New Zealand Rabbit

The New Zealand babies in the picture above are just about 7 weeks old and are only about 2.2 pounds each. They are just as sweet and cuddly as any rabbit can be. They are munching on a green apple while they pose to have their pictures taken!


The New Zealand is a wonderful rabbit and makes a great beginner bunny. They are quite social and outgoing, and enjoy being part of the family. They like everybody and most household pets, and they are not biters.

One of their greatest features is that they usually love to be handled. Pick them up, set them down, or hold them in your lap! They are often likened to "big rag dolls" because they flop down kind of like a rag doll, accommodating any cuddly manner in which you wish to hold them. They can even be carried across your shoulder!

As with all good sized rabbits, the New Zealand will need a bigger area to move around in. They need regular excercise as they can gain weight easily. Keep treats to a minimum., even though your pet will beg you for them. The babies in our picture above will soon outgrow the cage we have them in!

Description:

A medium sized rabbit, the New Zealand adult will get up to 11 pounds.

Color differences: As you can see in the picture above, the New Zealand rabbits are generally pure white rabbits with red eyes and pinkish coloring in their ears, but they can also be brick red or black.

Lionhead Rabbit

The Lionhead Rabbit is the newest breed of rabbit, first imported into the United States in 1999. Along with the introduction of this adorable little rabbit with its erect ears, the cute little Lionhead Lop was developed!


A Lionhead Lop is a hybrid rabbit developed by crossing a Lionhead Rabbit with a Holland Lop. Lionheads crossed with the Mini-Rex are referred to as Velvet Lionheads. Their are many hybrids of the Lionhead and they are all very cute, very unique, and will make excellent pets!

The outstanding characteristic of the Lionhead Lop and the Lionhead Rabbit is that they have a 'mane'. These small rabbits are much easier to care for than longhaired or wooly rabbits like the Angoras, because their mane only needs to be combed out every couple of days. The mane on the Lionhead Lop does tend to mat a bit more than on the erect eared Lionhead Rabbit.

One thing to keep in mind when getting a young Lionhead is that this is a very new breed, and you won't know what your pet will look like until it grows up! There is no absolute certainty that it will keep its mane. The mane may molt and disappear for good or it may grow back even fuller than it was before.

Description:

The Lionhead Rabbit is a small bunny that has a 'mane'! The Lionhead Rabbit is unique to all other "new breeds" of rabbits. It has the first major mutation in rabbits since 'satin' fur first appeared in a litter of Havana's in the early 1900's. Unlike most fur mutations that are recessive genes, the Lionhead has what seems to be a dominant mutation that causes the 'mane'. So only one parent is required to have this gene to produce more Lionheads and it cannot be recreated using other breeds!

Color differences:

The Lionhead Rabbits come in many patterns and color varieties. Sixty colors are approved for showing in England!

Dutch Rabbit

Description:
The adult size is about 4 1/2 pounds. Medium sized and large sized rabbits can get much larger than that! Dutch rabbits can be identified by their distinctive markings, which include the white blaze on their faces and the white band around their upper bodies.


Color differences:
Black is the most popular color of the Dutch Rabbits but other nice colors include blue, chocolate, tortoise, steel gray, and gray.

Anggora Rabbit

Description:
There are four recognized breeds that are bred for showing. The English, French, and Satin Angora are medium in size while the Giant is considered a large.

English Angora:

This breed is probably the most distinctive since it has long heavy fur that covers it's body so that it is hard to tell the rabbit features like it's ears and face. (It is often mistaken for a small dog). Its body is rounded and so it literally looks like a ball of fluff. The fur on the face is fairly short and if you look closely you will see a doll baby face with large round eyes. There are fluffy tassels of wool lining the ears and the wool is silky and fine which makes it very soft.
Most English angoras are very calm having being bred for good disposition in order to properly groom them. The English may grow to about 8.5 lbs. but is better to show at about 6 lbs.

French Angora:

The first picture above shows two French Angoras. They have no wool on their head, face, ears, or front feet. The rest of the body has a slightly coarse wool which is easy to spin. The French Angora's wool is the easiest to care for. It can weigh up to 10.5 lbs, with 9.9 lbs being ideal.

Satin Angora:

The Satin Angora's wool looks like shimmering fibers. It does not have wool on the head, face, ears, or front feet. In this respect it is similar to the French Angora. The wool feels lighter and less dense than the other breeds because it is much finer.

Giant Angora:

This also is a very distinctive rabbit, mainly because of it's size! For showing they must be completely white. They have the densest wool of all the breeds, with a double undercoat which also gives them the most wool. They should weigh over 9 lbs.

Flemish Giant Rabbit Breed

Nothing is more awe inspiring in the bunny world than a Flemish Giant. Often referred to as gentle giants, these rabbits can grow larger than a dog, and can be quite the conversation stopper when they come casually hopping through someone's back yard!

The Flemish Giant first came to fame in America in the early 1900's , when people began to show off these giant beauties at county fairs and shows. Like the New Zealand White, they are highly prized for both their meat and their fur, and make excellent pets due to their docile and friendly natures.

As with all rabbits, it is important to get your Flemish Giant Rabbit used to being handled, and to associate you with positive things. Because these rabbits are relatively large, the bite or scratch you get from them will be much more painful than that of a mini lop or dwarf breed. Having said that, if you treat your bunny well, bites and scratches are more of a rarity than a rule.

A Flemish Giant may be a good choice if you are looking for something with a relaxed temperament that doesn't need to run around like a mad thing too much. Unlike their smaller counterparts, Flemish Giants are quite happy to lay around a fair bit, though be warned, they do consume a lot more feed than smaller rabbits.

If you're considering a Flemish Giant, also consider the cage you will need for these bunnies. 30 by 48 inches is considered to be the smallest acceptable floor space for a single Flemish Giant, though larger quarters are of course, encouraged.

Flemish Giants come in a range of colors, light greys, sandy tones, darker greys, fawns, whites, blacks, and blues are all possible colors for a Flemish Giant.

An average Flemish Giant generally weighs around 6.5 to 7 kgs, or 14 - 15.5 pounds. If you would like to show your Flemish Giant Rabbit, or would simply like to know what the breed's ideal standards are, here are a few things to look out for:

Head: The Flemish Giant has a large and well shaped head. The eyes should be bright and alert, and the ears should stand nicely erect.

Body: The body of a Flemish Giant Rabbit should be long and powerful. It should be in proportion throughout the entire body. The hindquarters should be nice and thick, and the flesh of the rabbit should be solid and well formed. The fur should be glossy and thick set.

Faults: Too much fat is considered a fault in Flemish Giant Rabbits, as is baggy skin. The coat should be even in color, so patchy colored coats are frowned upon. The rump should be nicely rounded, so square looking hindquarters are not good, neither are wedge shaped heads, or ears that are not carried nicely erect.

Tips When Choosing A Rabbit Cage

Choosing a rabbit cage for your bunnies isn’t so much of a challenge if you know what to provide for your pets. By giving them a lot of room to move around in, enough food and water, toys and chewable treats, your bunnies will be able to live happily and healthily with you. Sadly though. There are those who still don’t know the basics of taking care of a rabbit or how to choose a rabbit cage for their bunnies. They think that just because rabbits are small and light that they don’t need a cage that’s big and roomy, and that a rabbit cage that’s the “right size” is already enough to keep them happy.

Rabbit Cage

If you want to avoid making your bunnies unhappy, here are some tips when choosing a rabbit cage for them:

• Size is very important, especially when choosing a rabbit cage for indoors and outdoors. The indoor rabbit cage, for example, has to be large enough for your rabbit to move around in, which is usually within the range of 100 to 120 cm in length. Whether your rabbits are of a smaller breed or are normally heavy in weight, just remember that the bigger the hutch, the better.
• When it comes to specifically the height, a rabbit cage should allow the rabbit to sit up straight without the ears touching the roof of the cage. Most experts would usually suggest a height of 40 cm or more.
• Believe it or not, even the cage door should be large enough for your bunnies. It’s also a good idea to get a cage where the door can function as a ramp as well.
  

Basic Rules When Choosing a Rabbit Cage

It’s always exciting when there’s a new pet in the house, especially when they’re cute and fluffy rodents like rabbits. But no matter how small, quiet, or well-behaved rabbits are, you still need to know how to take care of it and what to provide it in order for him or her to live happily and healthily with you. Usually the first step is knowing how to choose or create a rabbit cage or hutch for it to live in, so if you just bought rabbits and are looking for ideas on how to build them a home, this article is going to help you.

Giant Flemish Rabbit

It is thought that the Flemish Giant Rabbit is a cross between large rabbits from Flanders and giant Patagonian rabbits. Dutch traders travelled to Argentina in the 16th and 17th century bringing back the giant wild rabbits. The first record of Flemish Giant Rabbits is in 1860. Travellers returning to England from Flanders told stories of the giant rabbits they had seen. Rabbit was a very popular source of meat and the English rabbit breeders decided to import the Flemish Giant to help satisfy the market. A typical English rabbit weighed 7 - 8 lbs, whilst the Flemish Giant weighed in at 14lbs!

These giant rabbits are very strong physically and also have very strong characters. They have a reputation for not being easy to breed, the mothering instinct is not renowned and the mortality rate amongst the babies can be high. They also have enormous appetites! There are 7 distinct colours in the modern Flemish Giant; black, blue, fawn, light grey, steel grey, white and sandy/natural. The female may have a dewlap (a fold of loose skin hanging from the throat) the fur of which she uses for lining her nest and keeping her young warm.

Two black silver fox rabbits

Two black silver fox rabbits nuzzle up to each other at the Kids’ Farm in the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. There are four rabbits now on exhibit. Known for its gentle disposition, this particular breed was developed in the U.S. in the early twentieth century and has two recognized variations: blue and black.

Rabbit Health

The health of our rabbits is extremely important to us. Over the years we have found some things to protect from outbreaks which can kill or hinder the usefulness of a rabbit.

Snuffles-Caused by Pasteurella Multocida, which is a bacteria which is very persistant. The symptoms are a runny nose with white drainage and sneezing. It does not usually kill the rabbit, but can render them useless, because it is so highly contagious. You cannot show a rabbit that has snuffles, and you should not breed with a rabbit with snuffles. I acquired my first rabbit with snuffles in 2003. She was a white English Angora from New Mexico. I was ignorant at the time, and did not know what a disaster this would produce in my rabbitry. Within 6 months, about 50% of my rabbits, (I only had 35 back then) were infected. I was so upset!!. I put all the infected rabbits outside, and gradually some of them started to get well with the help of LA 200 injections. LA 200 is a tetracycline. ½-¾ cc is the amount I use. It is given subcutaneously, right under their skin. In those early days, they would sometimes become re-infected.

Over the years, I tried new tactics. I have started to vaccinate the rabbits. I use Poly-Bac vaccine from www.jefferscom. I give .25cc SQ to babies after 4 week, and .3 cc to adults. I vaccinate them about 3 times, once per month. I also revaccinate if they get snuffles. I mix 1/2cc tetracycline with .3 cc Poly-bac in the syringe and give it SQ. Then I repeat just the antibiotic for 5-7 days, once per day.

Baytril is also a good antibiotic to use for rabbits. I give .4cc SQ 2x/day x 7-10 days. It can be given orally.

Pneumonia-Pasteurella Multocida can also cause pneumonia in rabbits. They seem fine and then all of a sudden are congested in the lungs and can't breathe very well. An antibiotic injection at this time can save them if administered quickly. I usually use a double dose of 1 cc SQ initially and then a 1/2 cc dose daily for 7 days.

Wry Neck-This is a very scarey condition that can be caused by the Pasteurella Multocida bacteria or other infectious agents. It hits the rabbits at any age. I've seen 3 week old bunnies get it. They start with a little head tilt and get worse until they are contorted and rolling around the cage. It may be an inner ear infection or a type of encephalitis. Sometimes a rabbit will completely recover. At other times, the rabbit will never regain the proper head set. A slight tilt will not incapacitate a rabbit, but a complete tilt will cause contortion and inhibit mobility. I treat rabbits with this condition with LA 200, 1/2cc-3/4 cc x 7 days. I also treat with Ivermec 0.1cc orally x1 dose. Some sources think wry neck may be from mites or worms.

Eye Infections Little bunny eyes are very sensitive to infections. Once I had an entire litter come down with infected eyes before I noticed it. I started treating immediately as soon I found the little swollen, draining eyes. I use Terramycin ophthalmic ointment. I also get this online from www.jeffers.com. It costs about $10.00 per tube. It is a necessity to have around, as the infections are easily cleared up if treated immediately.

Wasting syndrome-(not the true medical term)- What a heartbreaking condition this is! It hits baby bunnies must of the time. It may or may not be accompanied by diarrhea. Clostridium may be the cause. I have lost entire litters from this. Usually just one bunny in a litter will be affected. The bunny just starts losing weight. Usually by the time I notice, it is too late. The bunny gets lethargic and usually quietly dies within about 2 days. I have found that a tiny pinch of powdered Lactobacillus in the water of bunnies will help prevent this. Also, I treat it successfully with Sulmet (Sulfamethazine) solution. I put 2 tablespoons into one gallon and use this for drinking water for the rabbit. It takes weeks to treat this condition. I can usually save the bunnies that I treat. Fresh grass hay given every day helps to develop the bunny intestines and prevent this problem.

Isolation Techniques- Because I am a nurse, I am aware of the importance of good hand washing and isolation procedures as a way of preventing the spread of infections. I discovered early on that the alcohol based hand cleanser works well and I frequently cleanse hands. It took me a while longer to figure out how to utilize isolation for my rabbits even in a small room. I discovered that if I put a tarp or paper feed sacks between my stackable cages this provided an effective isolation device. This way if the rabbit sneezes, the bacterial spray will go only as far as the barrier. I even put barriers between the cages if the rabbits are healthy, which most of them are. I like feed bags best, because they are plentiful, and can be changed frequently.

Disinfection- I usually use Vanodine solution which I purchase from www.bunnyrabbit.com. It is safe for the rabbits and provides good disinfection. Each week, the trays are rinsed clean, sprayed with vanodine solution, and have clean pine shavings added. Some breeders use newspapers, or nothing in the trays. I like the pine, because it has disinfectant properties and I have not felt that it harms the rabbits. Twice a week cleaning and disinfection is necessary during some weather and environments. I also spray with Vanodine solution when I change rabbits from one cage to another, and spray the nest boxes between uses also.

Rabbit Nutrition

A good basic pellet is all the nutrition a rabbit really needs to survive. We feed a high quality show feed here at Zinns' Farm Usually it's Star's Ace High. There are many other excellent brands. Sometimes a brand will not be available in some geographical areas. Get a brand that has little corn. Protein content should be about 16%. Dwarf breeds like we have need about 3/4 cup per day. Moms with kits need to have feed available all the time.

Grass hay is a great treat for bunnies. We feed Bermuda hay. Timothy hay is nice too, but it is more expensive. Each bunny gets a handful of hay about every other day. Babies under 1 month of age get hay every day. It helps their intestinal tract develop. Hay also helps prevent wool block.

Salt/mineral blocks are helpful. I especially keep them in the cages of each doe. I think it helps prevent them getting carried away and eating the babies.

Many people think papaya tabs or dried papaya helps prevent wool blocks.

Water needs to be available all the time. A bottle keeps the water cleaner than a crock usually. Bottles need to be disinfected with dilute bleach water about once every 2 weeks. Rinse extremely well.

How to care for your rabbit?

Pet Rabbits are very easy to care for, some are easier than others. Some pet rabbits are friendly and some are a little uppity. This depends a lot on how you care for them and the time you spend with them. One of the first things you have to decide is; do I want to keep my pet rabbit outside or inside? If you want to keep it inside then you have to make sure you can protect it from the hazards in your house! What? Hazards in my house? What could possibly hurt my house rabbit in the house! A lot of things can harm a rabbit in your house, just as a child can find things to get into so can a rabbit. Probably the most dangerous things in your house for your hopper are the electrical cords running all over the place. Many rabbits have chewed into electric cords and been killed or severely burned causing them to be crippled or to have to be put down. To prevent this go to your local hardware store and purchase flexible conduit covers to fit over your cords. They come split down the middle and slip right over the cords. Your rabbit may still chew on them but at least he wouldn't get burned.
		Everyone wants to hold a Rabbit
		Rabbit girl heroine of the Rabbitry ready to care for her Rabbits

Most people who want to have a house rabbit designate one room for the rabbit. This allows them to control the movements of the rabbit and helps to keep the rabbit safe. This also keeps down the damage a rabbit can do to the furniture. Rabbits love to chew, this is how a rabbit spends a lot of his day. He just loves to munch on anything he can sample. Why don't we provide our pet with a little something to keep him happy?

University studies show that rabbits confined to cages will have many more emotional and physical problems if they do not have hay to munch on while they are confined. This makes a lot of sense to me as I have observed this behavior both in the wild and by my rabbits that I hold in cages. This is why all my rabbits always have hay in their pens. The study also showed that rabbits with hay were calmer than rabbits without. If you have a fuzzy rabbit the hay will help to prevent hair blocks. I strongly suggest you do feed hay as well. Some hays are better then others but most are better then none.

Be very careful about feeding your rabbit watery green vegetables such as Ice burg lettuce. This can and will cause diarrhea and is always fatal in rabbits. You can feed him dark vegetables such as collards. This is even better for them than their pellets as it is a healthy diet. Feed at a rate of about a cup a day for an average size rabbit (about 4 to 5lbs.). Most green vegetables are fine just stay away from the real watery ones. And of course you can feed him carrots. Be careful feeding them fruits as they will make them fat. Feed these as a treat and your rabbit will love you.

Feed your rabbit oats because this is also a great food source.
Be sure to consult a veterinarian if you have any questions about caring for your rabbit or if they become ill.
If you decide to keep your rabbit outside be sure to keep him out of the sun. Rabbits are very susceptible to heat stroke. If the temperature is above 90 degrees F. you should mist the cage or maybe freeze a plastic bottle and put it in his cage.

Don't put your rabbit's cage where dogs or other animals can get to it and endanger your pet. Always keep your rabbits cage clean and disinfected just don't do it with your pet in the cage. Well this is just a few pointers so keep on learning and enjoy your pet.

Never put a boy rabbit in a girl rabbit's pen she will fight him. If you want them to visit put her in with him. Visit this page to learn about what your rabbit thinks; it's great fun!

How to house break your rabbit?

It's really easy to house break your pet rabbit. Here's what you do when you get him home. Just watch him in his new cage, when your bunny decides he needs to go it will pick one corner to go in. Now you have all the info you need. Just put a little of that litter(urine and pellets) into your new litter pan. That should be all the help your bunnie needs to learn where to go.

You'll have to leave your pet in the pen for a few hours so that the bunny will get used to it's new litter pan and then you should be done. Now you can take the pan out (not to far away) of it's home and he will still use it on the floor near his home!

Silver fox rabbits debut at Kids' Farm

Four silver fox rabbits have a new home at the Kids’ Farm in the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. This particular breed was developed in the U.S. in the early twentieth century and has two recognized variations: blue and black. Blue silver pictured here.

Playboy Bunnies in Need of a Safe Home

The Lower Keys marsh rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris hefneri) was named for Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy magazine and the organization famous for its "Playboy Bunny" hostesses.

Rosanna Tursi, a master's student and graduate teaching assistant at the University of Central Florida, is using population genetics to aid in the conservation of the rabbits, which were declared endangered in 1990, according to a UCF news release. It is estimated that there are less than 300 of the Hefneri rabbits left in the wild.

Hefneri, the most recently recognized subspecies of the marsh rabbit, is small with short, dark brown fur and a grayish-white belly.

"Discovered in 1984, the subspecies was named in honor of Hefner after his organization donated money to support fieldwork on the rabbits," UCF says in a news release.

"Hefneri live in an island environment and are dependent on specific grasses and plants for feeding, nesting and shelter. Population growth and development in the [Florida] Lower Keys has led to the death of the bunnies at the hands of vehicles or domestic animals. Their natural habitat also is being destroyed."

According to Tursi, the ability of a species to adapt to new conditions depends on the variety of genetic information present in natural populations. The more genetic diversity a species has, the greater its rate of survival is.

"The loss of genetic diversity can have long-term repercussions by affecting the evolutionary potential of the species," Tursi said.

Photo courtesy Rosanna Tursi

UCF Assistant Professor Eric Hoffman and Philip Hughes, an endangered species biologist with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) in Big Pine Key, landed a grant to study the bunnies, the university release says. "Tursi joined the team and is conducting fieldwork this summer in the Everglades and Florida Keys. The USFWS is interested in Tursi's finding because it wants to prevent the bunnies' from becoming extinct."

Plans to Relocate the Bunnies

The FWS hopes to identify rabbits from the most genetically diverse populations, relocate them and create a new population in a habitat where the bunnies are less likely to be disturbed, the university added.

The project was a perfect thesis subject for Tursi, who earned a degree in Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Biotechnology from Florida Atlantic University before enrolling at UCF, the university added.

"Nature and conservation of wildlife have always been my passion, and I wanted to use my molecular and genetic knowledge to help endangered species," Tursi said.

Hoffman said Tursi's work could certainly help keep the species viable.

"Our hope is to both characterize the amount of diversity in the Keys populations and determine which rabbit populations would provide the best rabbits to found new translocated populations set up by the USFWS," Hoffman said.

Tursi is currently working with another marsh rabbit subspecies, Sylvilagus palustris paludicola, which is native to South Florida and the Everglades.

"She is using hair follicles gathered from mainland rabbits to extract DNA," UCF says. "Once sample collection is finished, Tursi will conduct DNA analysis and compare the diversities of the paludicola and hefneri over the next four or five months."