REGISTERING YOUR RABBIT, CAVY, OR RABBITRY

First, in order to register your rabbit or cavy you MUST be a member of the American Rabbit Breeders Association, Inc. The dues are $15.00 per year for Adults, and $8.00 for Youth (thru 18 years of age). This not only makes you eligible to register your animals for the fee of $4.00 each, but also entitles you to receive the Official Guidebook to Raising Better Rabbits and Cavies when you join, the ARBA Yearbook each year you renew, as well as a subscription to the Domestic Rabbits magazine (published 6 times yearly) for each year of your membership.

When you become a member of the ARBA and wish to register your rabbits or cavies, you should contact one of our licensed registrars. There are over 700 licensed registrars located throughout the United States and Canada. Each has passed a rigid examination and is qualified to examine your animals for disqualifacations.

In order to register your animal, it will be necessary for the registrar to:
1. Check your current ARBA membership card.
2. See a complete 3 generation pedigree on the animal to be registered.
3. Weigh and examine your rabbit or cavy.
4. Tattoo the registration number or official registration insignia in the animal's right ear, or in the case of a cavy use an ear tag.

The registration number placed in your animals right ear must match the number located on the registration application. This is a permanent number assigned to your animal, and recorded in the Registry files at the ARBA office. If the official registration insignia is used, the number appearing on the registration application will still be permanently assigned to your rabbit or cavy.

The application will be filled out in duplicate. The original copy is returned to the ARBA office and the registrar retains one copy. It is mandatory for the owner to check and make sure all information recorded on the registration application is accurate. After checking the application thoroughly, the owner must sign the affirmation at the bottom of the application. Once an application is filed at the ARBA office, only the weight (if an increase) may be changed on an animals registration.

After processing the registration application at the ARBA office, a Registration Certificate will be issued to the owner with the appropriate Merit of Registration Seal affixed.

The Merit of Registration Seal are awarded as follows:
Stamp imprint - if the Sire and Dam are not registered.
Red Seal - If only the first generation is registered.
Red & White Seal - If the first and second generation are completely registered.
Red, White, & Blue Seal - If all three generations are completely registered.

When a transfer of ownership for a registered animal occurs, the new owner should fill in the first space available on the reverse side of the certificate, secure the signature of the previous owner, and mail the form to the ARBA office with a transfer fee of $1.00. The ARBA office will record the transfer and return the registration certificate bearing the name of the new owner.

A list of licensed ARBA Registrars is published in the current ARBA Yearbook for your convenience.

RABBITRY REGISTRATION

The ARBA offers the opportunity to register your rabbitry with the association for a minimal fee. Only ARBA members are eligible to register their rabbitry. If you wish your rabbitry to be registered under more than one name or owner, all owners must be members of this association or join before the rabbitry registration can be completed. Following is the procedure to register a rabbitry.

1 - Send us your rabbitry name. (It is suggested you send three choices in case the first and second are already listed as a registered rabbitry. (22 letter maximum).
2 - Submit a $5.00 registration fee. If more than one owner is to be listed on the registration, add $2.00 for each additional owner after the first one.
3 - Be sure to list all member's names as they appear on the ARBA files. (Check membership card for accuracy).

After registering the rabbitry, a certificate will be issued with the rabbitry name and all owners' names. This information is also kept on permanent record at the ARBA office so no other ARBA member can register that rabbitry name.

It is not necessary to renew your rabbitry registration each year. However, if any of the owners listed on the certificate should drop their membership in the ARBA, or let it expire due to late payment, the rabbitry registration will become void. The above procedure would then have to be followed again to reinstate the rabbitry registration.

BREED LISTING

The ARBA office receives many calls inquiring about the purchase of breeding and show stock. Our staff attempts to refer the inquirer to individuals in their general area when asked about a particular breed. This is a good reason to take advantage of the BREED LISTING offered by this association. For $1.00 per year you may list up to 5 breeds that you raise, and for $2.00 per year you may list 6 - 10 breeds. 10 breeds are the maximum that can be listed by any individual. When you pay for a breed listing, the breeds are also shown beside your name in the ARBA Yearbook. This book reaches over 40,000 people each year. What better way to advertise, at a very reasonable cost?