arethics

Ethics

     Ethics. This is a word I have been hearing quite often on various rabbit forums.
For those who don’t kow the meaning of this word, the Webster Dictionary states:
                                “a system or set of moral principles”
     There are ethics that everyone should know as they apply to every day life.
However there are ethics that are common mistakes made by beginners. Some are
mistakes that most of us probably made, as we weren’t told that this was wrong when first starting out, so had no other way for knowing.

      The first that comes to mind is pedigrees. When first starting out some people
change the surname on the pedigrees of rabbits that they buy. The surname is to be of the breeder who bred the rabbit, not who currently owns the rabbit and should not be changed. The surname would be Smith’s in “Smith’s Bob”, Bob being the rabbit’s call name. Unless the breeder says otherwise, it’s best to leave the call name as is on the pedigree. You can name the rabbit whatever you want, but the pedigree should not be changed.
       If you buy a rabbit where on the pedigree the place for the name of the rabbit is
blank, if you know the breeder’s surname put it in there along with the name you gave the rabbit. If you don’t know it, just put the rabbit’s name there. Do not put your surname, as that will be dishonest as you did not breed the animal.
      Sometimes you might buy a rabbit where it just says “Smith’s” with no name for
the rabbit. You can fill in what you name the rabbit after the surname.
      If you have a website, make sure to include the breeder’s surname on it where you have the rabbit’s name. When people come to your site, they want to know who your rabbits are out of.

      When showing rabbits, the judge is not to know which rabbit is whose. This
means do not tell them which is yours, point it out, even if to someone else, or anything else. Also do not ask people which one is their’s.
      Judges should also step away from the table as rabbits come up. I have seen
judges stand there and watch whose rabbits were whose. I have also seen breeders who make sure that the judge sees which one is their’s. I have also seen breeders at the show tables trying to talk up a rabbit, saying loud enough for the judge to hear that they thought it was a beautiful rabbit.

      When showing in youth, something I really could not stand was when adults
would show rabbits under their kid’s names just so they could show in easier competion and win sweepstake contests. If their kids were at the show with them, that would be one thing. But these adults never have any kids with them, and would take the rabbit up themselves, even though in the ARBA show rules it states that youth rabbits must be carried to the table by youth. I have even seen where in one day the adult will have the rabbit enter in their name in open, whereas the next day that rabbit will be entered in the youth show under the kid’s name.
      If rabbits are joint owned by an adult and a kid, that rabbit should never be
entered in a youth show. If it’s registered under both of their names, it’s not allowed to be in youth.

      Faking. This means:
                      “To alter the natural appearance of the rabbit”
      Acts of faking include: plucking white hairs, using tattoo ink to make white nails
black or cover up white hairs, dying, ect.
      In the Standard of Perfection, under ARBA Disqualifications from Competion for all breeds, faking is listed. A rabbit disqualified for faking could result with the
exhibitor’s entire show entry being disqualified.

                                          “Thou shall not steal”
      This is one of the 10 commandments. Stealing is not just stealing an object from a store or from a person. The Webster Dictionary defines this word as:
               “to take the property of another without permission or right”
      I have heard some people say that they have had someone take words or pictures from their website without permission, and then claiming them as their own. This is wrong, as this is their property. Taking another person’s words is plagerism. The dictionary defination of plagerism being:
“the unauthorized use of the language and thoughts of another author and                              the representation of them as one’s own”
      Once someone writes something, it is automatically copyrighted as their own.
Don’t understand what copyright means? Go to whatiscopyright.org.
      Now this is an ongoing problem I’ve been having to deal with for over an year
with a child. This child is a teenager, so is old enough to know what the difference
between right and wrong is and has even admitted to taking my property (I have proof). The articles this child has placed on their website have been taken from my website, the only things being changed being the order of the subjects and very few words. The words that were changed were crucial words, making most of this child’s information incorrect by changing them. Because of the ignorance of this child not learning enough on rabbits before preaching it, they don’t even know which parts are incorrect. After telling them their information was incorrect, they then started posting to message boards to make sure their new information was correct. If you’re going to put something on your site, shouldn’t you know yourself that it’s correct? If you have to ask, you should not be putting it on your site in the first place. How are you going to answer questions then? This is being dishonest to people coming to your site at trying to make them think that you know more than you really do.
                                             “Though shall not lie”
      I have not posted any information on this person: name, website, exact age, him
or her, ect, as then I would be sinking to their level. My only hopes with this article is
that since my emails don’t seem to be getting through to them, hopefully this will. By this person putting up another person’s words, all they’re going to do in the end is ruin their own reputation. People are starting to notice, as I have received emails from people informing me of my articles being posted on this person’s website.

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