felt under a table and found my foot. We heard the van bench crash when Lydia knocked it over. I felt Scamp's smooches. We heard Andrew laugh when we were two feet away and couldn't find him (standing up on Daniel's bed in the corner).
I've noticed lately that when I evaluate rabbits, I often will take some time to close my eyes and really feel of the bunny. How a rabbit looks is really important. But I think that how the rabbit feels might be even more important. That's debatable to be sure, but with my eyes closed, I concentrate on the width of the shoulder versus the hips, the length of the shoulder, the fullness or hollowness at the hips, the turn over the hip, the fullness or lack thereof at the lowest part of the hindquarter. I feel for good flesh condition, fur density, and an overall sense of fullness.
So, the Dark Game may have some good lessons for us rabbit breeders. But the biggest lesson of all may be to take time out in life just to have some fun.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:09 AM 0 comments links to this post
Thursday, November 16, 2006
My Driver's License
I'm going to renew my driver's license today. I got it not long after we moved here in the summer of 1999. At that time, they were allowing terms of up to 8 years. They still expired on your birthday, so that made mine more like 7 1/2 years.
That's a long time, but as I get ready to go to the DMV, it suddenly doesn't seem that long ago. I distinctly remember sitting in those seats, waiting for my number to be called.
Back then, I didn't know what a Holland lop was. In fact, I still had a year of building our home and a year of building my parents' home ahead of me (Dad helped me for a year while mom watched the kids as we built our house; then I repaid Dad's help by working on his house for a year - yes, I can nail a nail!). It was after that, that life seemed to open up to new possibilities. After a while, I started home schooling the kids and decided to get some rabbits because I thought it would be so educational for them.
I'm not sure it ever did anything for them, but it sure did a lot for me!
I bred my first two does on February 22, 2003, (no, not together, there was a buck involved) more than three years after I got this driver's license. That was three years and nearly nine months ago. Since then, a lot has happened.
That's a long time, but as I get ready to go to the DMV, it suddenly doesn't seem that long ago. I distinctly remember sitting in those seats, waiting for my number to be called.
Back then, I didn't know what a Holland lop was. In fact, I still had a year of building our home and a year of building my parents' home ahead of me (Dad helped me for a year while mom watched the kids as we built our house; then I repaid Dad's help by working on his house for a year - yes, I can nail a nail!). It was after that, that life seemed to open up to new possibilities. After a while, I started home schooling the kids and decided to get some rabbits because I thought it would be so educational for them.
I'm not sure it ever did anything for them, but it sure did a lot for me!
I bred my first two does on February 22, 2003, (no, not together, there was a buck involved) more than three years after I got this driver's license. That was three years and nearly nine months ago. Since then, a lot has happened.
- I purchased and worked through dozens of potential foundation animals to find the few that really worked for me
- 555 rabbits were born and survived long enough to be numbered and dubbed "The Nature Trail's"
- Andrew and I built a barn and over 60 cages
- I developed two websites - one for my Hollands and one for pet rabbits
- My website design business is off the ground and running
- My rabbits earned my first leg, I granded my first rabbit, and homegrown rabbits placed in national contests
- I won my first BOB, BRIS, and BIS
- 28 Hollands of my own breeding have granded here plus some were granded by other exhibitors
- I wrote well over 300 BLOG posts.
So, even if I'd had just a regular four-year driver's license, it would still have covered my entire rabbit-breeding career!
And now it's time to renew. I wonder what I will reflecting back on in four more years. I hope I look back on when I produced my first rabbits with an all-grand champion pedigree. Or, and maybe this is even more of a reach, I will have granded a rabbit with an all-grand champion pedigree. Wouldn't that be fun!
Are you just getting started? Have you been doing this for a while and feel like success will take forever. Take heart. You can get a lot done in a relatively short period of time. I guarantee it.
When does your driver's license expire? Be sure to stop and see how far you've come since you last renewed it.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Line Check
I'm definitely making progress with developing my own line. This Convention was my second national show where I showed and placed rabbits that were not only my own breedings, but were also out of my own rabbits.
At my first Convention, I placed a rabbit produced by Debbie Vigue. He remains the best rabbit to have ever lived in my barn. At my second national show, HLRSC Nationals in Ohio, I placed a doe with a "The Nature Trail's" dam and an "outlander" sire. In Indianapolis, I placed three rabbits in the top ten that were my own breeding, but none of their parents were also "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. They were first generation outcrosses. I did place some other rabbits that were mine for two generations, though, just not in the top ten.
I started turning a corner at Nationals earlier this year. Most of the rabbits I placed had at least one The Nature Trail's parent: Sakata, Lord, and Panache are out of May and LaForge, both "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. Leo and Java are out of Boris and Saynora's Katee, so they have one "The Nature Trail's" parent. Only Hilary and Jo-Jo were first generation "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. Camelot's Merlin placed 12th. And Quincy, out of two "The Nature Trail's" rabbits, was 17th.
This year in Fort Worth, May was a first generation, and Millicent and Panache were second generation "The Nature Trail's" rabbits that placed in the top ten. Zeppo, my 12th place broken junior buck has "The Nature Trail's" rabbits for both parents, both maternal grandparents, and his maternal great grandmother! All but two of the other rabbits I showed at Convention have two "The Nature Trail's" parents.
Of course, national level shows are just once benchmark of my progress. What is the current composition of my herd?
I am looking forward to having rabbits with all "The Nature Trail's" in the pedigree. I'm still two generations away from making this a reality. But I should start using some of the second generation bucks and does for breeding in the coming year. Perhaps 2008 will be the year that I can complete a pedigree with just my rabbits. I'm anxious to see that happen.
I know that out crossing will be part of my future down the road, perhaps in a year or two. Then I will start all over getting the new set of genes incorporated into my herd and gene pool. It's a never-ending process.
But for now, my line check says that I am making progress in developing my own line, working with the gene pool I have, and still producing successful rabbits. I suppose I can proceed full steam ahead!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:17 AM 0 comments links to this post
At my first Convention, I placed a rabbit produced by Debbie Vigue. He remains the best rabbit to have ever lived in my barn. At my second national show, HLRSC Nationals in Ohio, I placed a doe with a "The Nature Trail's" dam and an "outlander" sire. In Indianapolis, I placed three rabbits in the top ten that were my own breeding, but none of their parents were also "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. They were first generation outcrosses. I did place some other rabbits that were mine for two generations, though, just not in the top ten.
I started turning a corner at Nationals earlier this year. Most of the rabbits I placed had at least one The Nature Trail's parent: Sakata, Lord, and Panache are out of May and LaForge, both "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. Leo and Java are out of Boris and Saynora's Katee, so they have one "The Nature Trail's" parent. Only Hilary and Jo-Jo were first generation "The Nature Trail's" rabbits. Camelot's Merlin placed 12th. And Quincy, out of two "The Nature Trail's" rabbits, was 17th.
This year in Fort Worth, May was a first generation, and Millicent and Panache were second generation "The Nature Trail's" rabbits that placed in the top ten. Zeppo, my 12th place broken junior buck has "The Nature Trail's" rabbits for both parents, both maternal grandparents, and his maternal great grandmother! All but two of the other rabbits I showed at Convention have two "The Nature Trail's" parents.
Of course, national level shows are just once benchmark of my progress. What is the current composition of my herd?
- 1 non-The Nature Trail's Rabbit, GC Camelot's Merlin
- 10 first generation rabbits (neither parent is The Nature Trail's)
- 9 with one "The Nature Trail's" parent
- 17 have both "The Nature Trail's parents, 6 of which go back even further to The Nature Trail's grandparents.
Wow, my herd is very small right now with just 37 official members. I do have 20 pre-juniors almost ready to start evaluating. When I evaluate them, some will be admitted to the herd proper, some will be held for a later decision, some will be sold (please don't email me about these yet), and others will be petted out. Nineteen of these have two "The Nature Trail's" parents. One was sired by Merlin.
Since I now only have "The Nature Trail's" rabbits in my barn, with my one Camelot's Merlin exception, all of my juniors for Nationals will likely be my bunnies out of my bunnies. Merlin is getting a bit of a rest from breeding right now. I have some other fellows that I want to give a spin around the block.I am looking forward to having rabbits with all "The Nature Trail's" in the pedigree. I'm still two generations away from making this a reality. But I should start using some of the second generation bucks and does for breeding in the coming year. Perhaps 2008 will be the year that I can complete a pedigree with just my rabbits. I'm anxious to see that happen.
I know that out crossing will be part of my future down the road, perhaps in a year or two. Then I will start all over getting the new set of genes incorporated into my herd and gene pool. It's a never-ending process.
But for now, my line check says that I am making progress in developing my own line, working with the gene pool I have, and still producing successful rabbits. I suppose I can proceed full steam ahead!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:17 AM 0 comments links to this post
Monday, November 13, 2006
Winter Cometh
We lost power last night for several hours. We live on top of a ridge, so when it's windy in town, it's horrible up here. I sometimes feel like we'll be blown right off the top of the hill!
I had planned to work on websites last evening, but no dice. Instead, we packed up the children and went into town to watch Santa Claus 3: The Escape Clause. It was very good. But when we got back home, the electricity was still out. Darn.
It was a wake up call for us. Winter is coming. Power outages will become more common. Now is the time to prepare.
The first thing we need to do is put summer and fall away. We still have fans out (in fact, I noticed that they turned on at least one day this past week). Each fan needs to be cleaned, oiled, and stored. That's a big job in and of itself. For one thing, just making space for them in a shed is a huge job!
Fly strips can be put away, perhaps with one or two for the occasional hatchling that comes out on an unusually warm day. I can now wipe the evidence of flies from the PVC pipes and other surfaces and they will actually stay relatively clean for a while!
I need to shovel manure while the weather is still gentle. Once everything starts to freeze, I'll probably let the manure accumulate more. The temperature keeps the ammonia much less active, flies are naturally controlled, and there's little odor. I'll take advantage of any unseasonably warm days to do some mid-winter shoveling, though.
I need to build up stockpiles of water. At less than 75 cents a gallon, it's cheap insurance against the loss of electricity. Since we have a well that is run on an electric pump, we also lose water not long after we lose electricity.
I also need to make sure I stay slightly more ahead on my feed stockpiles. I don't like to use old feed, so I try to keep just enough in the summer. But we have been snowed in for three weeks straight here before, and I need to take into consideration that I might not be able to make the 2 1/2 hour round trip on any day I choose during the winter.
It is also time to get out my nest box warmers and get them cleaned up and ready to use. Most of the time, my kits do just fine all winter in my unheated barn, but there are situations that call for the nest box warmer. I use it for singletons. I use it for poor nest builders (you know, the type that take out far too much of the material, even though you keep putting it back in). I also use it for poor nursers. I have found that putting the warmer under the nest box encourages the dam to spend more time in there. She nurses more and then produces more milk and I end up with better fed kits. Too bad I can't find an equivalent lure for summertime litters!
I have a small ceramic disk heater in the barn. I need to clean it up and check to make sure it is in working order. I'm sure it's accumulated a lot of rabbit fur over the summer. Obviously, I don't use it to heat the barn. I use it to unfreeze parts of the water line. We will have to learn the most vulnerable spots all over this year since we have a new system. This time, the water comes up out of the ground inside the barn. Only the part from the ground past the pressure reducer will be unheated by cable, so if anything freezes on it, that should be the spot.
I also use it for warming my hands in the dead of winter. They can get especially cold if I have to work with water - such as removing ice from water crocks (I use crocks for litters).
It's time to put the tarps over the northern windows. It would have been nice had we done it before this horrible cold wind we had. The tarps remove the cross breeze, which is so important in summer. Before Christmas, we will cover the southern windows and the screen door with clean plastic. The clear helps preserve some natural lighting and gives us a bit of a greenhouse effect as well.
It's also time for the fall pressure washing of cages. This will be the first time we clean them in place and I'm anxious to see how that will work out. I have my first row almost cleared right now of rabbits. I will clean that row and then move rabbits over. It's a ripple effect.
I really look forward to having a clean barn, readied for winter.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
I had planned to work on websites last evening, but no dice. Instead, we packed up the children and went into town to watch Santa Claus 3: The Escape Clause. It was very good. But when we got back home, the electricity was still out. Darn.
It was a wake up call for us. Winter is coming. Power outages will become more common. Now is the time to prepare.
The first thing we need to do is put summer and fall away. We still have fans out (in fact, I noticed that they turned on at least one day this past week). Each fan needs to be cleaned, oiled, and stored. That's a big job in and of itself. For one thing, just making space for them in a shed is a huge job!
Fly strips can be put away, perhaps with one or two for the occasional hatchling that comes out on an unusually warm day. I can now wipe the evidence of flies from the PVC pipes and other surfaces and they will actually stay relatively clean for a while!
I need to shovel manure while the weather is still gentle. Once everything starts to freeze, I'll probably let the manure accumulate more. The temperature keeps the ammonia much less active, flies are naturally controlled, and there's little odor. I'll take advantage of any unseasonably warm days to do some mid-winter shoveling, though.
I need to build up stockpiles of water. At less than 75 cents a gallon, it's cheap insurance against the loss of electricity. Since we have a well that is run on an electric pump, we also lose water not long after we lose electricity.
I also need to make sure I stay slightly more ahead on my feed stockpiles. I don't like to use old feed, so I try to keep just enough in the summer. But we have been snowed in for three weeks straight here before, and I need to take into consideration that I might not be able to make the 2 1/2 hour round trip on any day I choose during the winter.
It is also time to get out my nest box warmers and get them cleaned up and ready to use. Most of the time, my kits do just fine all winter in my unheated barn, but there are situations that call for the nest box warmer. I use it for singletons. I use it for poor nest builders (you know, the type that take out far too much of the material, even though you keep putting it back in). I also use it for poor nursers. I have found that putting the warmer under the nest box encourages the dam to spend more time in there. She nurses more and then produces more milk and I end up with better fed kits. Too bad I can't find an equivalent lure for summertime litters!
I have a small ceramic disk heater in the barn. I need to clean it up and check to make sure it is in working order. I'm sure it's accumulated a lot of rabbit fur over the summer. Obviously, I don't use it to heat the barn. I use it to unfreeze parts of the water line. We will have to learn the most vulnerable spots all over this year since we have a new system. This time, the water comes up out of the ground inside the barn. Only the part from the ground past the pressure reducer will be unheated by cable, so if anything freezes on it, that should be the spot.
I also use it for warming my hands in the dead of winter. They can get especially cold if I have to work with water - such as removing ice from water crocks (I use crocks for litters).
It's time to put the tarps over the northern windows. It would have been nice had we done it before this horrible cold wind we had. The tarps remove the cross breeze, which is so important in summer. Before Christmas, we will cover the southern windows and the screen door with clean plastic. The clear helps preserve some natural lighting and gives us a bit of a greenhouse effect as well.
It's also time for the fall pressure washing of cages. This will be the first time we clean them in place and I'm anxious to see how that will work out. I have my first row almost cleared right now of rabbits. I will clean that row and then move rabbits over. It's a ripple effect.
I really look forward to having a clean barn, readied for winter.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
Labels: barn-environment, husbandry
¶ 10:17 AM 0 comments links to this post
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Taylorsville Shows, November 11, 2006
I really cannot remember a busier rabbit show than yesterday’s. I had a long list of things to accomplish and got home last night with several things undone. But all in all, it was a great day.
We started by actually getting two moms and three kids on the road before our scheduled departure time. That gave us the leeway to drive slightly out of the way for a good biscuit breakfast at the only fast food restaurant I know of to have a 101 health certificate rating (they get extra credit for a food safety certified employee, I was told at the window).
We got to the show on time. As I drove through the gates, I stopped to chat with Roger Bustle, show superintendent and registrar for this show. As it turned out, there were more entries than expected, so Roger was changing his registrar’s hat to his judge’s hat. He asked me if I had forms with me (in retrospect, the answer should have been “no”) and asked if I would serve as registrar at the show. The last time I was registrar at a show, I had about five inquiries and two rabbits that could be registered. It was no problem, so I said yes.
I had fourteen rabbits to groom and check tattoos for. But I finally got them all done and got checked in just fine. My pet customer found me and I spent some time with her and her daughter going over the pet, showing how to trance, clip nails, and hold. We talked about feed issues and I gave her some transitional feed. I carried the rabbit down to his new cage, and headed back for more fun.
I also delivered Miss Muffet. By the time it came around to deliver her, I was thinking that I had definitely made a mistake in selling her. Oh well. I do that a lot, it seems! So her new owner was thrilled with her and we got that taken care of.
I was collecting sanction money for the sponsored sanctions for our Christmas show. On that account, I got some collected and some not collected. I missed getting money for the Flemish Giants, Lilacs, and Jersey Wooly youth. Never fear, we’ll get them sanctioned. I did get money for Havana open and Thrianta.
I also forget to give Janice to Janice. That is, I forgot to give the rabbit Janice to the person Janice. I guess we’ll have to meet at the feed store. Or, Janice’s husband offered to meet with me to get hay, so I’ll have to try to remember to take Janice to Janice then, I guess.
By this time, several people had asked for tattoos (my least favorite task) and when I would be available to register rabbits. Thankfully, one breeder made an appointment to bring hers to my house. I definitely like that better. I do need to schedule another rabbit registering event soon.
Our first judge was Terry Fender. It is my opinion that he does an excellent job with Hollands. I had several rabbits that I was showing under him that could possibly grand. In the first class, it came down to Lord and Saynora’s Ziggy, owned by Janice Jones. Terry went back and forth and back and forth. I figured all was lost. But, in the end, Lord took his class and got his senior leg to grand. After that, I knew the trip had been worth it because I could add Lord into my new breeding plan of using only grand champions.
Before the first show was over, I had collected a leg on The Nature Trail’s Arabica (who was one of only three rabbits in my official herd that didn’t have legs yet [babies and pre-juniors are not considered part of my herd until they’re old enough to evaluate]). Quinten took the broken senior buck class which granded him at just six months of age. I'm so glad because I want to breed him back to his mother Jo-Jo and I just sold his daddy Franz, so it's nice to have a grand champion son to replace the father. May and her daughter Panache really duked it out, but in the end, May won her class.
Lord was BOG solids, Arabica was BOSG solids, and May was BOB. My good friend Linda Norris was BOSG with her broken junior buck. We both predicted that he would win over my senior buck, but Linda expressed that May was just unbeatable yesterday. Thanks, Linda, for your sweet vote of confidence in May!
I personally think May looked as good yesterday as she ever has in her life – even after just going to Convention and having had 22 kits so far and having nursed three litters. May will be two years old on January 1. You don’t often see shelf-life like that in a doe. I’m very proud of her!
By the way, Lord, the solid BOG, is May’s son. Arabica, the BOSG solid junior doe, is May’s daughter. Can she cook or what???
So, after that excitement was over, I spent some time registering rabbits. Since I didn’t know I was going to be the registrar, I didn’t bring my scales. There were only two sets in the whole showroom, so I spent a good chunk of the day carrying rabbits back and forth. I’m not sure how many there were, but I was still registering rabbits when they started sweeping the floors.
I did take some breaks to try to show my rabbits. Thank you so much to Linda and Alison and everyone else who looked after me to make sure my rabbits got up and down from the table. Linda even stood in the line to get me some food, twice – I was starving! No, I didn't eat twice. She had to leave the line to put rabbits on the table.
Most of the people who asked for their rabbits to be registered were kind, but a couple were a bit pushy and demanding. If people only knew how much money and work goes into being a registrar and registering rabbits compared to the small amount of money you make, they might be a little less pushy and demanding (we make $2 per rabbit, minus postage, envelopes, ink, our insignia, license, Standard of Perfection, scales, and miscellaneous supplies – and then we have so spend time resolving any problems that come up!) I made more money selling my one pet than spending half the day registering rabbits.
Of course, it’s a great learning experience from me and I appreciate getting my hands on rabbits. It will help me in the long run, I know. I, like most people who do anything in rabbits, do it because I love rabbits and I enjoy my hobby.
For the second show, we had judge Thomas Green. My rabbits fared considerable less well under him. But, Arabica managed to pick up her second junior leg and Panache took her class. She went on to be Best of Breed. But the best news is that she went further to be picked Best Reserve In Show by Terry Fender. Remember, Terry’s favorite was May that day. Too bad things hadn’t worked out different. Maybe May would have done even better under Terry. But we’ll never know. I wasn’t there for the contest (I was registering rabbits, of course), so I didn’t get a look at the BIS rabbit – even May on her best day might not have had a chance against it.
I’ve always loved the split geode awards given by this club for BIS and BRIS and now I actually own one. I hope I made it home with it. I looked around and it wasn’t on the table, so I hope it’s in my stuff somewhere.
So, after the unpleasant task of packing up after a long, tiring day, we still had our Virginia Highlands club meeting to hold.
We decided to go to a restaurant since it was just the four of us anyway. The kids got one booth and we had another. And of course, this was one of the best parts of the day. We talked for three hours! We did manage to get a little club business done, but mainly, we caught up on what is going on with everyone.
Heidi and I talked about Convention since we went and the other two had not. Oh, speaking of Heidi, we both showed Silver Foxes at the show. It was great to get comments back on them. Heidi has had hers longer and knows more about them, but since we don’t have much contact with other rabbits and breeders, we’ve got a lot to learn! Or at least I do.
When I finally got home at 10:00 p.m., I was absolutely exhausted. I know I’ve arrived home much later than that and felt better. I’m sure I’m still not completely recovered from Convention!
I asked Andrew if my silver fox had had her babies yet. He said no, but that she was building a nest on the wire. You see, this is the difference between a breeder and one who is not a breeder. Warning bells went off immediately for me. So I went to the barn and collected the six cold, but moving kits on the wire. I spent the next two hours getting them really warmed up. I decided to keep them indoors overnight because rain had blown in on the less protected end of her cage where she chose to put her nest and the pulled fur had gotten damp. I will try putting it all back together in the box in a few minutes and hope that she is ready to feed them. They did all make it through the night.
So, that was my day yesterday: tons of fun with friends, two new grand champions, six legs, 2 BOBs, 1 BOS, 1 BRIS, 1 herdsman point, 6 quality points, 943 sweeps points, and six new Silver Foxes!
Congratulations to Linda Norris on her BOSG, Alison Fulbright for legs on her homegrown junior buck, Gary & Susan Smith for granding a solid senior doe and their BOS with a broken junior buck, and to Kristen Ledford and Janice Jones for earning legs, too, and generally doing very well with their bunnies. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out – I’m sure I did, especially since my time at the table was a bit spotty.
Thank you to Charles Bryant, who came to track me down when the Silver Foxes came up to be shown. I appreciate it.
Congratulations to all of the Open Holland breeders for good sportsmanship, fellowship, and mutual support. Yesterday’s show was a wonderful example of what a rabbit show should be!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
We started by actually getting two moms and three kids on the road before our scheduled departure time. That gave us the leeway to drive slightly out of the way for a good biscuit breakfast at the only fast food restaurant I know of to have a 101 health certificate rating (they get extra credit for a food safety certified employee, I was told at the window).
We got to the show on time. As I drove through the gates, I stopped to chat with Roger Bustle, show superintendent and registrar for this show. As it turned out, there were more entries than expected, so Roger was changing his registrar’s hat to his judge’s hat. He asked me if I had forms with me (in retrospect, the answer should have been “no”) and asked if I would serve as registrar at the show. The last time I was registrar at a show, I had about five inquiries and two rabbits that could be registered. It was no problem, so I said yes.
I had fourteen rabbits to groom and check tattoos for. But I finally got them all done and got checked in just fine. My pet customer found me and I spent some time with her and her daughter going over the pet, showing how to trance, clip nails, and hold. We talked about feed issues and I gave her some transitional feed. I carried the rabbit down to his new cage, and headed back for more fun.
I also delivered Miss Muffet. By the time it came around to deliver her, I was thinking that I had definitely made a mistake in selling her. Oh well. I do that a lot, it seems! So her new owner was thrilled with her and we got that taken care of.
I was collecting sanction money for the sponsored sanctions for our Christmas show. On that account, I got some collected and some not collected. I missed getting money for the Flemish Giants, Lilacs, and Jersey Wooly youth. Never fear, we’ll get them sanctioned. I did get money for Havana open and Thrianta.
I also forget to give Janice to Janice. That is, I forgot to give the rabbit Janice to the person Janice. I guess we’ll have to meet at the feed store. Or, Janice’s husband offered to meet with me to get hay, so I’ll have to try to remember to take Janice to Janice then, I guess.
By this time, several people had asked for tattoos (my least favorite task) and when I would be available to register rabbits. Thankfully, one breeder made an appointment to bring hers to my house. I definitely like that better. I do need to schedule another rabbit registering event soon.
Our first judge was Terry Fender. It is my opinion that he does an excellent job with Hollands. I had several rabbits that I was showing under him that could possibly grand. In the first class, it came down to Lord and Saynora’s Ziggy, owned by Janice Jones. Terry went back and forth and back and forth. I figured all was lost. But, in the end, Lord took his class and got his senior leg to grand. After that, I knew the trip had been worth it because I could add Lord into my new breeding plan of using only grand champions.
Before the first show was over, I had collected a leg on The Nature Trail’s Arabica (who was one of only three rabbits in my official herd that didn’t have legs yet [babies and pre-juniors are not considered part of my herd until they’re old enough to evaluate]). Quinten took the broken senior buck class which granded him at just six months of age. I'm so glad because I want to breed him back to his mother Jo-Jo and I just sold his daddy Franz, so it's nice to have a grand champion son to replace the father. May and her daughter Panache really duked it out, but in the end, May won her class.
Lord was BOG solids, Arabica was BOSG solids, and May was BOB. My good friend Linda Norris was BOSG with her broken junior buck. We both predicted that he would win over my senior buck, but Linda expressed that May was just unbeatable yesterday. Thanks, Linda, for your sweet vote of confidence in May!
I personally think May looked as good yesterday as she ever has in her life – even after just going to Convention and having had 22 kits so far and having nursed three litters. May will be two years old on January 1. You don’t often see shelf-life like that in a doe. I’m very proud of her!
By the way, Lord, the solid BOG, is May’s son. Arabica, the BOSG solid junior doe, is May’s daughter. Can she cook or what???
So, after that excitement was over, I spent some time registering rabbits. Since I didn’t know I was going to be the registrar, I didn’t bring my scales. There were only two sets in the whole showroom, so I spent a good chunk of the day carrying rabbits back and forth. I’m not sure how many there were, but I was still registering rabbits when they started sweeping the floors.
I did take some breaks to try to show my rabbits. Thank you so much to Linda and Alison and everyone else who looked after me to make sure my rabbits got up and down from the table. Linda even stood in the line to get me some food, twice – I was starving! No, I didn't eat twice. She had to leave the line to put rabbits on the table.
Most of the people who asked for their rabbits to be registered were kind, but a couple were a bit pushy and demanding. If people only knew how much money and work goes into being a registrar and registering rabbits compared to the small amount of money you make, they might be a little less pushy and demanding (we make $2 per rabbit, minus postage, envelopes, ink, our insignia, license, Standard of Perfection, scales, and miscellaneous supplies – and then we have so spend time resolving any problems that come up!) I made more money selling my one pet than spending half the day registering rabbits.
Of course, it’s a great learning experience from me and I appreciate getting my hands on rabbits. It will help me in the long run, I know. I, like most people who do anything in rabbits, do it because I love rabbits and I enjoy my hobby.
For the second show, we had judge Thomas Green. My rabbits fared considerable less well under him. But, Arabica managed to pick up her second junior leg and Panache took her class. She went on to be Best of Breed. But the best news is that she went further to be picked Best Reserve In Show by Terry Fender. Remember, Terry’s favorite was May that day. Too bad things hadn’t worked out different. Maybe May would have done even better under Terry. But we’ll never know. I wasn’t there for the contest (I was registering rabbits, of course), so I didn’t get a look at the BIS rabbit – even May on her best day might not have had a chance against it.
I’ve always loved the split geode awards given by this club for BIS and BRIS and now I actually own one. I hope I made it home with it. I looked around and it wasn’t on the table, so I hope it’s in my stuff somewhere.
So, after the unpleasant task of packing up after a long, tiring day, we still had our Virginia Highlands club meeting to hold.
We decided to go to a restaurant since it was just the four of us anyway. The kids got one booth and we had another. And of course, this was one of the best parts of the day. We talked for three hours! We did manage to get a little club business done, but mainly, we caught up on what is going on with everyone.
Heidi and I talked about Convention since we went and the other two had not. Oh, speaking of Heidi, we both showed Silver Foxes at the show. It was great to get comments back on them. Heidi has had hers longer and knows more about them, but since we don’t have much contact with other rabbits and breeders, we’ve got a lot to learn! Or at least I do.
When I finally got home at 10:00 p.m., I was absolutely exhausted. I know I’ve arrived home much later than that and felt better. I’m sure I’m still not completely recovered from Convention!
I asked Andrew if my silver fox had had her babies yet. He said no, but that she was building a nest on the wire. You see, this is the difference between a breeder and one who is not a breeder. Warning bells went off immediately for me. So I went to the barn and collected the six cold, but moving kits on the wire. I spent the next two hours getting them really warmed up. I decided to keep them indoors overnight because rain had blown in on the less protected end of her cage where she chose to put her nest and the pulled fur had gotten damp. I will try putting it all back together in the box in a few minutes and hope that she is ready to feed them. They did all make it through the night.
So, that was my day yesterday: tons of fun with friends, two new grand champions, six legs, 2 BOBs, 1 BOS, 1 BRIS, 1 herdsman point, 6 quality points, 943 sweeps points, and six new Silver Foxes!
Congratulations to Linda Norris on her BOSG, Alison Fulbright for legs on her homegrown junior buck, Gary & Susan Smith for granding a solid senior doe and their BOS with a broken junior buck, and to Kristen Ledford and Janice Jones for earning legs, too, and generally doing very well with their bunnies. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out – I’m sure I did, especially since my time at the table was a bit spotty.
Thank you to Charles Bryant, who came to track me down when the Silver Foxes came up to be shown. I appreciate it.
Congratulations to all of the Open Holland breeders for good sportsmanship, fellowship, and mutual support. Yesterday’s show was a wonderful example of what a rabbit show should be!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
Labels: rabbit show report
¶ 10:34 AM 1 comments links to this post
Friday, November 10, 2006
A Big Step Down? Not!
Convention is still fresh on my mind with its dozens of judges, acres of showroom, and thousands of rabbits. Tomorrow, I will be attending a show that is about one hour and twenty minutes from my house. With it's half dozen judges, modest showroom, and less than 1000 rabbits, you might think that is a big step down.
Nope, I don't think so.
Sure, Convention has its unique qualities and I don't plan to ever miss one if I can help it. I love seeing folks I only get to see once in a while. I love the competition. I love having judges especially chosen for their skill in Hollands. I love the traveling (and the getting back home). I enjoy the banquet. I love looking all of the Hollands and browsing the other breeds.
But going to this local show tomorrow will be like coming home. There will be people there that are real friends - you know, the type that would stick up for you or tell you the truth about yourself in the kindest possible way. And, there will be other friendly faces to chat with, say hello to, or just share a quick smile with.
I have some work to do in terms of an upcoming show. I've got some nice pets to sell. And I'm showing five different seniors that each need just their senior leg to grand. (It would be nice to get a leg on one of them.) Then, there's a club meeting after the show. All in all, it's a lot to look forward to.
Oh, and I'm showing my senior buck silver fox - against competition! Last time, it was just me and my two bunnies. This time, there will be two bunnies also, but this time, from different exhibitors. What fun!
My fun starts in just a little while when a girlfriend arrives to spend the night. I see some bunny talk in my near future!
I hope that your weekend holds a really fun rabbit show for you wherever you are.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 3:10 PM 0 comments links to this post
Nope, I don't think so.
Sure, Convention has its unique qualities and I don't plan to ever miss one if I can help it. I love seeing folks I only get to see once in a while. I love the competition. I love having judges especially chosen for their skill in Hollands. I love the traveling (and the getting back home). I enjoy the banquet. I love looking all of the Hollands and browsing the other breeds.
But going to this local show tomorrow will be like coming home. There will be people there that are real friends - you know, the type that would stick up for you or tell you the truth about yourself in the kindest possible way. And, there will be other friendly faces to chat with, say hello to, or just share a quick smile with.
I have some work to do in terms of an upcoming show. I've got some nice pets to sell. And I'm showing five different seniors that each need just their senior leg to grand. (It would be nice to get a leg on one of them.) Then, there's a club meeting after the show. All in all, it's a lot to look forward to.
Oh, and I'm showing my senior buck silver fox - against competition! Last time, it was just me and my two bunnies. This time, there will be two bunnies also, but this time, from different exhibitors. What fun!
My fun starts in just a little while when a girlfriend arrives to spend the night. I see some bunny talk in my near future!
I hope that your weekend holds a really fun rabbit show for you wherever you are.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 3:10 PM 0 comments links to this post
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Point of View, Friendship, Courtesy
You may recall from previous posts that I sit right on the fence between introversion and extroversion. I find social gatherings both exhilarating - for a while - and then exhausting. Needless to say, I came home from Convention over my limit for social interaction and craved some alone time.
I've been reflecting on what makes ARBA Convention so draining. I think it is because there are so many circles drawn around groups which exclude others. It's certainly not one big happy family! Sometimes, people have had a falling out and no longer interact with each other. But other times, people are excluded just because they view things differently.
I expect all people to agree on just a few very basic issues. I cannot fathom anything else. You don't strike people, you don't steal, and you don't cheat.
Then there's this absolutely huge area where I can be friends with or at least friendly with people even if they hold a different opinion: co-ops are/are not always a good thing, it's okay/not okay to show a DQ rabbit, it's okay/not okay to show a rabbit I just bought, it's okay/not okay to show a rabbit until it has 300 legs, going after points is the most important/least important part of showing, it's okay/not okay to show at more than one show on the same day, etc. I don't expect my friends to agree with me on everything.
But there seem to be individuals who operate at the level that if you don't agree with me, then I'll treat you as if you don't exist (or will be openly hostile to you).
I love our Holland Lop district 9 director. He's a great guy. But one of the things that makes him a wonderful director is that he is willing to present ideas to the board whether he agrees with them or not. In order to do that, he has to accept the notion that it is okay to have opposite viewpoints. He is willing to represent others, not control. I like that.
Now we come to the hardest group of conflicts. There are some principles that people hold that I just cannot agree with. I cannot be friends with these people and I cannot understand how my friends can be friends with them. These are the people who are shady in their business dealings. These are the people who are rude to people on a consistent basis (we all go south sometimes). These are the people who criticize, complain, and cause trouble but never lift a finger to help, solve, or change things.
Even so, I will be polite and cordial to such folks. And I will never require my friends not to be friends with these people. And I expect the same in return. This is simply common courtesy.
I think that it is odd that some people get a reputation for causing trouble, being rude, or being unfriendly. Then they are sort of issued a pass to act that way without repercussion. "Well, that's just the way they are," people will say. But let a person who is normally kind, friendly, or at least not a problem have a bad moment, and everyone is all over them, unforgiving and confrontational.
I had such a moment at Convention. A box of used shavings was under my grooming table when I came in to feed. It especially irritated me after all of the trips back and forth to the trash can I had made when I cleaned my coops. I shoved it out of the way and went about my feeding. About 30 or 40 minutes later, I found it under my table again. I was very irritated at whoever loaded up that box and left it lying around, just to be shoved back and forth. I kicked it out of the way. I admit for a moment, I was very angry and I put a little more into it than necessary.
But that would have been my sole expression of anger at Convention and would have been over in a second. But no, the two closest people decided to be confrontational about it. It's unfair that some people can yell, curse, and cause all kinds of turmoil and they get a free pass. I go south for three seconds and folks want to be confrontational about it.
I don't know what the solution to these issues is. I certainly can't control others - I have enough of a job trying to control myself! I tend to retire from such situations. Luckily, I have no need to be with the "in" crowd. I have a large enough group of true friends that I enjoy being with. I'm happy enough just by myself and my bunnies, too.
My job, as I see it, is to be polite to all. I make the conscious choice to allow my friends a wide variety of opinions and points of view. You don't have to agree with me on all counts to be my friend. I do have a few limits, though; I can't be true friends with all. To be a friend of mine, you just have to treat folks with common courtesy, not cheat, steal, or strike, and allow me to be who I am.
If we can't be friends or friendly, we can still be cordial.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 10:20 AM 0 comments links to this post
I've been reflecting on what makes ARBA Convention so draining. I think it is because there are so many circles drawn around groups which exclude others. It's certainly not one big happy family! Sometimes, people have had a falling out and no longer interact with each other. But other times, people are excluded just because they view things differently.
I expect all people to agree on just a few very basic issues. I cannot fathom anything else. You don't strike people, you don't steal, and you don't cheat.
Then there's this absolutely huge area where I can be friends with or at least friendly with people even if they hold a different opinion: co-ops are/are not always a good thing, it's okay/not okay to show a DQ rabbit, it's okay/not okay to show a rabbit I just bought, it's okay/not okay to show a rabbit until it has 300 legs, going after points is the most important/least important part of showing, it's okay/not okay to show at more than one show on the same day, etc. I don't expect my friends to agree with me on everything.
But there seem to be individuals who operate at the level that if you don't agree with me, then I'll treat you as if you don't exist (or will be openly hostile to you).
I love our Holland Lop district 9 director. He's a great guy. But one of the things that makes him a wonderful director is that he is willing to present ideas to the board whether he agrees with them or not. In order to do that, he has to accept the notion that it is okay to have opposite viewpoints. He is willing to represent others, not control. I like that.
Now we come to the hardest group of conflicts. There are some principles that people hold that I just cannot agree with. I cannot be friends with these people and I cannot understand how my friends can be friends with them. These are the people who are shady in their business dealings. These are the people who are rude to people on a consistent basis (we all go south sometimes). These are the people who criticize, complain, and cause trouble but never lift a finger to help, solve, or change things.
Even so, I will be polite and cordial to such folks. And I will never require my friends not to be friends with these people. And I expect the same in return. This is simply common courtesy.
I think that it is odd that some people get a reputation for causing trouble, being rude, or being unfriendly. Then they are sort of issued a pass to act that way without repercussion. "Well, that's just the way they are," people will say. But let a person who is normally kind, friendly, or at least not a problem have a bad moment, and everyone is all over them, unforgiving and confrontational.
I had such a moment at Convention. A box of used shavings was under my grooming table when I came in to feed. It especially irritated me after all of the trips back and forth to the trash can I had made when I cleaned my coops. I shoved it out of the way and went about my feeding. About 30 or 40 minutes later, I found it under my table again. I was very irritated at whoever loaded up that box and left it lying around, just to be shoved back and forth. I kicked it out of the way. I admit for a moment, I was very angry and I put a little more into it than necessary.
But that would have been my sole expression of anger at Convention and would have been over in a second. But no, the two closest people decided to be confrontational about it. It's unfair that some people can yell, curse, and cause all kinds of turmoil and they get a free pass. I go south for three seconds and folks want to be confrontational about it.
I don't know what the solution to these issues is. I certainly can't control others - I have enough of a job trying to control myself! I tend to retire from such situations. Luckily, I have no need to be with the "in" crowd. I have a large enough group of true friends that I enjoy being with. I'm happy enough just by myself and my bunnies, too.
My job, as I see it, is to be polite to all. I make the conscious choice to allow my friends a wide variety of opinions and points of view. You don't have to agree with me on all counts to be my friend. I do have a few limits, though; I can't be true friends with all. To be a friend of mine, you just have to treat folks with common courtesy, not cheat, steal, or strike, and allow me to be who I am.
If we can't be friends or friendly, we can still be cordial.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 10:20 AM 0 comments links to this post
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Cleaning and Disinfecting
I do not believe that kids should live in sterile environments. We're starting to hear that American children do not have enough contact with soil to develop healthy immune systems. I believe the same is true with rabbits. They should not be kept in sterile environments. Good thing, too. I could never achieve that.
But a certain amount of cleaning and occasional disinfecting is important. I'm no expert in this area, but I can tell you which practices I follow. I hate to say this without knocking on wood, but they seem to be working for me.
Before I launch into products and procedures, let me say that air exchange is just as important as, or maybe more important than, cleaning. I've heard breeders say that the secret to their herd's health is their outdoor coops. I can't argue with that.
My disinfectant of choice is Vanodine. I've mentioned on my website that I'd like to try some less expensive iodine-based disinfectants. But Vanodine reportedly contains surfactants which give it a cleaning property in addition to the disinfecting one.
While it is true that I spray Vanodine on my own boo-boos despite its lack of approval for that use, one of my biggest uses is cleaning out water dishes in the barn between major cleanings. Periodically, I take dishes in to wash them in the dishwasher. I actually do not recommend putting rabbit dishes in the dishwasher because fur and hay are hell on the appliance. I generally pre-rinse mine, but Andrew regularly has to get out the screwdriver to take the bottom strainer out and remove the hair and hay. But we hate our dishwasher and figure it is on its last legs. You might like yours and want it to stay around for a while.
Back to the dishes in the barn - at the first sign of slime or dust or anything besides crystal clear water, I spray the bowl with Vanodine, give it a quick finger-wash, and rinse thoroughly. So far, that has worked very well for me.
When I move rabbits from cage to cage, I also spray the cages between use with Vanodine. I'd hate to find out tomorrow that the rabbit I moved from the cage had a problem and I had just spread it to another one.
I also use Vanodine for small boo-boos on rabbits, but again, it's not approved for such.
If I have just one hole to clean, I use Orvis Paste in water. Orvis Paste is just detergent without colors, fragrance, or ingredients to keep it liquid at all temperatures. In the winter, it's solid. In the summer, it's liquid. In addition to the Orvis Paste, a brush and a pail of hot water is all I need to get a hole sparkling clean. I admit that I was obsessive about cleaning single holes before their reuse in the beginning. Now, I'm more likely to remove a whole row of bunnies and use the pressure washer to remove soil.
Now we come to the bleach part of this post. If you've been reading my BLOG for any length of time, you know that I'm chemically sensitive and cannot participate in anything bleach-related. Well, except for the research. I was fortunate enough to be forwarded a wonderful article entitled "Disinfection," from the July-August 2003 issue of Animal Sheltering. I apologize to the person who sent it to me because I've lost track of the name. Feel free to respond to this BLOG post and claim credit for sending it to me.
Bleach should be diluted so that it is strong enough to be effective, but not so strong that it causes problems, anything from skin irritation to lung problems to blindness and so forth. I read a post once that said a huge advantage of using Vanodine over bleach is that people are more likely to dilute the Vanodine correctly. That's probably because the directions are right on the bottle of the Vanodine. But how do we dilute bleach appropriately?
One of the most important things I learned in the article is that not all bleach is created equal. The percentage of sodium hypochlorite varies. A common percentage is 5.25% With that amount, you want to use 1 part of bleach for 32 parts of water. So let's see. That would be 1 oz. of bleach per quart of water or 4 oz. per gallon. In plain English, that's 1/2 cup of bleach per gallon of water, if the bleach is 5.25%.
Is that what you use? Or were you surprised at the amount?
You will find the percentage of sodium hypochlorite on the label. If you use another percentage of bleach, then follow this formula: 21 divided by the percentage of bleach equals the number of ounces of bleach to put in a gallon of water.
So, now that we have the proper bleach solution, what do we use it for? The main thing we use it for in our barn is to disinfect nest boxes. That's the one place that I don't fool around with disinfection. Yes, I want my rabbits to eventually live in a clean, but not sterile environment. But day one is not the time to hit them with a load of reality!
Any time you use bleach, thorough rinsing is required. When possible, allow bleached and rinsed items to dry in the sun. Bleach breaks down quickly in sunlight, so any residual bleach on cages or nest boxes or dishes will dissipate with this step.
Also, I suggest you wear gloves when you work with bleach. Besides saving your skin from irritation, you will find that the rabbits appreciate bleach-free hands when you handle them. A breeder friend of mine mentioned once that her bunnies react negatively to the smell of bleach on her hands.
Since our cages are now permanently mounted in the barn (for all practical purposes) against the PVC water system, I will be using Vanodine after pressure washing to clean my holes from now on. It's safe to use around animals and does not require rinsing.
We also use a pressure washer for our carriers. I can't say that we sterilize our carriers ever (maybe we should add that step occasionally), but we do pressure wash them between every show. Thanks, Andrew!
It's normal to live around a certain level of bacteria, soil, and virus. It's only when those levels get too high or the animal is too vulnerable (such as with newborns) that is becomes a problem. Using appropriate products at the right dilution, along with excellent air exchange and a little elbow grease, will allow your bunnies to thrive. Try to strike the right balance between obsession and neglect, and everybunny can be A-OK.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:57 AM 4 comments links to this post
But a certain amount of cleaning and occasional disinfecting is important. I'm no expert in this area, but I can tell you which practices I follow. I hate to say this without knocking on wood, but they seem to be working for me.
Before I launch into products and procedures, let me say that air exchange is just as important as, or maybe more important than, cleaning. I've heard breeders say that the secret to their herd's health is their outdoor coops. I can't argue with that.
My disinfectant of choice is Vanodine. I've mentioned on my website that I'd like to try some less expensive iodine-based disinfectants. But Vanodine reportedly contains surfactants which give it a cleaning property in addition to the disinfecting one.
While it is true that I spray Vanodine on my own boo-boos despite its lack of approval for that use, one of my biggest uses is cleaning out water dishes in the barn between major cleanings. Periodically, I take dishes in to wash them in the dishwasher. I actually do not recommend putting rabbit dishes in the dishwasher because fur and hay are hell on the appliance. I generally pre-rinse mine, but Andrew regularly has to get out the screwdriver to take the bottom strainer out and remove the hair and hay. But we hate our dishwasher and figure it is on its last legs. You might like yours and want it to stay around for a while.
Back to the dishes in the barn - at the first sign of slime or dust or anything besides crystal clear water, I spray the bowl with Vanodine, give it a quick finger-wash, and rinse thoroughly. So far, that has worked very well for me.
When I move rabbits from cage to cage, I also spray the cages between use with Vanodine. I'd hate to find out tomorrow that the rabbit I moved from the cage had a problem and I had just spread it to another one.
I also use Vanodine for small boo-boos on rabbits, but again, it's not approved for such.
If I have just one hole to clean, I use Orvis Paste in water. Orvis Paste is just detergent without colors, fragrance, or ingredients to keep it liquid at all temperatures. In the winter, it's solid. In the summer, it's liquid. In addition to the Orvis Paste, a brush and a pail of hot water is all I need to get a hole sparkling clean. I admit that I was obsessive about cleaning single holes before their reuse in the beginning. Now, I'm more likely to remove a whole row of bunnies and use the pressure washer to remove soil.
Now we come to the bleach part of this post. If you've been reading my BLOG for any length of time, you know that I'm chemically sensitive and cannot participate in anything bleach-related. Well, except for the research. I was fortunate enough to be forwarded a wonderful article entitled "Disinfection," from the July-August 2003 issue of Animal Sheltering. I apologize to the person who sent it to me because I've lost track of the name. Feel free to respond to this BLOG post and claim credit for sending it to me.
Bleach should be diluted so that it is strong enough to be effective, but not so strong that it causes problems, anything from skin irritation to lung problems to blindness and so forth. I read a post once that said a huge advantage of using Vanodine over bleach is that people are more likely to dilute the Vanodine correctly. That's probably because the directions are right on the bottle of the Vanodine. But how do we dilute bleach appropriately?
One of the most important things I learned in the article is that not all bleach is created equal. The percentage of sodium hypochlorite varies. A common percentage is 5.25% With that amount, you want to use 1 part of bleach for 32 parts of water. So let's see. That would be 1 oz. of bleach per quart of water or 4 oz. per gallon. In plain English, that's 1/2 cup of bleach per gallon of water, if the bleach is 5.25%.
Is that what you use? Or were you surprised at the amount?
You will find the percentage of sodium hypochlorite on the label. If you use another percentage of bleach, then follow this formula: 21 divided by the percentage of bleach equals the number of ounces of bleach to put in a gallon of water.
So, now that we have the proper bleach solution, what do we use it for? The main thing we use it for in our barn is to disinfect nest boxes. That's the one place that I don't fool around with disinfection. Yes, I want my rabbits to eventually live in a clean, but not sterile environment. But day one is not the time to hit them with a load of reality!
Any time you use bleach, thorough rinsing is required. When possible, allow bleached and rinsed items to dry in the sun. Bleach breaks down quickly in sunlight, so any residual bleach on cages or nest boxes or dishes will dissipate with this step.
Also, I suggest you wear gloves when you work with bleach. Besides saving your skin from irritation, you will find that the rabbits appreciate bleach-free hands when you handle them. A breeder friend of mine mentioned once that her bunnies react negatively to the smell of bleach on her hands.
Since our cages are now permanently mounted in the barn (for all practical purposes) against the PVC water system, I will be using Vanodine after pressure washing to clean my holes from now on. It's safe to use around animals and does not require rinsing.
We also use a pressure washer for our carriers. I can't say that we sterilize our carriers ever (maybe we should add that step occasionally), but we do pressure wash them between every show. Thanks, Andrew!
It's normal to live around a certain level of bacteria, soil, and virus. It's only when those levels get too high or the animal is too vulnerable (such as with newborns) that is becomes a problem. Using appropriate products at the right dilution, along with excellent air exchange and a little elbow grease, will allow your bunnies to thrive. Try to strike the right balance between obsession and neglect, and everybunny can be A-OK.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 8:57 AM 4 comments links to this post
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Big Bunnies, Little Bunnies
One of my goals earlier was to reduce the size of my bunnies. I've succeeded - apparently too well. I just registered a new senior at 2.06. That's no typo - he's not even 2 1/2 lbs. He's so cute and has everything in the right place and proportion. But I'm guessing he'll never compete again! He does have one BOB.
There is some hope for him because I apparently have several sets of slow-developing genes in my barn. I got Boris out to weigh him. Boris was 2.14 when he was 6 months, 2 days old. He's now 4.02. Now let me say first, that he needs to lose a few ounces. He's not rolly polly, but he's a bit overstuffed. But even so, he's legitimately gained about a pound since he technically became a senior. I can only hope the same will be true for Mr. 2.06!
May was 3.00 when I had her and her sisters (also 3.00) registered. She topped out at 4.02 when she was being free fed with her litters. But she's settled in around 3.10 to 3.12 without babies to eat with. Her sister Hilary, though, has stayed quite small. Other does, such as Markie, have also stayed quite petite. Some have gotten bigger, like Roxie, but it's just fat and she's not really a larger bunny per se.
When I first got started, I had large, long rabbits. Cindy Pail told me that when I started line breeding, my bunnies would shorten up. Once again, she was right about that. I've also read that line breeding causes smaller bunnies and out crossing produces bigger ones. I see nothing in my barn that can argue with that.
I must state that I do not like the current set of affairs where the contest is the bunny that can get closest to 4.00 without going over. I heard that our BOB winner at Convention is 4.00 on a good day (and over on a bad). There were two 4.00 broken JUNIOR does in the top ten. Several top lops are 4.00's, I do believe. Many people have heard me say that Rio is not my favorite rabbit in my herd. The reason is that he's big and this is supposed to be a dwarf breed. (Don't get me wrong, I love him, and he's not going to be for sale - I just wish he were 3.08).
I want a smaller rabbit that has a large appearance for his/her size. I think we need a readjustment in attitude among judges and breeders alike to get away from absolute mass to relative mass. Dropping the 3.00 ideal seemed to be a reasonable thing to do in light of which rabbits were winning all of the time. But perhaps we should have set the goal to train judges better instead.
But, I have to deal with reality as it is. I still will breed for rabbits that I like and fit the standard as I understand it. But I have to guard against my herd shrinking into oblivion! My little 2.06 has nice bone (believe it or not), but I know that his only hope is that he is a late bloomer and still has quite a bit of growing to do before he quits.
My other concern, especially in light of breeding only grand champions these days, is that my smaller does will produce fewer and fewer offspring over time. I could be headed down a dead-end alley.
Luckily for me, I'm data and information driven. I will be keeping an eye on my production rates, you can be sure. I do know that I can outcross or keep false dwarf does at any point that the current plan doesn't work. I've got my eyes open for certain. If a 2.06 senior isn't an eye-opener, I don't know what is.
The most wonderful and most horrible part of our hobby is its complexity. We'll never be bored, that's certain. But we can often become overwhelmed or frustrated. Keeping the size just right is but one of the many challenges a Holland breeder must constantly face. And I hope I'm on top of it.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 11:11 AM 0 comments links to this post
There is some hope for him because I apparently have several sets of slow-developing genes in my barn. I got Boris out to weigh him. Boris was 2.14 when he was 6 months, 2 days old. He's now 4.02. Now let me say first, that he needs to lose a few ounces. He's not rolly polly, but he's a bit overstuffed. But even so, he's legitimately gained about a pound since he technically became a senior. I can only hope the same will be true for Mr. 2.06!
May was 3.00 when I had her and her sisters (also 3.00) registered. She topped out at 4.02 when she was being free fed with her litters. But she's settled in around 3.10 to 3.12 without babies to eat with. Her sister Hilary, though, has stayed quite small. Other does, such as Markie, have also stayed quite petite. Some have gotten bigger, like Roxie, but it's just fat and she's not really a larger bunny per se.
When I first got started, I had large, long rabbits. Cindy Pail told me that when I started line breeding, my bunnies would shorten up. Once again, she was right about that. I've also read that line breeding causes smaller bunnies and out crossing produces bigger ones. I see nothing in my barn that can argue with that.
I must state that I do not like the current set of affairs where the contest is the bunny that can get closest to 4.00 without going over. I heard that our BOB winner at Convention is 4.00 on a good day (and over on a bad). There were two 4.00 broken JUNIOR does in the top ten. Several top lops are 4.00's, I do believe. Many people have heard me say that Rio is not my favorite rabbit in my herd. The reason is that he's big and this is supposed to be a dwarf breed. (Don't get me wrong, I love him, and he's not going to be for sale - I just wish he were 3.08).
I want a smaller rabbit that has a large appearance for his/her size. I think we need a readjustment in attitude among judges and breeders alike to get away from absolute mass to relative mass. Dropping the 3.00 ideal seemed to be a reasonable thing to do in light of which rabbits were winning all of the time. But perhaps we should have set the goal to train judges better instead.
But, I have to deal with reality as it is. I still will breed for rabbits that I like and fit the standard as I understand it. But I have to guard against my herd shrinking into oblivion! My little 2.06 has nice bone (believe it or not), but I know that his only hope is that he is a late bloomer and still has quite a bit of growing to do before he quits.
My other concern, especially in light of breeding only grand champions these days, is that my smaller does will produce fewer and fewer offspring over time. I could be headed down a dead-end alley.
Luckily for me, I'm data and information driven. I will be keeping an eye on my production rates, you can be sure. I do know that I can outcross or keep false dwarf does at any point that the current plan doesn't work. I've got my eyes open for certain. If a 2.06 senior isn't an eye-opener, I don't know what is.
The most wonderful and most horrible part of our hobby is its complexity. We'll never be bored, that's certain. But we can often become overwhelmed or frustrated. Keeping the size just right is but one of the many challenges a Holland breeder must constantly face. And I hope I'm on top of it.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 11:11 AM 0 comments links to this post
Monday, November 06, 2006
Donations and Contributions
I am extremely pleased to announce that the website design and development I donated to the Holland Lop Banquet Auction raised $275! I am very excited to get to work on a new website for the high bidder - Pandora Allen.
You may remember that last spring, I donated a doe to the Holland Lop Nationals that raised $320 for the Arizona club sponsoring next spring's Holland Lop Nationals. I'm extremely pleased to be able to make these donations and help out the hobby that I love so much.
But there are many other ways to donate and contribute that don't involve working on a project for over a year or giving up your best-producing doe. Yes, you can donate in smaller ways that, over time, make just as much impact.
One way to donate is to bring items for the raffle table at the rabbit shows you attend. I have noticed some regional differences in how these are handled. Here in the south, folks often contribute to whatever club is hosting the show, regardless of whether the exhibitors belong to the club. We all get something out of these clubs staying financially sound so they can put on future shows - and, hopefully, even better shows. I've tried to contribute to the raffle tables up north, but they look at me like "this does not compute." So I am assuming traditions are different there and the raffle is entirely furnished by the club members.
Whichever way the table is handled, almost all will accept rabbit donations from members and non-members alike. Be sure to ask whether the rabbits must be pedigreed or whether they accept pets before you place your rabbits in the raffle. Also, make absolutely sure you check to see that your rabbit was won and taken by someone before you leave the showroom. And don't forget your carrier (which you have marked as not being part of the raffle).
Whatever you do, please do not donate a rabbit that has DQs unless you specifically mark them as such. Only donate rabbits that have some benefit to a breeding program. If there's no benefit, that rabbit should be donated as a "pet only."
I may have told the story before of a grand champion doe that was donated to a raffle once she had stopped producing babies. I'm sure that the donor just thought the doe was "going away." Well, she didn't go away. She was won by a person who then slapped an $80 price tag on her and sold her, with some bogus information about her age and the productive lifespan of a Holland doe to someone brand new in Hollands - me, at my second show. I spent months trying to get live babies out of her before I gave her to a little girl as a pet (thankfully, she was a sweet doe). Had she been donated as a pet (or processed), someone wouldn't have made $79, after the cost of the raffle ticket, at my expense.
And if you are donating a rabbit to be a pet, please make sure it has a reasonable pet personality. That's not the way to get rid of a madman or crazy woman rabbit.
All of the same considerations apply to donating a rabbit to an auction. An auction is not the place to get rid of your bad teeth, white toenails, split penis bucks, or eye spots. Such problems should be clearly labeled, so I doubt that having those problems publicly announced would really be in your best interest. Remember, your reputation is worth more than the price of any rabbit.
I purchased several rabbits at an auction once, only to find that one had butting teeth. I was so disappointed. Being still relatively new (yes, if you are thinking that I've made every mistake in the book, you are right!), I didn't do a thorough check of the rabbit before the auction began. Someone succeeded in passing on their problem, while making a 50% profit in the process.
Other ways to donate include sponsoring the sanction for a show. Generally, these specialty club sanction sponsors are for fair shows or other shows run on a shoestring. Sanctions don't cost much. The most expensive is about $25 for both open and youth - Holland Lops. Others are just a few dollars; Dutch - youth, for example, is $6. A club I belong to is currently asking for specialty club sponsors for our charity show. We did that for our picnic show, too. Both shows have virtually no budget. I sponsored a sanction for a fair show this year, too. It's a great way to help a show be sanctioned for your breed when it might not (or would not) otherwise be.
Some or perhaps many clubs, especially new clubs or clubs that have suffered setbacks (such as a snowstorm or hurricane occurring on the day of the show), appreciate the donation of awards. It is a constant struggle to secure meaningful awards at a cost that allows the show to make a small profit or even just break even. Consider donating an award as a way of advertising some hand-crafted item your sell.
(And need I say that we want clubs to make profits - profits are needed to front the costs for bigger and better shows in the future since airline tickets, sanctions, and many other costs occur before the show.)
Aside from donations of money or items, most clubs need contributions. From what I've seen, there's an overabundance of ideas and opinions (and complaints). What most clubs lack is a broad base of people who are willing to pitch in, set up, do the paperwork, do the work on the day of the show, tear down, clean up, and then wrap up all of the details. A lot of work goes into each and every show.
I left home at 1:30 p.m. yesterday and returned home at half past midnight last night. I attended a meeting for a club that has 40 members. There were the predictable six members there, discussing, deciding, and volunteering. Oh, sometimes we have eight. I don't want to exaggerate! We spent a good amount of our time talking about how to get broader participation - not just names on the roster. Wouldn't it be lovely to have a couple dozen truly active members in a local club?
The bottom line is this: we all get a lot out of our hobby. It is a wonderful, wonderful hobby. But each of us should ask ourselves whether we are contributing in proportion to all we gain. Contribute sound animals and stand behind them with integrity. Contribute raffle items generously. Contribute your time and your talent and your effort along with your ideas and your opinions and your criticisms. Just think how much more wonderful our hobby would be if everyone did these things!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:10 PM 0 comments links to this post
You may remember that last spring, I donated a doe to the Holland Lop Nationals that raised $320 for the Arizona club sponsoring next spring's Holland Lop Nationals. I'm extremely pleased to be able to make these donations and help out the hobby that I love so much.
But there are many other ways to donate and contribute that don't involve working on a project for over a year or giving up your best-producing doe. Yes, you can donate in smaller ways that, over time, make just as much impact.
One way to donate is to bring items for the raffle table at the rabbit shows you attend. I have noticed some regional differences in how these are handled. Here in the south, folks often contribute to whatever club is hosting the show, regardless of whether the exhibitors belong to the club. We all get something out of these clubs staying financially sound so they can put on future shows - and, hopefully, even better shows. I've tried to contribute to the raffle tables up north, but they look at me like "this does not compute." So I am assuming traditions are different there and the raffle is entirely furnished by the club members.
Whichever way the table is handled, almost all will accept rabbit donations from members and non-members alike. Be sure to ask whether the rabbits must be pedigreed or whether they accept pets before you place your rabbits in the raffle. Also, make absolutely sure you check to see that your rabbit was won and taken by someone before you leave the showroom. And don't forget your carrier (which you have marked as not being part of the raffle).
Whatever you do, please do not donate a rabbit that has DQs unless you specifically mark them as such. Only donate rabbits that have some benefit to a breeding program. If there's no benefit, that rabbit should be donated as a "pet only."
I may have told the story before of a grand champion doe that was donated to a raffle once she had stopped producing babies. I'm sure that the donor just thought the doe was "going away." Well, she didn't go away. She was won by a person who then slapped an $80 price tag on her and sold her, with some bogus information about her age and the productive lifespan of a Holland doe to someone brand new in Hollands - me, at my second show. I spent months trying to get live babies out of her before I gave her to a little girl as a pet (thankfully, she was a sweet doe). Had she been donated as a pet (or processed), someone wouldn't have made $79, after the cost of the raffle ticket, at my expense.
And if you are donating a rabbit to be a pet, please make sure it has a reasonable pet personality. That's not the way to get rid of a madman or crazy woman rabbit.
All of the same considerations apply to donating a rabbit to an auction. An auction is not the place to get rid of your bad teeth, white toenails, split penis bucks, or eye spots. Such problems should be clearly labeled, so I doubt that having those problems publicly announced would really be in your best interest. Remember, your reputation is worth more than the price of any rabbit.
I purchased several rabbits at an auction once, only to find that one had butting teeth. I was so disappointed. Being still relatively new (yes, if you are thinking that I've made every mistake in the book, you are right!), I didn't do a thorough check of the rabbit before the auction began. Someone succeeded in passing on their problem, while making a 50% profit in the process.
Other ways to donate include sponsoring the sanction for a show. Generally, these specialty club sanction sponsors are for fair shows or other shows run on a shoestring. Sanctions don't cost much. The most expensive is about $25 for both open and youth - Holland Lops. Others are just a few dollars; Dutch - youth, for example, is $6. A club I belong to is currently asking for specialty club sponsors for our charity show. We did that for our picnic show, too. Both shows have virtually no budget. I sponsored a sanction for a fair show this year, too. It's a great way to help a show be sanctioned for your breed when it might not (or would not) otherwise be.
Some or perhaps many clubs, especially new clubs or clubs that have suffered setbacks (such as a snowstorm or hurricane occurring on the day of the show), appreciate the donation of awards. It is a constant struggle to secure meaningful awards at a cost that allows the show to make a small profit or even just break even. Consider donating an award as a way of advertising some hand-crafted item your sell.
(And need I say that we want clubs to make profits - profits are needed to front the costs for bigger and better shows in the future since airline tickets, sanctions, and many other costs occur before the show.)
Aside from donations of money or items, most clubs need contributions. From what I've seen, there's an overabundance of ideas and opinions (and complaints). What most clubs lack is a broad base of people who are willing to pitch in, set up, do the paperwork, do the work on the day of the show, tear down, clean up, and then wrap up all of the details. A lot of work goes into each and every show.
I left home at 1:30 p.m. yesterday and returned home at half past midnight last night. I attended a meeting for a club that has 40 members. There were the predictable six members there, discussing, deciding, and volunteering. Oh, sometimes we have eight. I don't want to exaggerate! We spent a good amount of our time talking about how to get broader participation - not just names on the roster. Wouldn't it be lovely to have a couple dozen truly active members in a local club?
The bottom line is this: we all get a lot out of our hobby. It is a wonderful, wonderful hobby. But each of us should ask ourselves whether we are contributing in proportion to all we gain. Contribute sound animals and stand behind them with integrity. Contribute raffle items generously. Contribute your time and your talent and your effort along with your ideas and your opinions and your criticisms. Just think how much more wonderful our hobby would be if everyone did these things!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design
¶ 4:10 PM 0 comments links to this post
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Cost of Convention
I thought that I might go over the cost of attending Convention (flying) while the subject is still painfully fresh on my mind! Before I do, I want to say that it is totally worth it! And, depending on your rabbit sales, you might be able to cover some, most, or even all of the costs with bunnies. I only sold six this year (more than I intended to sell actually), but I could have sold all of them locally, so I'm not sure I can say that I paid for part of Convention with rabbit sales. In fact, I sold two of my bunnies to a breeder who lives an hour from me!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry ¶ 9:51 AM 0 comments links to this post
- Parking at the airport - $8
- Airfare - $442
- Transportation for bunnies on the airplane - $200
- Transportation for bunnies that came by car with another breeder - $150
- Shuttle - $65
- Gasoline from home to the airport - 4 trips since Andrew dropped me off and picked me up - $40
- Entry fees - $228
- Food - $215 (approximately, but boy, did I have some great food in Fort Worth!)
- Hotel at Headquarters (with roommate)- $287.50
- New locks for coops - $15
- Flat risers - $18
- Bags of hay purchased at Convention - $24
- Internet so that I could BLOG - $40
- Miscellaneous supplies and items to make traveling more comfortable - $150 (at least)
The total is $1846.50. I know I missed some things, but I think you get the idea.
So, do you think I'm looking forward to driving to Grand Rapids next year, a mere 11 hours from home? You bet I am!! Instead of transportation costs of over $900, I should have just my gasoline costs, hopefully divided with a friend. Instead of staying at headquarters, I can find a nice place at a more reasonable price. I might even cook a meal or two, you never know.Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry ¶ 9:51 AM 0 comments links to this post
Friday, November 03, 2006
Home Again - Already and At Last
It seems I just left for Convention and it is already over. But at the very same time, it seems that Monday was forever ago and I've been away far too long. It's strange to feel both at once.
I am very pleased to announce that my flight home yesterday was practically without hitch and totally opposite of my trip out. I got to the airport much later than I would have liked, but the shuttle didn't start running until 6:00 a.m. and was 15 minutes past my reservation time. But I went straight to the international line (see, I learn) and was met by an agent who knew exactly what to do. A luggage handler was there by the time I filled out my paperwork and took me straight down to the TSA office. The rabbits were checked and on their way within three or four minutes. I arrived at the gate just as they had started boarding.
The best part was that the flight attendant came by, without even being asked, to let me know that the rabbits were on board.
My second flight was delayed just slightly. But it gave me plenty of time to eat lunch. This time, the flight attendant brought me the card from the kennel to let me know they were on board. We arrived in Charlotte just a half-hour after our scheduled landing time. The rabbits arrived about the same time as my luggage - all were in good shape. I got a message from Andrew on my cell phone that he was circling the airport due to lack of parking - the only small snafu in my trip.
I feel so behind. Registration forms, grand champion certificates, and show reports arrived while I was gone. I have a half-dozen empty holes and juniors to divide into them. I lost a nest box kit and an older kit (I had thought before I left that it was fading). But all else seem to be okay.
I hit Andrew up with my idea of going to Oklahoma over Thanksgiving weekend. He wasn't thrilled at first, but once we settled on my leaving after an early lunch, he's okay with it now. I probably should have waited a day or two to mention it, don't you think? And of course, I had failed to mention my short trip to Texas in about a month to celebrate my grandfather's 90th birthday. Yikes! I'm a bad girl.
I've promised myself fewer shows next year but more outlandish trips. We'll see if I can keep to it. I doubt it, but I'll try.
I was very pleased when I got my check-out packet. I found that eleven of my bunnies placed high enough to get a number, including the three that were in the top five.
I also see that my 4th place solid junior doe was marked at "lacks condition." It makes me wonder how far she could have gone had we not had such a long, troubled journey to Convention because she was certain in better condition when we left home.
My 12th place broken junior buck Zeppo was also listed as "rough." When he won BOB just two weeks ago, he was a dream to feel. Boy, that is a disappointment. Am I looking forward to just an 11-hour drive next year!
Well, I'm now equipped with all that I gained from going to Convention, especially seeing some really fine Hollands. It helps to further refine my internalized view of the perfect Holland. I can't wait to get back to my own breeding program to try to correct my problems and produce even better bunnies for next year.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design ¶ 10:19 AM 0 comments links to this post
I am very pleased to announce that my flight home yesterday was practically without hitch and totally opposite of my trip out. I got to the airport much later than I would have liked, but the shuttle didn't start running until 6:00 a.m. and was 15 minutes past my reservation time. But I went straight to the international line (see, I learn) and was met by an agent who knew exactly what to do. A luggage handler was there by the time I filled out my paperwork and took me straight down to the TSA office. The rabbits were checked and on their way within three or four minutes. I arrived at the gate just as they had started boarding.
The best part was that the flight attendant came by, without even being asked, to let me know that the rabbits were on board.
My second flight was delayed just slightly. But it gave me plenty of time to eat lunch. This time, the flight attendant brought me the card from the kennel to let me know they were on board. We arrived in Charlotte just a half-hour after our scheduled landing time. The rabbits arrived about the same time as my luggage - all were in good shape. I got a message from Andrew on my cell phone that he was circling the airport due to lack of parking - the only small snafu in my trip.
I feel so behind. Registration forms, grand champion certificates, and show reports arrived while I was gone. I have a half-dozen empty holes and juniors to divide into them. I lost a nest box kit and an older kit (I had thought before I left that it was fading). But all else seem to be okay.
I hit Andrew up with my idea of going to Oklahoma over Thanksgiving weekend. He wasn't thrilled at first, but once we settled on my leaving after an early lunch, he's okay with it now. I probably should have waited a day or two to mention it, don't you think? And of course, I had failed to mention my short trip to Texas in about a month to celebrate my grandfather's 90th birthday. Yikes! I'm a bad girl.
I've promised myself fewer shows next year but more outlandish trips. We'll see if I can keep to it. I doubt it, but I'll try.
I was very pleased when I got my check-out packet. I found that eleven of my bunnies placed high enough to get a number, including the three that were in the top five.
I also see that my 4th place solid junior doe was marked at "lacks condition." It makes me wonder how far she could have gone had we not had such a long, troubled journey to Convention because she was certain in better condition when we left home.
My 12th place broken junior buck Zeppo was also listed as "rough." When he won BOB just two weeks ago, he was a dream to feel. Boy, that is a disappointment. Am I looking forward to just an 11-hour drive next year!
Well, I'm now equipped with all that I gained from going to Convention, especially seeing some really fine Hollands. It helps to further refine my internalized view of the perfect Holland. I can't wait to get back to my own breeding program to try to correct my problems and produce even better bunnies for next year.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design ¶ 10:19 AM 0 comments links to this post
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
The Last Day
Last night, I was bemoaning the fact that Convention, which I had waited on for a whole year, was almost over already. Today, I'm glad that it's nearly time to go home.
There was little to do today except feed bunnies and make sure my plans for departure are in place. I decided to sell some bunnies and took care of that in about 25 minutes. Then I was done.
As the excitment subsides, the politics rise, and the bone-weary fatigue sets in, I'm thinking that Convention is just the perfect length of time. Any shorter would be too short. Any longer would be entirely too long.
The one last highlight is the banquet tonight. I'm very much looking forward to it. Thanks go to Debbie Vigue for planning a banquet that will capture the flavor of this area. I'd much rather do that than be in a generic hotel room eating some generic food.
At the banquet, I love clapping for everyone. I enjoy putting names to faces. I can't wait to see what the awards look like. Dwayne does a great job with the auction. And hopefully speech-making will be a minimum.
Since I will be leaving early in the morning (I will be going to the showroom at 4:00 a.m.), I will be saying my farewells tonight. Many people I won't see until next year, but most, I suppose, I will see in Prescott, Arizona, next spring - at least I hope so.
I heard that broken Netherlands passed their presentations. Rumor was that some Lionhead presentations did not pass, but they were working on the tort Lionheads when I left the showroom.
I must say that I ate very well at this Convention. We found a bakery/deli a block away that was absolutely delicious, no, not delicious - heavenly. We ate at the Cattlemen steak restaurant last night near the stockyards. My steak was the most perfectly cooked and seasoned I've had since I visited Morton's in Las Vegas! Tonight at the banquet, we'll have BBQ, Texas style. On Sunday night, I had some wonderful Tex Mex. I think I've covered all of the basic food groups here in Fort Worth.
After the flight here, I'm not really looking forward to a repeat performance. Hopefully, this will be a smooth ride and I will not have another 23-hour day. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for good weather, smooth flights, and making my connections.
One of the most wonderful parts of this weekend has been looking at the Hollands and refining my idea of what the standard calls for. I also got to look at my rabbits, cooped together by class. I looked at them side by side all week and finally decided which I really liked and wanted to continue in my breeding program. I mentally planned breedings. I've planned future purchases (far future - on the order of a couple of years out).
I hope to be home by this time tomorrow, or shortly thereafter. I have about a 48-hour nap coming, I think. Then it will be time to roll up my sleeves and go back to work.
Nationals is just 4 1/2 months away!
There was little to do today except feed bunnies and make sure my plans for departure are in place. I decided to sell some bunnies and took care of that in about 25 minutes. Then I was done.
As the excitment subsides, the politics rise, and the bone-weary fatigue sets in, I'm thinking that Convention is just the perfect length of time. Any shorter would be too short. Any longer would be entirely too long.
The one last highlight is the banquet tonight. I'm very much looking forward to it. Thanks go to Debbie Vigue for planning a banquet that will capture the flavor of this area. I'd much rather do that than be in a generic hotel room eating some generic food.
At the banquet, I love clapping for everyone. I enjoy putting names to faces. I can't wait to see what the awards look like. Dwayne does a great job with the auction. And hopefully speech-making will be a minimum.
Since I will be leaving early in the morning (I will be going to the showroom at 4:00 a.m.), I will be saying my farewells tonight. Many people I won't see until next year, but most, I suppose, I will see in Prescott, Arizona, next spring - at least I hope so.
I heard that broken Netherlands passed their presentations. Rumor was that some Lionhead presentations did not pass, but they were working on the tort Lionheads when I left the showroom.
I must say that I ate very well at this Convention. We found a bakery/deli a block away that was absolutely delicious, no, not delicious - heavenly. We ate at the Cattlemen steak restaurant last night near the stockyards. My steak was the most perfectly cooked and seasoned I've had since I visited Morton's in Las Vegas! Tonight at the banquet, we'll have BBQ, Texas style. On Sunday night, I had some wonderful Tex Mex. I think I've covered all of the basic food groups here in Fort Worth.
After the flight here, I'm not really looking forward to a repeat performance. Hopefully, this will be a smooth ride and I will not have another 23-hour day. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for good weather, smooth flights, and making my connections.
One of the most wonderful parts of this weekend has been looking at the Hollands and refining my idea of what the standard calls for. I also got to look at my rabbits, cooped together by class. I looked at them side by side all week and finally decided which I really liked and wanted to continue in my breeding program. I mentally planned breedings. I've planned future purchases (far future - on the order of a couple of years out).
I hope to be home by this time tomorrow, or shortly thereafter. I have about a 48-hour nap coming, I think. Then it will be time to roll up my sleeves and go back to work.
Nationals is just 4 1/2 months away!