810-Lancaatw Farming, Saturday, August 27, 1994
Q uack, P
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
CREAMERY (Montgomery
Co.) Incessant squawking,
gentle peeping, quacking, and an
occasional cock-a-doddlc-doo
wafted over the 4-H Montgomery
County 4-H Fairgrounds recently.
The sounds dime" from the tent
where Birds of a Feather 4-H’crs
assembled to show off their fcath-
Nicholas Quinto demons
trates the proper way to hold
a duck.
Gavin Bechtle spreads
the wing of his chicken for
judges to examine.
Raise Rabb
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
CREAMERY (Montgomery
Co.) Rudy Ziegler raises rab
bits. Not just any rabbit, but Cham
pagne D’argcnts.
Rudy learned how to breed rab
bits for show competition by join
ing the Furry Friends 4-H Rabbit
and Cavy Club. About 30 to 40
youth attend the monthly club
meetings. They raise a variety of
breeds, such as New Zealand, Cali
fornian, Creme D’argcnt, Satin,
and Rex.
The rabbits must be tattooed in
the presence of a 4-H agent or lead
er if it is entered into show judging.
Rabbits arc judged on cars, eyes,
teeth, nose, front legs, tail, body,
gender, rear legs, feed, nails, and
fur. These characteristics arc com
pared to the ideal standard, which
has been determined by the breed
association.
When rabbits are shown, the
person showing the rabbit places it
on a table. The rabbit should be
posed toward the judge.
Rudy recently showed Silver
Beauty, a 5-monlh-old rabbit that
weighted B V* pounds at the Mont
gomery 4-H Fair.
Rudy said that he breeds the rab
bits for body type as staled by the
rules.
It takes 28 to 32 days after
breeding for the bunnies to be
bom. On the 27th dav. RmHu nn»s a
special nest bow in the rabbit pen.
y q .
peep, gobble, or cock-a
doddle-doo, it doesn’t
belong to the Poultry Club.
That’s the message 4-H
members wore on their T
shirts.
There were ihe ordinary ducks
and hens and the not-so-ordinary
birds such as Bantams, Silkic
Hens, Blue Splas Cockin, Yellow
Buff Cockin, and Polish Hens.
Some were tiny and some were
quite large but all needed to be held
in the proper one-hand hold for
judging.
The contestants were judged on
their calm manner of working with
the birds. At the proper time, the
contestants needed to run their
hands through the feathers, spread
its To Show
It has sawdust, hay, or straw in the
bottom of it. The mother rabbit
adds some of her fur to it to make a
soft bed for the newborn bunnies,
which are bom without fur.
As soon as the bunnies arc bom,
the mother covers them with her
fur. About five arc usually in each
litter.
The bunnies’ fur begins to grow
in about two days, but it takes
10-14 days before they are ready to
leave the nesting box.
The mother takes care of the
bunnies for six weeks, although
they start eating on their own when
they are two to three weeks old.
Although they can be separated
from their mother when only four
weeks old, they do not do well if
separated from their siblings
before sue weeks.
“They are a solitary animal,”
Rudy said. “The bucks will fight
each other if they are put together.”
Rudy lives in Spring City, Ches
ter County, where he sells rabbit
meat commercially from the farm.
Rudy plans to show his rabbits
at the state Farm Show. To meet
qualifications, he said, none of the
rabbits in the pen can be disquali
fied. The rabbits must be under 10
weeks of age and not under five
pounds.
If you would like to raise rabbits
for showing, contact your county
extension office or call Peg Hailer
at (215) 343-0640.
Gobble, Cock-A-Doddle-Do
/ of a Feather Club compete for showmanship honors during com
petition at the Montgomery County 4-H Fair.
the wings, and turn the bird
around.
Points were deducted if the
showman turned the bird in an
awkward position or if, when pos-
Rabbit 4-H Clubs
Prepare For
Farm Show Auction
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
CREAMERY (Montgomery
Co.) Rabbit growers are
excited. For the first time ever,
their meat rabbits will go over the
auction block at the Pennsylvania
Farm Show.
That means they need to prepare
now, according to Peg Hailey, who
is the chairperson for the Farm
Show Rabbit department
The youth who raise rabbits put
a lot of effort into it and receive
little recognition. The Pennsylva
nia Slate Rabbit Breeders have
been petitioning the Farm Show
Commission to include the rabbit
meat pens in the Junior Livestock
nsylvai arm Show, which will allow exhibitors to auction. , tot the first
time. From left, Tim McDermott, 12; Wendall Landis, 9; John McDermott, 14; Rudy Zel
gier, 13; Dee Williams, 18; Jeni Moore, 14; Katelin Bechtle, 7; and Jackie Wentzel, 16.
ing the bird, the showman did not
step back for the judges to have a
closer look.
become quite attached
to their birds when raising them for
Auction. But officials were reluc
tant to include the rabbits, not
because they have anything
against rabbits, but because time
does not permit any additions.
This year, the rabbits will be
auctioned not at the closing day
auction but at the Saturday night
auction.
The rules for the youth meat
pens have been completely revised
to bring them into par with other
livestock projects.
“Youth must start planning now
to have their pens ready for Farm
Show,” Hailey said.
If you want to enter meat rabbits
in the Farm Show auction, make
sure you study the following rules.
(Turn to Pago Bit)
a project. Many have cages inside
their homes for the birds or keep
them outside.
It’s a project that doesn’t take up
a lot of room and yet teaches the
owner responsibility.
Top winners at the 4-H Mont
gomery Fair were Jackie Wentzel,
16; Dee Williams, 18; Nicholas
Quinto, 15; and Gavin Bcchtlc, 11.
Rudy Zelgler Is judged on
showmanship during rabbit
competition at the Mont
gomery Fair.
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