WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
A pedigree is basically a "family tree"; showing back three generations of that rabbit's ancestors. It's actually very easy (though time-consuming), to create a pedigree for my babies, as long as I have the parent's pedigrees. It's impossible to pedigree your rabbit without the pedigrees of the parents.
WHAT DOES A PEDIGREE DO?
It says that your rabbit is purebred. As long as three generations of a rabbit are all the same breed, it is considered purebred. Holland Lop breeders find pedigrees very useful for other purposes as well. A pedigree lists the names, colors, awards that a rabbit received at a show (if any), what rabbitry the rabbit came from, and their ear number, besides much more. Pedigrees are used while breeding to see if a rabbit is related to the rabbit you are breeding it to; what colors could be produced in the mating; how well the ancestors did on the show table; and even the weights of the ancestors so you can know that make an estimated guess on how big the baby rabbit can be expected to become.
For show breeders, the pedigree grants even more then that. Besides what I've already mentioned, once a rabbit has won three legs (a certain award), at a show, they can send in information to get a Grand Champion Certificate. It costs a few dollars per rabbit, and is a highly prized certificate and states the champion status. You can only get a GC certificate if your rabbit has a pedigree. Your rabbit can also become registered if it has a pedigree. Registration is something that some breeders do with every rabbit; something that a breeder does to some rabbits; or something that a breeder doesn't do at all. Registering your rabbit also costs a few dollars. A rabbit can be registered once it reaches 6 months as long as it is free of disqualifications on the show table.
WHY AREN'T PETS SOLD WITH PEDIGREES?
At Holly's Hollands Rabbitry we don't sell pets with pedigrees. Why? Well, because it takes a lot of time and work to make a pedigree. A pedigree is only useful if you are going to breed or show your rabbit. The *pet* bunnies are listed as a pet because I don't think they would do well on the show table or they have a fault that would make them disqualified from competition. Giving a pedigree to pet owners would also raise the price of the rabbit, since pedigrees take time and work to create.