First Show Rabbits - Registration/Etiquette Questions

Shop deals on ebay
Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Rabbit Talk Forum

Help Support Rabbit Talk Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
katiemarangi

katiemarangi

Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2022
Messages
13
Reaction score
12
Location
California
Hello! My little dwarf hotots are finally 6 months and I am trying to find out some beginner information as I prepare to get them ARBA registered. If anyone could answer any of these questions, I would greatly appreciate it.

1. To register them, do I need to sign up beforehand anywhere, contact anyone, or do I just take them to a show and find the registrar?
2. When taking your rabbit into a show, is there any info about general etiquette upon getting there? Unfortunately I got COVID when I was supposed to go to a show as a spectator. Is there any dress code, even an 'unofficial' one? I bought a wired 2 hole travel coop for my girls, do I bring them inside in that or is there some other type of cage that I should be getting?
3. For pedigrees, I notice that the one my breeder gave me is missing the weights of the parents and that of the rabbit I got - should I add those myself and reprint the pedigree or does the one I present need to be the same one the breeder gave me?

Thank you!
 
Welcome to the show world! I hope you enjoy it as much as my kids and I do.
1. To register your rabbits, you can just bring them to a show and find the registrar. However, it is a nice courtesy to contact the registrar beforehand, and let them know you'll be bringing rabbits to be registered; the official registrar for the show should be listed in the show catalog. Even though ARBA rules stipulate there will be a registrar at every sanctioned show, sometimes the registrar has other duties and/or is showing rabbits themselves, so a little coordination could make the experience better for everyone. If it's not necessary, the registrar will tell you that. You might also look into making an appointment outside of the show date; if you tell the registrar you're a beginner registering your first rabbits, he/she might be more inclined to talk you through it and educate you a bit more than if you meet in a busy showroom.
2. As far as I know, there is no official dress code, but the unofficial code probably depends on where you are. In Alaska, shows are very casual. People wear whatever is comfortable: some wear showcoats, others wear show aprons, some just stick to regular street clothes. Judges and scribes often wear long sleeves and/or kevlar sleeves or arm-guards. I would suggest wearing something middle-of-the-road and comfortable for your first show, and refining your look from there. :)
As for carriers, there might be details in the show catalog, but wire carriers with a wire floor lifted off a solid bottom are what most seasoned show-goers use. Some venues may ask that you not bring hay, straw or shavings into the showroom. If that's the case, you can line your carrier bottom with puppy potty-training pads - the wire bottom will keep you rabbits from chewing on it, and it is a lot easier to clean up afterwards. Do make sure you have some way to provide water to the rabbits while they're in the showroom, whether it is a bottle or small crock affixed to the side of the carrier - but whatever it is, it shouldn't be something they can dump all over themselves (because of course they will).
A couple of other things I like to have with me at every show include: nail clippers, baby wipes and paper towels (especially with white bunnies!), and neosporin and Band Aids. Those last two I've mostly used - and loaned out - for people, not rabbits! I also like to have a pen and notebook to take notes on the judges' comments... It's amazing how fast I can forget what I just heard!
3. You should add the parents' weights and reprint the pedigree; you do not need the original that came from the breeder. In my experience, registrars like a printed pedigree as along as it is 100% complete, since they can staple that to the registration application. If it is not complete, they have to write it all out on the back of the application. But don't include the weight of the rabbit you're registering, since the registrar will weigh the bunny as part of the registration process.
Good luck with your first registrations and shows!
 
Alaska Satin said:
Welcome to the show world! I hope you enjoy it as much as my kids and I do.
1. To register your rabbits, you can just bring them to a show and find the registrar. However, it is a nice courtesy to contact the registrar beforehand, and let them know you'll be bringing rabbits to be registered; the official registrar for the show should be listed in the show catalog. Even though ARBA rules stipulate there will be a registrar at every sanctioned show, sometimes the registrar has other duties and/or is showing rabbits themselves, so a little coordination could make the experience better for everyone. If it's not necessary, the registrar will tell you that. You might also look into making an appointment outside of the show date; if you tell the registrar you're a beginner registering your first rabbits, he/she might be more inclined to talk you through it and educate you a bit more than if you meet in a busy showroom.
2. As far as I know, there is no official dress code, but the unofficial code probably depends on where you are. In Alaska, shows are very casual. People wear whatever is comfortable: some wear showcoats, others wear show aprons, some just stick to regular street clothes. Judges and scribes often wear long sleeves and/or kevlar sleeves or arm-guards. I would suggest wearing something middle-of-the-road and comfortable for your first show, and refining your look from there. :)
As for carriers, there might be details in the show catalog, but wire carriers with a wire floor lifted off a solid bottom are what most seasoned show-goers use. Some venues may ask that you not bring hay, straw or shavings into the showroom. If that's the case, you can line your carrier bottom with puppy potty-training pads - the wire bottom will keep you rabbits from chewing on it, and it is a lot easier to clean up afterwards. Do make sure you have some way to provide water to the rabbits while they're in the showroom, whether it is a bottle or small crock affixed to the side of the carrier - but whatever it is, it shouldn't be something they can dump all over themselves (because of course they will).
A couple of other things I like to have with me at every show include: nail clippers, baby wipes and paper towels (especially with white bunnies!), and neosporin and Band Aids. Those last two I've mostly used - and loaned out - for people, not rabbits! I also like to have a pen and notebook to take notes on the judges' comments... It's amazing how fast I can forget what I just heard!
3. You should add the parents' weights and reprint the pedigree; you do not need the original that came from the breeder. In my experience, registrars like a printed pedigree as along as it is 100% complete, since they can staple that to the registration application. If it is not complete, they have to write it all out on the back of the application. But don't include the weight of the rabbit you're registering, since the registrar will weigh the bunny as part of the registration process.
Good luck with your first registrations and shows!
Click to expand...
Thank you so much!!

RabbitsOfTheCreek said:
You don't need to wait till 6 months to show them
Click to expand...
I got them at 5 1/4 months so there wasn't a show to take them to before now :) 'finally' was just me being excited
 
katiemarangi said:
Hello! My little dwarf hotots are finally 6 months and I am trying to find out some beginner information as I prepare to get them ARBA registered. If anyone could answer any of these questions, I would greatly appreciate it.


Thank you!
Click to expand...
Let's see what I remember
Registration
The registrar will need to have a copy of the pedigree to take with, You will need the ID you use tatted in the left ear. If you know weights of ancestors, reprint the pedigree with all infor possible, I don't think you need to worry about color! Not sure if registrar gets his own fee, but there is a fee to register your rabbit with ARBA
Dress
dress comfortably. something that if a rabbit sprays you, you won't get all upset. sensible shoes, a lot of standing around happens at shows. I like jeans and a shirt that has a tight enough weave that its easy to brush off hair. show rooms are notorious for being hot or cold.
Carriers
Make sure your carrier is large enough the rabbit can stretch out a bit. Its not fair to them to make them remain squished up for hours. Get them used to spending extended time in the carrier. and, bringing along a towel to cover the carrier goes far in helping them stay calm in a strange environment. your carrier is also your rabbits seat belt in the vehicle.

important. Bring home water for rabbit to drink, and a supply of food. allow plenty of travel time when travelling, NEVER leave the rabbits unattended in your vehicle, bring along a human travel buddy.
 
I forgot part of your #2 question about show etiquette. There are a couple of things that newcomers don't always know or remember:
1. The most important thing might be that while you are watching the judging, make sure you don't do or say anything that would let the judge know whose rabbit is whose. It's exciting to see your rabbit judged, but it's not okay to indicate that rabbit is yours. Judges work pretty hard to be impartial and judge the rabbit purely on its merits that day, so we all try not to make that harder for them.

2. When you get to the showroom, check in, pay your fees if necessary, and if the secretary allows it, double-check the show paperwork to make sure there haven't been any transcription errors. It's really disappointing to have your rabbit DQd because someone typed buck instead of doe, junior instead of senior, or a tattoo as X1K instead of K1K.

Frosted Rabbits said:
Let's see what I remember
Registration
The registrar will need to have a copy of the pedigree to take with, You will need the ID you use tatted in the left ear. If you know weights of ancestors, reprint the pedigree with all infor possible, I don't think you need to worry about color! Not sure if registrar gets his own fee, but there is a fee to register your rabbit with ARBA
Click to expand...
Regarding the pedigrees for registration, YES, the colors (varieties) ARE NECESSARY! Dwarf Hotots are recognized in black, blue and chocolate (and maybe lilac by this December, if the breed club votes it in). To be considered a complete pedigree, at a minimum, each animal on the pedigree has to have a name/tattoo, variety and senior weight. If the ancestors are registered, including their registration numbers makes paperwork easier on the registrar and the folks at the ARBA.

Note that as long as the ancestors are purebred, the weight and color on ancestors does not have to meet breed standards - e.g. it's okay if one of the bucks is lilac, or one of the brood does is a false dwarf weighing 4 pounds instead of the standard maximum of 3 pounds. Please, don't be tempted to falsify weights or varieties!!! Pedigrees are only truly useful if they're accurate.

The registrar will charge a fee, $3 of which goes to the ARBA. Up here in AK, anyway, it is customary for the registrar to charge a total of $6 per rabbit. Registrars have to pay their own fees, buy registration blank pads, pay postage for sending in applications to the ARBA, and sometimes also pay to travel to sites to do registrations, so they're not generally making a mint on their fees! :)

Also, IMPORTANT: bring your current ARBA card along! You don't have to have it to show, but most registrars will not register a rabbit unless they see evidence that you are a current ARBA member.
 
Last edited:
RabbitsOfTheCreek said:
I didn't know Dwarf Hotots had colors other than black around their eyes
Click to expand...
The current ARBA Standard of Perfection lists the varieties Black, Blue, and Chocolate for Dwarf Hotot, though it stipulates that rabbits are to be judged together rather than in individual varieties. So, rabbits with black, blue and chocolate eye bands are all in the same class.
The blue variety was the most recently accepted, in time to be included in the 2021-2025 SOP. However, a new ARBA rule regarding the SOP is that if other colors in a color group already are accepted, the national breed club can vote on adding any "missing" varieties without going through a lengthy and expensive COD process. Thus, since the Dwarf Hotot standard accepts chocolate, black, and its dilute, blue, the American Dwarf Hotot Rabbit Club (ADHRC) could vote to accept lilac (dilute chocolate), which would take effect as early as this December. I'm not a memebr of the ADHRC so I don't know if they've done this or not.
 
Alaska Satin said:
The current ARBA Standard of Perfection lists the varieties Black, Blue, and Chocolate for Dwarf Hotot, though it stipulates that rabbits are to be judged together rather than in individual varieties. So, rabbits with black, blue and chocolate eye bands are all in the same class.
The blue variety was the most recently accepted, in time to be included in the 2021-2025 SOP. However, a new ARBA rule regarding the SOP is that if other colors in a color group already are accepted, the national breed club can vote on adding any "missing" varieties without going through a lengthy and expensive COD process. Thus, since the Dwarf Hotot standard accepts chocolate, black, and its dilute, blue, the American Dwarf Hotot Rabbit Club (ADHRC) could vote to accept lilac (dilute chocolate), which would take effect as early as this December. I'm not a memebr of the ADHRC so I don't know if they've done this or not.
Click to expand...
UPDATE:
It was announced at the ARBA National Convention last weekend that the Lilac variety of Dwarf Hotots was voted in.
So as of December 1, they will be accepted and shown with black, blue, chocolate and lilac eye bands. :)
 

Latest posts

Back
Top