Archive for April 25th, 2011
A Selection Of Larger Breeds
April 25th, 2011
With the growing interest in keeping rabbits in the home, larger breeds have become very popular and they can be given plenty of space to roam. Some of the rabbits are larger and heavier in size that s a small dog. As an example, the British giant is closely-related to the Flemish giant, weights up to 6.1 kg. The breed originated from stock kept as long ago as the 1500s around the city of Ghent in Belgium.
Flemish Giant: The traditional color of the Flemish giant is steel grey, and it was the refusal of the British show authorities to recognize this breed in other colors that originally triggered the development of the British giant strain in the 1930s. The Flemish giant is still better known internationally, and is also slightly heavier, averaging 7-8kg. These large rabbits are known to be friendly, with calm temperaments. As house-rabbits they will settle quickly into a domestic lifestyle, and can be trained to use a litter tray from an early stage. Although the typical agouti-patterned form, resembling that if the wild rabbit, is commonly seen, a range of colors from pure white through to blue and black is available as well.
New Zealand Varieties: Several varieties of rabbit have their origins in New Zealand. The original white variety was created as a meat breed. It has well-muscled body and relatively short ears, typically weighting up to 5.4kg.
