It is important that one prepares for a show at least 2 months in advance to insure the rabbits are in good shape to be shown. Here, at Road To Angora, we’ve been working diligently to preserve the rabbits’ show coats as best we can in order to show and compete in the September 09 show that we've been patiently awaiting.
We’ve been blessed by having received wonderful advice from two wonderful ladies in the Angora world, Margaret Bartold and Betty Chu. We had the pleasure of receiving a brief, but well taught, mini session on grooming angoras by Margaret. She assisted us at Shows when we were showing out of State and showed us the ropes. Since then, we continue grooming the rabbits with the blower and slicker brush in a proper manner to insure the optimum coat in our rabbits. We’ve also received excellent advice via email from Betty Chu ever since we acquired our Chu’s Frida Khalo. One of the greatest advices we received from Betty is on the importance of setting up a strict routine to groom the rabbits. We are always impressed at Betty’s awesome angoras and can appreciate the work she puts into insuring the best coats in her rabbits; hence, the strict routine habit is well understood.
At Road To Angora we continue working meticulously with the whole coat and not just the “fluff” that demonstrate the true representation of the breed. It is also important to work on the bottom/belly area and the legs—to remove the mats and insure their coat is clean and soft.
We use different brushes that we’ve been collecting over time. When a the tines of a brush are bent or missing, it is time to replace it, so careful watch/care of the brushes and combs are important. We also have different size of scissors that we use to work the mats off, clip the extra wool, and trim areas that need to be trimmed.
There are many other items one needs to utilize to maintain the coat of the English Angoras; however, like a very wise lady once told us, routine and habit in caring for the angoras is paramount to having a healthy herd.
P. Ricardo Gonzalez
Road To Angora Rabbitry
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