Philosophy

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.

Anatole France

quick intro to me:  I am Melissa.  Cavy cuddler, Financial backer, cage builder, part-time cavy medic, and final arbiter of all decisions made (AKA Mom)

This is not a judgment on other breeders with a different philosophy. This is our philosophy. We came in to cavies after doing dog rescue for years. I can hear the gasps. We are not animal rights people. We are not vegan or vegetarian. We don't stalk breeders with plans to have their animals taken away by animal control. I don't care if you breed meat animals, reptile food, pets or show animals. If you take care of your animals and enjoy them we have plenty of common ground to be friends. Years in rescue have given us a bit different of an outlook than some breeders, however, and this post is to outline our philosophy.

First and foremost our animals are bred to be loving companions. They are handled from birth. Sows are held frequently through pregnancy, feeling little baby movements in her belly is a joy. We even have a stethoscope because finding little heartbeats is fun, too. Texel cavies are not the best breed for this because of their lovely curls. Petting tends to frizz them and decrease the quality of their coat. You can't help the breed you fall in love with, so we make the best of this and don't let it stop us. Izzy does groom very often to try to make up for it, though. Coat on a texel is at it's best when they are young, however, this is the best time to handle them and get them used to being handled. We handle them constantly when they are young. Our biggest goal is to produce loving and cuddly animals. A loving animal is always easier to care for and enjoy than one that isn't, and after their show career is over they become pets (some with the side job of breeding the next generation).

We don't take ourselves, our animals or even shows very seriously. Dangerous Beans, Choking Hazard and Bite Size all say "the heck with being stuffy and boring, we want to have fun!". We tend to bring a bit of the crazy to the shows with us but as long as we are laughing and having fun we are doing what we set out to do. You really can't take yourself too seriously when dealing with animals, anyway. All that does is convince them that they need to pee on you or something to lighten the mood (tip: Bring some extra clothes to shows in case you need to change. Or use an apron. Everyone will understand about the random wet patch on your clothes, but it gets uncomfortable).

We strive for the highest quality show animals possible. Why? Because winning is fun. Umm. No, that wasn't it... Well, it is fun, but that isn't the reason. The reason is that a good quality show animal is put together correctly and is healthy. You can't have an unhealthy animal with long gorgeous hair, etc. Showing gives you a good review of your animals and compares them against others from other breeders. It tells you if your animal has the genes that should be passed on to create another generation or is maybe just best as a well loved pet. It is also a critique of your husbandry. Your care of your animals influences how well they do on the table and by comparing your animal to others you can see where you need to change your husbandry. It gives you a chance to learn from other breeders and sometimes even teach new people things. By showing you can be certain you are going to further the breed with your breeding plans, which brings us to...

Breeding with a purpose. Breeding should be by choice and that choice should be a carefully considered one. Our thought process on breeding goes like this:
1. Is the animal healthy and at a good age to breed?
2. What are the animal faults? What are it's strengths? Do we have an appropriate partner for it?
3. What do we want from this potential litter?
4. Do we have space and finances to keep them forever if needed?

If we don't have a good answer to all of those questions the animal is not bred. Every animal bred here (or even brought here) has a home with us forever. We accept returns with no questions asked. We don't expect animals to be sold. We like it when they sell - feed gets expensive and making space means we can breed again - but we do not plan on animals finding a new home. We are prepared for them to stay. This does mean that if you aren't buying from us at a rabbit show you will be interrogated by someone that is barely tall enough to ride the bumper cars at the amusement park. In another post I will cover the questions we have for potential homes. Most people at shows know us and know the care of the animals so they can bypass the third degree. Mostly.