>From:    Sheila Crompton <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Shows
>In the UK we don't separate the neutered from entire ferrets.  Just how the
>heck do you tell if a jill has been spayed?  Some judges (generally male -
>have been known to mark down a neutered hob but this practice is dying out
>as judges are beginning to realise the sense in neutering) so we get
>working, breeding and pet ferrets all in the same class - we are trying to
>close the division between working and pet ferret owners, not widen the
>gulf:-)
 
It is unfair to alters to put them up against whole ferrets.  After
neutering they start dropping muscle mass and even bone structure is
lighter.  Early altered animals in particular just do not have the full
strong look of whole animals.  Hobs and jills.  We don't have any sort of
working ferrets in the US at this point so thats not an issue.
 
The majority of ferrets in the US are early altered pet store ferrets.  They
wouldn't have a chance up against burly breeders.  With the seperation
between whole and altered ferrets is for the benefit of typical one to four
ferret homes with only altered pets.  Those of us with pets that happen to
be able to reproduce have a seperate rings so we don;t dominate too much.
Its a good thing that even Marshall or Path Valley ferrets have a chance and
even often win.
 
>At NFWS shows the ferrets are taken from the owner by the steward, the judge
>has no idea who the ferret belongs to, handed to the judge who examines the
>ferret, the steward returns the ferret to the owner.  The whole process
>probably takes around 5 mins.
 
At five minutes a ferret the last GCFA show (some 200 ferrets) would have
lasted over 16 hours with no breaks!
 
The AFA in championship rings has the best approach.  Their are tables
behind the judges tables.  Ferrets are brought up in individual carriers
with numbers.  The judge takes the ferret from the carrier, examines the
ferret and returns the ferret to the carrier.  Breaks for the judges are
built in after each group is judged.  The ferret has a scorecard with room
for comments seperate from the book.  If a judge notices anything the owner
might need to be aware of the comments can convey the message.  I
particularly enjoy being surprised by the people that end up coming up
during call backs (those with the top ten finishers called back for
ribbons).
 
This works out fine with the majority of the AFA judges.  We do ahave a
couple that are too slow compared to the others.  This is an issue we are
working on.
 
>I recently judged an outdoor show where all the ferrets were brought into
>the ring by the owners, I can't say that I liked this method of judging.
 
Letting a ferret stand on the table in front of you is much better
certainly.
 
Other than the AFA Championship rings, most US ferret shows have the judge
and steward sitting behind the table.  Someone (usually but not always the
owner) brings the ferret up and hands the critter to the judge.  AFter the
examination the owner/handler/friend is beckoned back up and the judge hands
the ferret back.  As a judge this is fine for the low pressure specialty
rings but I much prefer the AFA method.  The pressure of having the owner
right in front of you makes this much harder.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
http://www.zenferret.com/
mailto:[log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 2325]