I started showing perhaps a year after getting my first rats. My first ever pair of bucks were from an NFRS Stud but they were not my first ‘show’ rats. The first rats I ever showed were rescues! Some people seem surprised to learn that they can enter their rescue/mismarked/petshop rats in shows and that’s part of the reason I’m writing this.
In dog showing terms I think of Pet classes as the “Companion” side of things. Every rat club in the UK currently hold Pet classes. Rats in Pet don’t need to conform to any colour or marking standards. They could be green with purple spots and they could still go in pet as long as they’re friendly, healthy, and not a variety banned on health grounds (Hairless, Tailless).
You only need to take a quick peek at the type (conformation) standards and faults/disqualifying faults to realize that this isn’t the case.
I’ve been showing for around 12 years and I am an NFRS Show judge; basically I’m qualified to judge at any 1 or 2-star shows. In order to reach this point I undertook six stewarding appointments (making sure the judge has the right tanks at the right time and some other tasks) and six sit-in appointments with Championship judges (the ‘level’ above Show Judge; these judges can judge 3-star shows as well).
Bear with me, this isn’t a brag. It’s more an illustration of the sort of range of judging (and judges) I’ve been lucky enough to learn from over the years. And here’s the thing: no decent judge would give a rat Best In Show if it was unhealthy. Intractibility is a disqualifying fault – i.e. if the rat cannot be handled, or bites the judge, they are disqualified.
The standards for type call for a rat that looks.. well, like a rat. Not just a rat, but a healthy rat! Fit, glossy coated (except Rex), bright eyed and bushy-tailed. Okay, maybe not bushy-tailed. But you get the picture.
Link to the General Conformation standards and faults: https://nfrs.org/breeding_varieties.html
I’m quite happy to admit that I enjoy showing the rats we breed and enjoy them being shown by other people too. It’s nice to win. Of course it is. Each of our rats is special to us and it’s always lovely to know that a judge (who has probably seen quite a few rats!) sees what we see in them. They’re all beautiful, they all have wonderful personalities. It’s nice to have those qualities appreciated by other experienced people.
I enjoy winning (gasp). But if you think all someone who shows cares about is rosettes or trophies I would invite you to look into how the whole thing works:
Firstly, every single rat in the show (unless DQ’d) will get a critique from the judge – their observations on that individual rat. Critiques alone can be a huge benefit of showing. Rats are judged entirely anonymously, so you will be getting a judge’s honest and unbiased thoughts on your rats.
Secondly, going to a show might tell us things about our rats that we wouldn’t know outside of that environment. We’ve had one buck who was amazing at home but got stressed in a show tank. Not really a problem – he just wasn’t shown again. But it was good to know. It’s always extremely gratifying when a rat who’s confident at home maintains that confidence in a show setting.
Thirdly, and this is where I will get slightly wound up, it’s just not true of the vast majority of breeders who show. Actually, for most reputable breeders, showing is a nice little bonus. We get to see our friends, we get to chat rats with likeminded people – both the usual faces and new ones. And we get to eat cake (see, I did get to the cake bit!).
We’ve had unsuccessful litters in the past – babies born who haven’t made it. The reason this myth in particular upsets me is because I know how very wanted and loved those babies were even before they were born. Even before their mum was pregnant! And I suppose I only need me to know that. Other people can think what they like.