![]() I have been seriously considering starting a blog for sometime to document our rabbitry's journey. So much has happened in such a short amount of time, and we have experienced more success early on than I had ever imagined (including multiple breed wins at a West Coast Convention, a regional Convention). I have had rabbits on and off in my life, but I didn't get into breeding until 2019. I had added a pet rabbit earlier in the year and was so enamored I wanted to look into obtaining more for breeding purposes. My husband was NOT amused, but I lead him to the dark side by promising I would make the rabbits part of our homestead venture. I ultimately ended up purchasing a trio of Satin rabbits, one of which continues on in my breeding program today. Our rabbitry has expanded to almost 100 holes and is holding steady. Early on I had decided that being an ethical, reputable and responsible breeder was as important to me as any other metic of success. I have worked in other animal fields where animals are carelessly discarded. I never want to be a contributor to that. Thus, I continue to ask as I have from day one, if for ANY REASON, no reason, you decide that your Clyde Farms rabbit is no longer wanted, as is in my sales contract, do not surrender or rehome your rabbit. Please return your rabbit to Clyde Farms and we will take on the effort, expense and responsibility of vetting and rehoming the rabbit. We will take any of our rabbits back without question or judgement. Since we started, we have added a few breeds to our barn, but our main focus is our Rex and Mini Rex rabbits; most of our cage and show team space is dedicated to them as they are my passion. We are focused on type and fur as outlined by the ARBA Standard of Perfection (SOP). We are genuinely improving with each generation and I cannot wait to see where we are a year from now. Our Mini Rex varieties are: Black, Blue, Otter, Broken, Chocolate, White, Harlequin and Tri-color. Our Rex Varities are : Black, Blue, Otter, White and Broken. We are working in conjunction with Sachi Boege on an unrecognized breed, the Velveteen Lop. The current COD (certificate of development) holder is Megan Matthys and the breed needs one more pass in 2021 for the breed to become a breed recognized by the ARBA. We have both varieties: broken and solid. We are working with a small Satin and New Zealand (NZ) breeding program. We do show some of our Satins and New Zealands but not on as large of a scale as some of our other breeds. We do raise these breeds for consumption and have worked hard on our growth rates and quality of type. Our Satin varieties are: Blue, Chocolate, Otter, Broken and Red. Our New Zealand variety is White or red eyed white (REW). Most recently we have added a small Holland Lop program, we are bringing in a trio from the east coast. This was a very controversial decision for us, that was made with great thought and consideration. We decided to work with some unrecognized varieties to work on type. While I recognize and respect that White Ear rabbits and rabbits with the Vienna Gene are often looked upon with distain, and are not recommended nor accepted for show, I still believe that breeding for type is extremely important. I fully disclose and indicate the presence of the white ear and vienna genes on the website, in communications and on pedigrees. I have chosen a breed other than my main breeds to keep the lines "clean." I want to bring type improvement to the White Ear and Vienna Holland Lop lines as I see a lack of quality in that arena and I have a desire to learn more about those specific genes. Our varieties are: White Ear, VM/VC, Blue, Black, Sable Point.
I continue the generosity of my mentors before me by taking the time to help newer breeders and ofter lifetime support, if desired, to all of my customers. As I like to say, the only stupid question is the one that goes unasked. I would not be where I am today without some mentors who were very generous with their time and their stock. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for every late night message, early morning text and excited photo bombs. Most of all thank you for celebrating my successes with me. ❤️ |
AuthorChristi Clyde, ARBA registered Breeder, Open Exhibitor, and Rabbitry Owner/Manager of Clyde Farms. ArchivesCategories |