An Introduction to the Largest Rabbits on Earth
No rabbit breed is more awe inspiring than the Flemish Giant. These rabbits have been known to grow bigger than a dog. The average Flemish Giant weighs a massive fifteen pounds.
Flemish Giants became popular at the turn of the last century, when European exhibitors brought them to America to show them at county fairs around the nation. They have always been highly prized for their luxurious, soft fur, but their friendly, docile temperament makes them a popular choice of pet too.
Handle with Care
Just as with any rabbit, if you choose a Flemish Giant as a pet it will take him a little time to get used to being handled. Read more…
French Lop Rabbits – The Other European Big Boys
The French Lop has been in existence since the middle of the nineteenth century, the breed coming from the cross breeding of Flemish Giants and English Lops. As a result the French Lop has a slightly larger body than its cross channel cousin, and slightly less ear than its huge Flemish ancestors. Read more…
New Zealand Rabbits come in a virtual rainbow of colors, including red white and blue! Originally bred for meat and their unusually luxurious fur, the New Zealand is now one of the most popular breeds in the world of rabbit showing.
Usually bucks weigh ten pounds and females tip the scales at around eleven pounds.
Overweight New Zealand Rabbits are not as graceful as slimmer animals, though their bodies should be deep and broad.
The head should also be broad. New Zealand Rabbits are a medium length breed and have very straight, stocky front legs that are considerably shorter than many other breeds. They also have fairly short necks and carry their ears evenly, with little droop. The show rabbit’s ears should have round tips and should be quite furry! Doe New Zealand Rabbits are still considered attractive show animals even with a small dewlap. Read more…
When is a Hare Not a Hare? When it’s a Belgian Hare Rabbit
A Belgian Hare is a rabbit with a very unique appearance and as you may have guessed, they originally came from Belgium in the late 19th century. The Belgian Hare was deliberately bred to resemble a wild hare, and share some its’ basic traits. With a sleek and wiry coat, large straight ears and long back legs. Its slender, delicately boned appearance earned the Belgian Hare the nickname “Race Horse of the Rabbit Fancy.”
Fallen Superstars
The first Belgian Hares appeared in Belgium Read more…
Meet the Rex, Large and Small
Rex rabbits come in two main types, the Standard Rex, and its’ smaller cousin, the Mini Rex. Both breeds have a luxurious, velvety fur that was once the main reason they were bred, as it’s coat was in high demand by the fur trade, although that practice has all but ceased these days.
The Big Boy in the Family- The Standard Rex
A Standard Rex usually weighs somewhere between seven and eleven pounds, and comes in a huge range of colors. Breeders have had great success in breeding Rex’s of many different hues, and the Rex rabbits of today can be found in Blue, Black, Chocolate, Lilac, Amber and Sable, to name just a few. Read more…
Angora Rabbit Basics
Angora Rabbits are famous for their abundance of fur and their cute, cuddly appearance. Some of them can be so furry it is hard to tell at a quick glance that they are rabbits at all. The wool harvested from their abundant coat is one of the most desirable in the world. But how difficult is it for the first timer to successfully raise a happy, healthy angora?
Caring for that Coat
As you might imagine, grooming is a bigger chore for the angora owner than for those who choose a different breed. Most experienced angora owners use Read more…
English Spot Rabbits – Professional Show Offs
The English Rabbit, also known as the English Spot Rabbit is one of the oldest breeds of show rabbit in the world. The original English rabbit was traditionally white and black, or white and blue, but since the 1920s show associations have accepted many other colors including chocolate, lilac and tortoiseshell.
A Long and Storied History
The English rabbit first appeared around 1848, in England of course. After an initial burst of popularity on the show circuit the breed the English Spot died out somewhat. However it burst back onto the scene in the late 1880’s in new colors and varieties and has remained a rabbit fancy favorite ever since. Read more…
The Dwarf Lop – Colorful and Cuddly
A Dwarf Lop is very similar in appearance to its’ similarly sized cousin, the Mini Lop. The only real difference is size, the Dwarf Lop being larger by a pound or so on average.
Both breeds make great pets, but as the Dwarf Lop lives to an average of nine or ten years old, they are rabbits that will be around for a long time, with proper care and handling.
Do the Ears Hang Low?
The baby Dwarf Lop is born, like all breeds of lop, with ears that stand up straight. As they mature Read more…
Dutch Rabbits – One of the Rabbit Fancier’s Greatest Challenges
One of the most popular shows breeds in the world these days is the Dutch rabbit.
They are characterized by their very distinctive markings. This makes them extremely challenging to breed for show purposes, as for Dutch rabbits to show successfully their markings must be in a very specific pattern.
The Dutch rabbit is most popularly said to have originated, as its name suggests, in Holland. They first appeared in England in 1864 and had become very popular by the turn of the century. Read more…
Cute, Cuddly and Economical
The Mini Rex is now the most shown breed in the world, and one of the most popular with pet owners. Yet they have only actually been around since the mid eighties, when Mona Berryhill, a breeder from Texas, successfully bred a Dwarf Rex to a Lynx Rex.
So what is it about these little guys that make them so very popular?
The Mini Rex is of course very small, averaging three to four pounds in weight. Their fur is extremely luxurious but not so long that they require constant grooming. Read more…