Show schedules
Schedules for every NMC show are published in advance in the NMC News, the NMC's official monthly magazine. These show the classes that will be judged at the show and tell the exhibitor which class to enter their mice into and who to contact to make their entries.
General information and prize money
Let's use the below schedule as an example. First of all, this schedule tells us that this show is held in cooperation with the Bradford Small Livestock Society. The big bold title is of course the name of the show, and the lines underneath this tell us when and where the show is to be held.
The names by the various sections are the judges who will be responsible for judging those sections. It is normal to appoint a separate judge for BIS at larger shows, and sometimes a reserve ('res.'). As you can see, there is always a specified time by which judging should begin. This means that by this time all mice should be present on the tables, correctly labelled and ready.
'Block entry' just means that the entry fee for each mouse is whatever is specified here. As you can see, prize money for mouse classes is not a lot and often does not cover entry fees. The object is not to win money. Occasionally the larger or more important shows have extra prize money available.
'Marked Section sponsored by' means that the person guaranteeing the section puts up the prize money for it. Individual classes can also be guaranteed, as seen in this example for self blue and blue point siamese.
General information and prize money
Let's use the below schedule as an example. First of all, this schedule tells us that this show is held in cooperation with the Bradford Small Livestock Society. The big bold title is of course the name of the show, and the lines underneath this tell us when and where the show is to be held.
The names by the various sections are the judges who will be responsible for judging those sections. It is normal to appoint a separate judge for BIS at larger shows, and sometimes a reserve ('res.'). As you can see, there is always a specified time by which judging should begin. This means that by this time all mice should be present on the tables, correctly labelled and ready.
'Block entry' just means that the entry fee for each mouse is whatever is specified here. As you can see, prize money for mouse classes is not a lot and often does not cover entry fees. The object is not to win money. Occasionally the larger or more important shows have extra prize money available.
'Marked Section sponsored by' means that the person guaranteeing the section puts up the prize money for it. Individual classes can also be guaranteed, as seen in this example for self blue and blue point siamese.
Classes
On the right hand side of the example schedule above, the classes that are available to enter are listed. There is a column of numbers on either side of the description (e.g. "PE White" or "Argente") and these are the class numbers. The left hand column (odd numbers) is for the Adult classes and the right hand column (even numbers) for the u/8 classes (under 8 weeks). This enables an exhibitor to enter their mouse in the right class for its age.
Some classes contain two colours; for example, class 27 is for both black and blue Dutch. It is up to the show organisers whether or not to group two colours together. If two colours are put in the same class like this then they should be comparable. For example, there would not be a class for champagne and agouti satins.
'AOC' means Any Other Colour. In the schedule above, any colour of self mouse not already mentioned in the preceeding classes would go in the AOC Self class.
'AOV' means Any Other Variety. As with AOC, any variety not specifically mentioned in the schedule will go in this class. It is usually the rarer colours and varieties that end up in the AOC and AOV classes.
The 'Challenges' are judged at the end of each section. All the class winners in an age group (adult or u/8) are brought back to the judging table and considered against each other. The best mouse from each age group then competes for Best In Section. Depending on the age of the winning mouse (under 8 weeks or adult), the best mouse from the opposite age group is considered the Best Opposite Age (BOA) in Section. At the end of the show the BIS is chosen from the five Section winners. The BOA in Show is then chosen from the age group not containing the BIS (e.g. if an adult won BIS, the BOA would be chosen from the best babies - from any remaining u/8 section winners or BOA in Section mice).
The Juvenile class judges the best mouse exhibited by a juvenile member. 'Stud Buck' is a class for the mice which will produce the best progeny, not necessarily the mouse that conforms most closely to the standard. A stud mouse should be a big buck with a wide skull and good bone structure. It has often been said that a good stud buck will be 'a macho mouse, a real brute'!
The auction class is for trios of mice that can be purchased at the show. They can be of any variety but should ideally be at least a matched trio (2 does and a buck, preferably the same age - either adult or u/8).
Unstandardised classes allow exhibitors to show mice which have not earned an official standard. This might be a colour, a coat type, marking or any other feature that makes them unique. Mice with provisional standards (for example, currently the Splashed) are shown in the appropriate section rather than unstandardised.
On the right hand side of the example schedule above, the classes that are available to enter are listed. There is a column of numbers on either side of the description (e.g. "PE White" or "Argente") and these are the class numbers. The left hand column (odd numbers) is for the Adult classes and the right hand column (even numbers) for the u/8 classes (under 8 weeks). This enables an exhibitor to enter their mouse in the right class for its age.
Some classes contain two colours; for example, class 27 is for both black and blue Dutch. It is up to the show organisers whether or not to group two colours together. If two colours are put in the same class like this then they should be comparable. For example, there would not be a class for champagne and agouti satins.
'AOC' means Any Other Colour. In the schedule above, any colour of self mouse not already mentioned in the preceeding classes would go in the AOC Self class.
'AOV' means Any Other Variety. As with AOC, any variety not specifically mentioned in the schedule will go in this class. It is usually the rarer colours and varieties that end up in the AOC and AOV classes.
The 'Challenges' are judged at the end of each section. All the class winners in an age group (adult or u/8) are brought back to the judging table and considered against each other. The best mouse from each age group then competes for Best In Section. Depending on the age of the winning mouse (under 8 weeks or adult), the best mouse from the opposite age group is considered the Best Opposite Age (BOA) in Section. At the end of the show the BIS is chosen from the five Section winners. The BOA in Show is then chosen from the age group not containing the BIS (e.g. if an adult won BIS, the BOA would be chosen from the best babies - from any remaining u/8 section winners or BOA in Section mice).
The Juvenile class judges the best mouse exhibited by a juvenile member. 'Stud Buck' is a class for the mice which will produce the best progeny, not necessarily the mouse that conforms most closely to the standard. A stud mouse should be a big buck with a wide skull and good bone structure. It has often been said that a good stud buck will be 'a macho mouse, a real brute'!
The auction class is for trios of mice that can be purchased at the show. They can be of any variety but should ideally be at least a matched trio (2 does and a buck, preferably the same age - either adult or u/8).
Unstandardised classes allow exhibitors to show mice which have not earned an official standard. This might be a colour, a coat type, marking or any other feature that makes them unique. Mice with provisional standards (for example, currently the Splashed) are shown in the appropriate section rather than unstandardised.