The American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) is a national
club for
domestic rabbits and
cavy
Caviidae, the cavy family, is composed of rodents native to South America and includes the domestic guinea pig, wild cavies, and the largest living rodent, the capybara. They are found across South America in open areas from moist savanna to t ...
breeder
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist ...
s. The ARBA is headquartered in
Knox, Pennsylvania, in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Its membership is composed of rabbit and cavy exhibitors, commercial breeders and pet owners in North America and many countries throughout the world.
The ARBA serves to promote the domestic rabbit and cavy fancy, as well as commercial rabbit production. The American Rabbit Breeders Association sets official
breed standard
In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include phenotype, physical or morphology (biology), morphological detail, genotype, g ...
s for recognized
rabbit breeds
As of 2017, there were at least 305 breeds of the domestic rabbit in 70 countries around the world raised for in the Agriculture, agricultural practice of Selective breeding, breeding and raising domestic rabbits as livestock for their value in m ...
and cavy breeds. Every five years the ARBA publishes ''The Standard of Perfection''. This book includes descriptions of a perfect example for each breed of rabbit or cavy, details all general disqualifications, includes a glossary of rabbit terms and describes the process of a breed or variety becoming recognized by the ARBA. The ARBA currently recognizes 52 breeds of rabbit and 13
cavy breeds.
Organization
The ARBA is run by a Board of Directors with one member elected from each of its nine districts. Additionally, the offices of President and Vice President are elected in organization-wide election. The ARBA also has two paid offices; Treasurer and Executive Director. These last two are appointed by the Board of Directors for a three year term.
Despite its name, the American Rabbit Breeders Association has affiliated clubs and members all over the world. Each of these members are assigned a district, based on their location. The districts of the American Rabbit Breeders Association are as follows, according to their Constitution and By-Laws:
*District No. 1: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Alaska, Northern Asia and Western Canada
*District No. 2: California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Hawaii, Southern Asia and Australia
*District No. 3: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin
*District No. 4: Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mexico and Central America
*District No. 5: Kansas, Missouri and Illinois
*District No. 6: Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South America and Puerto Rico
*District No. 7: New York, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Europe and Eastern Canada
*District No. 8: Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Central Canada
*District No. 9: Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington, D.C., and Africa.
Rabbit shows
The ARBA sanctions rabbit
shows throughout the year, all over the world. These shows, sponsored by local clubs, fairs, and national clubs give rabbit and cavy fanciers the chance to have their animals examined by educated judges and compared to other breeders' animals and the standard. The ARBA holds a large national convention show once a year, which draws in fanciers from across the country and around the world. The 2005 ARBA convention was documented in the film ''
Rabbit Fever''. The 2006 ARBA Convention was held in
Ft. Worth, Texas, the 2007 ARBA Convention was held in
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...
, 2008 in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
, 2009 in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, 2010 in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
, 2011 in
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
, 2012 in
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...
, 2013 in
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...
, 2014 in Ft. Worth, Texas, 2015 in
Portland, Oregon
Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
, 2016 in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, 2017 in
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
, 2018 in
West Springfield, Massachusetts
West Springfield is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 28,835 at the 2020 United States Census. The city is also known as "West ...
, 2019 in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...
, the 2020 Convention would have been held in
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...
, but it was canceled. The 2021 Convention was held in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
, and the 2022 in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...
. The 2023 (and 100th) Convention was held in Louisville, Kentucky.
Rabbit raising education
This organization helps all levels of rabbit keepers and breeders, including
4-H
4-H is a U.S.-based network of youth organizations whose mission is "engaging youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development". Its name is a reference to the occurrence of the initial letter H four times ...
participants to fanciers, pet owners to commercial producers. The ARBA also produces educational materials such as a guide book, 'Raising Better Rabbits & Cavies', as well as informative books on each registered breed, and a poster with photographs of the recognized breeds of rabbits and cavies, and rabbit registrar and judge training materials. The judges education program is an ongoing program for established judges.
Unified judging and registration system
The ARBA has a standardized judging system in which rabbits are judged against the respective breed standard, set by a 100-point scale, and published in the Standard of Perfection. It is a book detailing all of the recognized breeds in the United States and their attributes. The association has licensed judges since the early 1900s who may judge at sanctioned shows and fairs. The registration system maintains records on all rabbits which have passed a registration examination to ensure the animals are healthy and meet the ARBA Standard for the rabbits' breed. ARBA licensed registrars conduct the examination. Registrations are ranked Red, White and Blue to distinguish how many ancestors of the subject rabbit have been previously registered.
ARBA Library and Hall of Fame
The ARBA Library, located at the headquarters in
Knox, Pennsylvania, houses the world's largest single repository of books and writings on domestic rabbits. It is an archival library, not a lending library. It holds over 10,000 items/pieces, which are housed in the collection, and it continues to constantly grow. The next largest similar collection is at the
United States National Agricultural Library
The United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries, and serves as a national library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. Locate ...
in
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
, and it holds about 1,300 pieces. The British Library, London also has an extensive collection. Access to the Library for research by members is available by appointment only.
ARBA Youth Scholarship
The ARBA offers a Youth Scholarship program for high school graduates who wish to further their education. The recipients must have graduated with a minimum 3.0 grade point average and be enrolled in their first year of higher education. The scholarship proceeds are designated to be used towards two- or four-year college, vocational, or technical school.
See also
*
Cuniculture
Cuniculture is the Agriculture, agricultural practice of Selective breeding, breeding and raising domestic rabbits as livestock for their meat, fur, or wool. Cuniculture is also employed by rabbit animal fancy, fanciers and hobbyists in the develo ...
References
External links
*{{official website, http://www.arba.net
The ARBA website for youth breeders webpage
Breeder organizations