Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Black List
Rabbit breeders too often live in fear of others finding out that they've had a problem in their barn. That problem could be white discharge, wolf teeth, split penis, eye spots, cow hock, fur mites, or any number of other things. They feel that breeders might "black list" them and spread the word to others not to buy from their barns.
This is a horrible way to operate. It causes breeders to want to hide problems rather than talk about them. It causes some artificial separation between the acceptable and the unacceptable barns. And it's hypocritical.
To be blunt, there are only three kinds of breeders: ones who admit that they have problems in their barns, ones who are lying about not having problems in their barns, ones who haven't bred that much yet.
Way back when I lived in Atlanta, my good friend Doug and I went to a Catholic church for mass during Lent. It was just a block or so from work and the mass was during lunch. During Holy Communion, we, being Protestants, stayed in the pews as expected.
We later talked about the other people who were supposed to stay in the pews, too - prostitutes, the unrepentant, adulterers, etc. Although we could easily be identified as not qualifying to participate, being Protestant - and we respected their beliefs by not participating in Holy Communion - we wondered aloud how many others were at the table who should have been sitting with us. Those theoretical folks were hiding their problems from the world and thus not being excluded.
Likewise, certain barns may have had the finger pointed at them. But the reality is that any barn that produces any significant number of rabbits sooner or later has to deal with bad teeth, birth defects, illness, unthriftiness, and so forth. Some of the most successful lines in the breed have been labeled as bad teeth carriers (which I believe is because the incidence of bad teeth rises with bigger heads and shorter muzzles).
In a more perfect Holland world, breeders would be able to discuss any problem they have or have had in their barns without fear that their rabbit sales would evaporate. We could talk openly about the things to watch out for in a line and what to cull for, even discuss which lines don't cross well.
To me, it's much more important how we deal with issues that crop up rather than whether or not we have issues in our barns. We all have them, sooner or later. I can't stress that enough. I also believe that there is no such thing as a "clean line." That's saying that there is a line of Hollands that has achieved genetic perfection and I just don't believe it exists.
So, how do I hope things are dealt with? I hope that illness is first and foremost quarantined - from the rest of the breeder's herd and from other herds. I hope that breeders will make the tough decision to euthanize when they should and not breed animals with vulnerability to significant health issues.
For genetic problems, I hope that breeders don't breed in wolf teeth or split penises, but also realize that small teeth problems may not be due to a "bad tooth gene" but rather incompatible head and jaw genes - or not genetic at all. Likewise, eye spots have been associated with e cuniculi infection as well as genetics. Some of these smaller genetic issues have been blown out of proportion, in my opinion, while others have been ignored. When was the last time you heard someone say, "Don't buy from her, she has the narrow shoulder gene in her barn!"
My experience with problems and honesty has been positive. First of all, I believe I practice a due diligence. I evaluate situations and make my best determination. If I need to get a second opinion, I do so. If I need to calculate some statistics, I do so. I only breed and sell rabbits that I believe to be sound. But if there's been any irregularity or suspicion of a problem, I am totally honest with the prospective buyer. They have to make the decision about any risk they want to take. Different breeders have different tolerance levels.
If I make any error, it's probably in being overly cautious and unnecessarily alarming.
Here are a few examples.
I had a nice buck who placed very well at Convention. Then, as a young senior, he was DQ'd for simple malocclusion on one side. Basically, his front teeth had become a bit twisted. After describing the history, I gave him to a breeder with a good grasp on genetics. That buck would not have been a good rabbit for a beginner, in my opinion. But this breeder knows how to evaluate the genetic component, if any, to this problem by looking at the outcomes with his offspring. So far, by the way, he's thrown no teeth problems.
In another case, I had sold a rabbit but had not yet delivered him. In the span of a week, several of his relatives on his father's side were found to have teeth issues. So I gave the information to the buyer and she decided not to purchase the rabbit. I kept him and bred him tightly with his half-sister. After his father had produced about 100 offspring with no further problems, and he had produced no problems himself, I felt I was ready to sell him with a clean teeth-genetics bill of health. If I had sold him quietly at first, which I could have done easily, I would not have been able to live with myself. But after practicing due diligence, I sold him in good faith.
I had a rabbit DQ'd for a skeletal problem. I disagreed with the DQ. I had another breeder look at the rabbit who also disagreed with the call. Finally, I took the rabbit to a rabbit-savvy vet who disagreed with the DQ as well. When I sold the rabbit, I told the buyer about the DQ and what I had done to evaluate the situation. She bought him with no hesitation. Had I just sold him after the DQ and kept my mouth shut, I would have felt terribly guilty. Due diligence is a breath of fresh air for my soul.
On the other hand, I once had a rabbit that was so mean that he'd bite your fingers if you tried to unlatch his cage. We put him down. I felt that there was no way to ethically transfer that rabbit to another person under any circumstances. I could have put him in a raffle and gotten rid of him that way, but that would not have been the right thing to do. In his case, being honest about his problems wasn't really going to help a bit.
Please don't read anything in this post to mean that I am advocating amnesty for people who tote sick rabbits to shows or who do not practice due diligence in evaluating genetic problems. I'm not a proponent of an "anything goes" philosophy. I just want each of us to think a bit about these issues and keep some perspective.
Why should a person who breeds a rabbit who has pulled her teeth - or even one that occasionally throws butting teeth - be ostracized by the rabbit community ("He has bad teeth in his line! Don't buy from him.") while someone who has no problem breeding pin bones, pinched or undercut hips, or long ears skates with no bad reputation at all? Those problems are just as bad or even worse (harder to breed out), yet they are acceptable genetic problems instead of "black list" items.
Does that even make sense?
It is my hope that we as breeders will realize that we're all in this together. We all deal with the same set of problems - genetic and illness-wise. While I'm not advocating breeding any ole problem rabbit, I am encouraging each of us to hesitate pointing the finger.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design ¶ 9:21 AM
This is a horrible way to operate. It causes breeders to want to hide problems rather than talk about them. It causes some artificial separation between the acceptable and the unacceptable barns. And it's hypocritical.
To be blunt, there are only three kinds of breeders: ones who admit that they have problems in their barns, ones who are lying about not having problems in their barns, ones who haven't bred that much yet.
Way back when I lived in Atlanta, my good friend Doug and I went to a Catholic church for mass during Lent. It was just a block or so from work and the mass was during lunch. During Holy Communion, we, being Protestants, stayed in the pews as expected.
We later talked about the other people who were supposed to stay in the pews, too - prostitutes, the unrepentant, adulterers, etc. Although we could easily be identified as not qualifying to participate, being Protestant - and we respected their beliefs by not participating in Holy Communion - we wondered aloud how many others were at the table who should have been sitting with us. Those theoretical folks were hiding their problems from the world and thus not being excluded.
Likewise, certain barns may have had the finger pointed at them. But the reality is that any barn that produces any significant number of rabbits sooner or later has to deal with bad teeth, birth defects, illness, unthriftiness, and so forth. Some of the most successful lines in the breed have been labeled as bad teeth carriers (which I believe is because the incidence of bad teeth rises with bigger heads and shorter muzzles).
In a more perfect Holland world, breeders would be able to discuss any problem they have or have had in their barns without fear that their rabbit sales would evaporate. We could talk openly about the things to watch out for in a line and what to cull for, even discuss which lines don't cross well.
To me, it's much more important how we deal with issues that crop up rather than whether or not we have issues in our barns. We all have them, sooner or later. I can't stress that enough. I also believe that there is no such thing as a "clean line." That's saying that there is a line of Hollands that has achieved genetic perfection and I just don't believe it exists.
So, how do I hope things are dealt with? I hope that illness is first and foremost quarantined - from the rest of the breeder's herd and from other herds. I hope that breeders will make the tough decision to euthanize when they should and not breed animals with vulnerability to significant health issues.
For genetic problems, I hope that breeders don't breed in wolf teeth or split penises, but also realize that small teeth problems may not be due to a "bad tooth gene" but rather incompatible head and jaw genes - or not genetic at all. Likewise, eye spots have been associated with e cuniculi infection as well as genetics. Some of these smaller genetic issues have been blown out of proportion, in my opinion, while others have been ignored. When was the last time you heard someone say, "Don't buy from her, she has the narrow shoulder gene in her barn!"
My experience with problems and honesty has been positive. First of all, I believe I practice a due diligence. I evaluate situations and make my best determination. If I need to get a second opinion, I do so. If I need to calculate some statistics, I do so. I only breed and sell rabbits that I believe to be sound. But if there's been any irregularity or suspicion of a problem, I am totally honest with the prospective buyer. They have to make the decision about any risk they want to take. Different breeders have different tolerance levels.
If I make any error, it's probably in being overly cautious and unnecessarily alarming.
Here are a few examples.
I had a nice buck who placed very well at Convention. Then, as a young senior, he was DQ'd for simple malocclusion on one side. Basically, his front teeth had become a bit twisted. After describing the history, I gave him to a breeder with a good grasp on genetics. That buck would not have been a good rabbit for a beginner, in my opinion. But this breeder knows how to evaluate the genetic component, if any, to this problem by looking at the outcomes with his offspring. So far, by the way, he's thrown no teeth problems.
In another case, I had sold a rabbit but had not yet delivered him. In the span of a week, several of his relatives on his father's side were found to have teeth issues. So I gave the information to the buyer and she decided not to purchase the rabbit. I kept him and bred him tightly with his half-sister. After his father had produced about 100 offspring with no further problems, and he had produced no problems himself, I felt I was ready to sell him with a clean teeth-genetics bill of health. If I had sold him quietly at first, which I could have done easily, I would not have been able to live with myself. But after practicing due diligence, I sold him in good faith.
I had a rabbit DQ'd for a skeletal problem. I disagreed with the DQ. I had another breeder look at the rabbit who also disagreed with the call. Finally, I took the rabbit to a rabbit-savvy vet who disagreed with the DQ as well. When I sold the rabbit, I told the buyer about the DQ and what I had done to evaluate the situation. She bought him with no hesitation. Had I just sold him after the DQ and kept my mouth shut, I would have felt terribly guilty. Due diligence is a breath of fresh air for my soul.
On the other hand, I once had a rabbit that was so mean that he'd bite your fingers if you tried to unlatch his cage. We put him down. I felt that there was no way to ethically transfer that rabbit to another person under any circumstances. I could have put him in a raffle and gotten rid of him that way, but that would not have been the right thing to do. In his case, being honest about his problems wasn't really going to help a bit.
Please don't read anything in this post to mean that I am advocating amnesty for people who tote sick rabbits to shows or who do not practice due diligence in evaluating genetic problems. I'm not a proponent of an "anything goes" philosophy. I just want each of us to think a bit about these issues and keep some perspective.
Why should a person who breeds a rabbit who has pulled her teeth - or even one that occasionally throws butting teeth - be ostracized by the rabbit community ("He has bad teeth in his line! Don't buy from him.") while someone who has no problem breeding pin bones, pinched or undercut hips, or long ears skates with no bad reputation at all? Those problems are just as bad or even worse (harder to breed out), yet they are acceptable genetic problems instead of "black list" items.
Does that even make sense?
It is my hope that we as breeders will realize that we're all in this together. We all deal with the same set of problems - genetic and illness-wise. While I'm not advocating breeding any ole problem rabbit, I am encouraging each of us to hesitate pointing the finger.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
Precious Pet Rabbits
Affordable Web Site Design ¶ 9:21 AM
Comments:
Links to this post:
<< Home
Laurie,
I found this post to be excellent in nature. I think that you hit a lot of excellent points. This kind of thing doesn't just happen with hollands, I'm sure everyone has heard "oh so and so has this or that in their barn"
Genetic issues come up with all animals (humans included) I agree wholeheartily that if we do not accept that we have a genetic issue with our rabbits and work on eliminating it that it does a great dis-service to the breed.
I raise Rex, and several years (many generations now)ago I started seeing some maloclusion in my juniors. After doing some line breeding and inbreeding we were able to locate the problem and within two generations of breeding we haven't seen a rex with any maloclusion since.
It's my opinion if we had just removed those animals from our breeding program and only kept juniors without teeth issues rather then finding were the problem was located I think we could still be seeing bad teeth.
I believe if we are open and honest in regards to the animals we raise we allow ourselves to continue to improve the breeds we choose to raise.
Becky
jxwindt@paulbunyan.net
Post a Comment
I found this post to be excellent in nature. I think that you hit a lot of excellent points. This kind of thing doesn't just happen with hollands, I'm sure everyone has heard "oh so and so has this or that in their barn"
Genetic issues come up with all animals (humans included) I agree wholeheartily that if we do not accept that we have a genetic issue with our rabbits and work on eliminating it that it does a great dis-service to the breed.
I raise Rex, and several years (many generations now)ago I started seeing some maloclusion in my juniors. After doing some line breeding and inbreeding we were able to locate the problem and within two generations of breeding we haven't seen a rex with any maloclusion since.
It's my opinion if we had just removed those animals from our breeding program and only kept juniors without teeth issues rather then finding were the problem was located I think we could still be seeing bad teeth.
I believe if we are open and honest in regards to the animals we raise we allow ourselves to continue to improve the breeds we choose to raise.
Becky
jxwindt@paulbunyan.net
# posted by 
: 10:39 AM
: 10:39 AMLinks to this post:
<< Home
