The Nature Trail Newsletter - Jan 2012

Happy New Year, everyone! Have you broken your habit of writing or typing "2011" yet?  I haven't!  It's not such a big deal these days, when you only have to hit backspace and change the last 1 to a 2, but I was in grade school  and in the habit of writing 1999 every day till it turned to 2000... That took some eraser!  Does it bring back memories?

Later in this issue you'll find information about a rabbitry blogging network that a friend of mine has set up.  If you have a rabbitry blog or enjoy reading them, be sure to check it out!


Enjoy this first-ever edition of the Nature Trail newsletter.  I hope these tips and articles will help make 2012 an enjoyable year for you and your bunnies. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to let me know.

--Ellyn
The Rabbit Smarties Blog is back
New Years Day last year saw the launch of the Rabbit Smarties Resource blog, featuring 2-3 posts a week with articles, tips, interactive quizzes, and of course, rabbit humor.  When I took over the Nature Trail website last spring, the RS blog got pushed to the side.  But now that the new Nature Trail website is up and running, I'm back to blogging!  Here are some recent posts you may enjoy:

The Rocky Syndrome. 

I once knew a girl whose username was “Always2ndBest.”   Do you ever feel like that?   Yeeeaah…

In rabbits, Tiffany and I call it the Rocky Syndrome.  Those bunnies — usually bucks– that you can rely on placing in the top five in a large class, but never grand. Read the rest at Rabbit Smarties >>>

Twelve Useful Items in the Rabbitry in Case of an Unlikely Emergency.

1. Marshmallow Creme.  Spread on cage door to distract a chronic cage chewer.  Temporary fix.

2. Surveillance Camera in the Barn. Useful when you forget where you last put the toenail trimmers.

Read the rest at Rabbit Smarties >>>

Dancing bunny graphic
Buying and Selling Rabbits - Expert Advice

Rabbit Sales.  Not our favorite part of the bunny business, is it?  It's an important part: we need to sell those rabbits or we can't breed more.  But dealing with buyers can be stressful, and there are a lot of concerns that come up.   How should you price your rabbits?  Should you loan out stud bucks?  Should you offer shipping?

Buying rabbits is tough, too.   Many of us as newcomers to the hobby made purchases that we regret, because we didn't know what we were looking at.

The new Nature Trail website has a section devoted to answering these questions, and the advice is from an expert.  Laurie Stroupe was a nationally ranked Holland Lop breeder and her rabbits were high in demand.  She was on both ends of buying and selling rabbits and has a lot of practical wisdom to offer.   Here's one article from the sales section:

Buying "The Magic Rabbit"

by Laurie Stroupe

I used to think that it would take one special rabbit to turn my barn around and make it successful. I could use that rabbit as the foundation and cornerstone of my herd. And sometimes, that does happen for people. When a breeder goes out of rabbits, for example, you may be able to acquire a 40-leg rabbit that might not otherwise be available. And he might just do for you exactly what you want, but you really don’t have to wait for the magic rabbit to be successful.   Read the rest at the Nature Trail >>>
Featured Article - a good Holland judge
by Laurie Stroupe

We all want a good Holland judge to evaluate our rabbits. Sure, when I got started, I used to joke that I wanted bad Holland judges who might accidentally pick my rabbits! But even then, I really wanted a judge whose opinions and placements really meant something. But what makes a really good Holland judge?

The Right Touch

We can argue about which characteristic is the most important, but for me, it is the right touch. Hollands require gentle but firm handling. A Holland cannot be forced into the right pose. They are independent enough to fight that. The Holland must be encouraged into the right pose. The judges with the best touch seem to barely touch the rabbit, but still convey exactly what they want.

Hoppin Circle - Rabbitry blogging network

A friend of mine just started a network for rabbit bloggers to get together and promote their rabbitries.  Learn more and submit your rabbitry blog at www.HoppinCircle.com!


Graphic Design Services

If you are looking to promote your rabbitry with attractive business cards, or give your rabbitry website a fresh look for the new year, I'd be happy to help you out!  Prices are very affordable.  Check out Graphic Design Services.

 Do you have a Weebly website?

If you currently have a free rabbitry website hosted at weebly.com, you can change your rabbitry website name from YourRabbitry.Weebly.com to www.YourRabbitry.com!  Includes a free email address such as YourName@YourRabbitry.com that forwards to your regular email. 

This deal costs only $16/year.  That's three times LESS than it costs to order through Weebly!

Contact ellyn@rabbitsmarties.com for more information.

Support the Nature Trail

If you enjoy this newsletter or our rabbitry websites, RabbitSmarties.com and TheNatureTrail.com, your support is greatly appreciated!   Feel free to forward this newsletter on to your friends, or share the links on your website.  If you would like to link to the Nature Trail, you can use the button below.  Thank you!

The Nature Trail show rabbit information

We know that Hollands' ears should be evaluated when the rabbit is calm, but that really goes for every part. A top line doesn't look right until the rabbit settles in a bit. And many Hollands calm best when being handled by calm, reassuring hands. I've had rabbits that were allowed to sit on the judging table to relax. The judge obviously didn't realize that that freedom kept the Holland's curiosity - and ears - in high alert. Calming hands would have reassured the Holland and those ears would have come right down.

Uses The Standard Over Personal Opinion

I've heard judges say that a rabbit has to have x, y, or z to be successful on their table. If you have been showing for a while, then you know that certain judges favor certain parts over others. The famous "meat judge" reputation is tantamount to a judge only caring about the body. All of these approaches are just wrong.

There's only one way to judge any breed and that is according to the specific standard for that breed.

I love to see a judge review the standard before the rabbits come up. And I give kudos to any judge who checks the standard again when trying to make final selections. A judge may recognize that bunny A has a better crown and bunny B has better fur. That's the time to see where the points lie and break any ties according to the standard.

[I must add, too, that judges vary in their skill at accurately interpreting the standard. The best judges have supplemented their reading with real life experience with Hollands so that their interpretation is real and accurate, not just their understanding of the words.]

I hope that judges don't see checking the standard as a sign of weakness. Generally I've noted that it is the very best judges who do it most.

Good Time Manager

This skill, in my opinion, is far less important than the first two, but has the potential to ruin an otherwise promising judge. The worst time management error, in my opinion, is the one who rushes. Sure he or she has some nice bunnies at the top of the class, but they tend to miss more worthy bunnies, too.

Too slow is okay for new judges. But we should see improvement over time.

The best time managers have a very good system. They can take stock of the class size, make a plan, communicate it to their writer and ramrod, and work through the class logically, whether there are 5 or 50 or more. They save time by knowing what they are looking for and handling the rabbits less often. They spend more time at the top, making the close calls between the top placing rabbits. They don't spend a lot of time organizing the bottom of the class.

Impartiality

I've heard judges sum up a breed of rabbits before they even came to the table. They know which breeds have an outstanding rabbit in that geographical region and they expect that rabbit to win. I've seen exhibitors who routinely rush to schmooze the judges before the show starts and even cross over the line in interacting with the judge while he or she is judging. Those are the ones who plop their rabbits down right in front of the judge or always hold their rabbits until last, so that the judge is sure to know which is theirs.

The best judges are immune to exhibitor behavior, calling the worst behavior to the attention of the show superintendent, and start each new class with a totally clean slate and open mind.

It's nearly impossible to forget that a certain rabbit has 40 legs or that you just picked it Best In Show last week. Judges are just human, after all. But the best judges make a conscious effort to say to themselves, "This is a new day and a new competition." They are open to the a whole new set of outcomes.

I can't evaluate judges on this dimension. All we have to go by is appearances. I do know there are some judges who need to ask themselves some tough questions and to evaluate their appearances of bias.

Professionalism

An otherwise great Holland Judge loses all appeal if she or he lacks professionalism. There's no place for a defensive judge, an antagonistic judge, the prima donna, the complainer, or a rough talking, insulting judge.

Any legitimate comment can be made by a judge in a professional manner. Judges that have problems at the show should bring them to the attention of the show superintendent. Complaining or whining is not becoming.

A professional judge, in my opinion, is friendly without becoming best buds with just a few exhibitors, exudes confidence so there's no need to be defensive, makes all comments in non-inflammatory terms, arrives on time, gives complete comments, and treats the table secretary as a team member.

One of the most professional judges ever is Ray Brewer. He's friendly, gives complete comments, and let's it be known that we do things the ARBA way at his table, without being the least bit offensive about it. He strives to be consistent in his application of the standard. We could use more judges with his level of professionalism.

I've shown under Ray quite a bit, so I can personally vouch for his consistency. I've shown under Joe Lugo just three or four times, but he also shows a high level of professionalism at the table. I've seen him twice at national-level shows and once locally. I look forward to showing under him again some day.

I recently showed under Terry Fender for the first time, and he struck me the very same way - very professional. I hope that the sample I saw was his normal way of operating. If it was, then I'd have to nominate him for one of the most professional judges.

Total Package

I'm sure there are lots of other qualities that go together to make the total package, but these are the most important qualities to me. There are probably many judges who exhibit these qualities that I'm not yet familiar with. But I'm always on a quest to add a new judge to my "Favorite Holland Judges" list.


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