This article is from the WSSF 2016 AFRMA Rat & Mouse Tales news-magazine.

By Karen Robbins

Cheyenne Lynn Appleton, MI, Facebook
Q Would my two rats (Cinder and Ashes) be good for show? Cinder has been shown at my local fair [Michigan] and got grands and reserve (we have showmanship and gender classes judged by a rabbit judge). I know their color pattern is wrong, but as for conformation, etc.?

A When it comes to judging rats on conformation, seeing them in person is best as photos can add flaws that aren’t there. In the photo you sent, the one on the right appears to have a long, narrow head where the one on the left looks like it has a good head shape but maybe a bit long. The best thing to do is to actually enter them in your local rat club show (Evaluation class if they have one) to get critiques on the overall type since their markings don’t appear to be very good to compete in a regular show class. In AFRMA we have an Eval Day several times a year for rats and mice that may not be marked correctly, are questionable in color, have some kind of disqualifying feature such as a torn ear, etc., not sure what it is, etc., so the owner can get critiques and find out if the animal is breeding quality, show quality, what kind of color/marking it is, etc. At our shows we offer lots of fun pet classes for anyone with rats no matter what they are, since those are judged on the temperaments, not type. If your local club doesn’t offer Eval classes, perhaps someone could look over your rats the day of a show to let you know more about their conformation.

There is the American Rat Club in Illinois that has shows in Michigan. You can ask if they have Eval classes or have someone in your area that could look over your rats for you. [Ed. Note: the club has since closed as of October 8, 2016]

Arnold Sciberras, Facebook
Q Has there ever been domestication of the Black Rat?

A In the early 1900s when the fancy was getting started in England, there were some shown but not anymore. There is a gal in England that has a page on Rattus rattus. Some people there have them but they are not a show animal. You have to be careful with them as they can carry several diseases that are harmful to people so they should be tested to make sure they don’t carry anything.

O Casillas Caviary, Facebook
Q I am interested in joining the mouse fancy. How are mice judged? Is there an adult show and a youth under 18 show?

A We judge very similar to rabbits and cavies (my background is with showing rabbits and my sister showed cavies). We have a judging card that is filled out for each animal just like with the rabbits/cavies, we just don’t have breakdowns for age or sex other than the kitten class which doesn’t go towards BIS. We have a Youth class for exhibitors under 18 with show quality animals, and we have Youth and Adult in the Pet Classes, but we don’t have enough kids showing to have a separate show. You can find all of our show stuff on the Show Info pages. For a list of our upcoming shows, see the Show Dates page. All of our shows are currently held in Riverside, CA.

Greta Grigatti, Italy, Facebook
Q I have a curiosity: in Italy there is nothing like a Club to protect the pet rat, no genealogies nor pedigree or register (we are not even close to having something like that). I wanted to ask about the expo dedicated to rats: what are the requirements? I mean, besides a rat in health, requires a pedigree that verifies the genealogy and the variety?

I’m curious because in Italy there has been competitive expo which also included rats, I have not yet been answered by the organizers, but also wanted to ask who knows the expo rats. I am not particularly interested in the environment exhibition.

A No, pedigrees are not required for someone to show their rats. We do have an English class for rats (and mice) that have been imported from England and not crossbred with other countries’ stock (a pedigree is required to show animals in that class), but that class is only offered once a year. We haven’t had anyone show in the English rat class for several years.

We judge based on how well the animal matches the written standard, not where it came from. There are many breeders that don’t keep pedigrees. Since so many pedigrees from pet breeders are not correct in their information, it wouldn’t matter if a rat was pedigreed or not in regards to whether it meets the standards or not. We have an article about pedigrees online.

We do health checks before each show to catch health problems and we do require a birth certificate/pedigree for animals being sold at our shows (mainly to verify that the member selling is the person that bred that animal and it meets the minimum age to be sold). Because rats don’t come in breeds and many colors are common, you can get several things in one litter.

At the displays we do (we have information and animals to show the public and are there to answer questions), pedigrees are not required as those animals are not for sale.

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