BEDFORD – This weekend the Lawrence County 4-H Rabbit Club held its 11th Annual Open Rabbit Show.
This event brought in participants from Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, Indiana, Washington, and Tennessee. There were more than 1,300 entries.
“Our Lawrence County 4-H members represented our county wonderfully,” said Club Leader Keri Barker. “Their hard work, politeness, and hospitality were complimented by the judges and our guests. They are an outstanding group of young men and women. As a club leader and a parent, I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
The show started with the Lawrence County 4-H members leading the Pledge of Allegiance and the 4-H Pledge.
The show is an opportunity for the youth to compete against other youth from across the country. There is also an open show for adult competitors.
The 4-H members ran the concession stand along with being runners and writers for the judges. The youth arrived after school on Friday until around 10 p.m. to set up and participate in the first show and returned at 6 a.m. Saturday to prep for three more. At the end of the event, the youth stayed and cleans and sanitized the expo hall.
The ARBA judges included Ryan Harrah, Bruce Ormsby, Dave Hauser, Andy High, and Josh Humphries, the president of ARBA.
The Lawrence County 4-H Rabbit Club members received the following awards:
Bryleigh Littrell won two Best of Breed and two Best Opposite Sex of Breed for her American Chinchilla.
Drew McKnight won three Best of Breed for his Silver Marten.
John McKnight won three Best in Breed and three Best Opposite Sex of Breed for his Dutch.
Heaven Cooper won four Best of Breed and four Best Opposite Sex in Breed for her Flemish Giants.
Isabelle Barker- won two Best of Breed for her Rhinelander and two Best of Breed and two Best Opposite Sex for Breed for her Jersey Wooly.
AJ O’Neal won one Best of Breed and one Best Opposite Sex for Breed for his Dwarf Hotot.
Trey Craig won three Best of Breed for his Mini Satin and Best of Breed for his Californian.
All of these 4-H members advanced to the Best of Show.
Trey Craig swept the Best in Show all 3 times with his Californian.
There were 3 local winners in the Open Show category:
Terri Peterson claimed three Best of Breed for her Checkered Giants
Bennie and Treva Wade had four Best of Breeds and four Best Opposite Sex awards with their American Chinchilla. They also took two Reserve in Show honors with their Chinchillas.
Trevor Craig and Bruce Ormsby, COGenetics, had four Best of Breed with their Florida White. They swept the four Open Shows with four Best in Show with their Florida White.
The Lawrence County 4-H rabbit Club wants to thank all of its sponsors for making the event possible. The local business sponsors were: Golden Corral, Rural King, Tractor Supply, Crowder’s Pharmacy, Lincoln Plaza Pharmacy, Timeless Images Photography, Chase Briscoe Racing, Bubba’s Pizza, Casa Brava, Wings and Rings, JavAroma, Hubler’s, Kim’s Klassique, Paws to Pasture Animal Services, FM&C Mercantile, Wilstem Wildlife Park, abrprint.com, and the Lawrence County Tourism Commission.
