Jar show??

I have read that several aquarium clubs organise jar shows and give awards for the best jar (?). Does anybody know what a jar show entails and how it works?

Hello!
I believe that a jar show is a beauty show. You bring your fish, judges look at them and write notes on a paper, discuss together and decide based on a couple of factors (body shape, health, color, finnage I would guess) which one is the most beautiful fish of the jars.

I believe that nowadays they no longer are brought in jars but in temporary setups, but I might be mistaken since I have never been to one. I DID watch a lot of videos tho about such events.

Ahh:
I just did a couple of quick searches and here is one interesting link confirming a couple of aspects I stated:

http://www.calgaryaquariumsociety.com/jar_show.php

We used to have them in Montreal. There would be a theme decided on, and people would bring fish in large jars or transfer them into small tanks. They would be judged by whatever criteria were decided upon.
We discontinued them because of the stress on fish (too many prized fish died) and the change in approaches in the hobby. When linebreeding for fancy tails, etc was "in", shows were a big thing. As the Cichlid hobby caught in, with its emphasis on wild types, the judges lost interest.
I was told that in the 1950s, the annual show was held in a greengouse belonging to the rich part of town, and could draw over 1000 people on a weekend afternoon. Different times.

Mmm, I see a possibility here for our club..... we could combine a jar show with the table discussion on certain groups of fish. When let's say, we talk tetras, people will bring their tetras to show. They will be judged but at the same time, they will be a great starting point for discussion on these fish.

You would have to be prepared for your favourite tetras to die... plus you would need defined judging standards for every species...

I would never bring fish to any show. Photos of fish in nice tanks - by all means. The actual fish? Jar shows are really hard on them. They work for resistant fish like killies (to a point) and bettas, but anything ammonia or stress sensitive? It's a tough call - especially in winter.

Standards is something I am least worried about. You can always do things like public's favourite, least common species, etc.

Regarding the winter: you could leave out the hardest months. When you go to a large auction, fish have the same ammonia and stress. You would have to prepare them in the same way.

It's probably a debate inside a club - not very interesting for everyone of a forum like this. It's not something I would support or expect to have succeed, but if you can talk people into it, go for it.

Never heard of such a thing until now. This is the closest I get to belonging to a Aquarium club.

Yes I have particpated in jar shows in the past. Many years ago when I was a member of the St Catharines Aquarium Society. Here is a link to their rules

http://www.scaas.info/forms.html

I must say that fish put into jars rarely look their best. Jars limit the size of the fish being displayed so you will be serving only a partial interest (what about Oscars and large cichlids etc). My biggest beef is that fish may get sick or damaged during the handling. For small fish, this would be fine but you run the risk of unsettling your prize specimen.
I brought C habrosus one time and the judge thought they were immature paleatus.

On the positive side, this would bring interactivity and "hands on" to others who may be interested in the fish. I love the opportunity to see the fish "live"rather than in pictures.

Seems like an interesting idea and a way to encourage displaying some prize specimens. I can see how this may have originated with fancy guppy breeders.

If you are auctioning fish, you generally sell juveniles. In any kind of show, it's your best, full adults you bring.

To me, every club auction should be a jar show of sorts. You bring good, hardy young fish, and someone else gets to enjoy the results of your work as a breeder.
I don't know about other clubs but in the Montreal English language club, we have trouble getting fish for auction, let alone for shows. I would never bring a killie I had worked hard to find to a show until I had bred it, and then, I'd rather bring juveniles to share, not show.
There is not a great accomplishment in acquiring most fish - the accomplishment worth displaying is that you've bred it. That's where the skills show.