Mystery Solved!

Sun, 29 Jul 2007 13:29:54 -0400

Back in November I wrote about Raine’s disqualification at the Broome County show for improper color. I had always maintained that he is indeed orange and not tort-otter like the judge believed; and now I have the genetic evidence to prove it. The genotype for orange is A_B_C_D_ee, and the genotype for tort-otter is at_B_C_D_ee. A being dominant over at, it would be impossible for a tort-otter, mated to a self, to have an agouti-patterned offspring.
As you can see on my litter page, I mated Raine with Brooke, a black self. Of the six offspring, five have the agouti pattern. Another nice surprise was to find that both parents also carry the dilute gene, producing two opals in the litter.
Raine is improperly colored for an orange though. Because he is black instead of chocolate, his color is smutty and he has the blue undercoat that so confused the judges.

My Favorite Bunny Book

Wed, 18 Jul 2007 21:12:58 -0400

I recently finished reading Watership Down by Richard Adams for what had to be the twelfth time. I discovered this book when I was in the fifth grade and did a book report on it. If you don’t know the story, it’s about a group of wild rabbits in England who leave their home when it’s threatened by developers. They endure a perilous journey and finally find the perfect home; only to realize they didn’t bring any does. The rabbits have their own language and folklore which is what I think makes this book so great. Each rabbit has his own strengths and weaknesses and they only achieve what they do by working together.
There is a sequel too, which I did not discover until this year. It’s a collection of short stories, so it doesn’t have quite the same power as the first book. I highly recommend both books. Once you start, you won’t be able to put it down.

Beware of Old Feed

Fri, 8 Jun 2007 17:07:44 -0400

On the District 9 discussion boards, feed freshness has become a hot topic. Back in December, we decided to try Manna Pro rabbit feed because it was recommended by another reputable breeder. At first, our rabbits took to it well and within a few weeks we had the whole herd switched over. After a few months we started having trouble getting our does bred and several missed their litters. Then many of the rabbits started going off their feed. More recently, we had several one and two kit litters. Many of the kits were being born dead or sickly so the doe was left with only one healthy baby. At first we had no idea what might be causing this. We thought it was perhaps just bad luck.
Then one night, as I looked around the rabbitry at animals that were refusing to eat, I said "what if something's wrong with the feed?"
After participating in the discussion on District 9, and doing some research Dan discovered our bags of Manna Pro were at least six months old! The feed is milled down south somewhere and trucked up here where it sits on a shelf for who knows how long. Anything can happen to it when it's in storage that long.
Most feed bags are stamped with a code showing the mill it came from and the date of milling. The Nature Trail has a chart you can use to decipher the manufacturer's code to see how fresh your feed is.
We've since switched to Blue Seal Show Hutch Deluxe which is milled in nearby Arcade, NY. Our distributor can sometimes get it to us within two to three days of its milling. Now that's fresh!
Now when I look around the rabbitry before feeding time I can't help but grin at all the empty dishes and happy rabbits.

Ears: Well Furred or Wooly?

Thu, 3 May 2007 19:06:26 -0400

The Lionhead Working Standard states: “Ears are to be short, well set on top of head, erect, well furred, and of good substance with a strong ear base.” With the following as a disqualification: “Wool more than halfway up the ear.”
Well, I don’t know about you but, I’m having a hard time finding a lion without “wooly ears”. The majority of disqualifications at the shows I’ve been to this year have been for wool on the ears. Some judges will allow a little bit of wool up the back of the ear and others disqualify at the slightest bit of wool.
I went through my rabbitry today looking at ears. It’s obvious when a rabbit has too much wool on the ears, when the ear has wool all the way up as is nearly always the case with the teddy bear lionheads. The single manes often have the cleanest ears, but I have at least one with a thin line of wool that runs all the way up the back of the ear. Should that be allowable, or is it a disqualification? How should the distinction be made between “well furred” and “wooly”? And how much consideration should be this be given when breeding?
I don’t know the answers to these questions yet. It will be something to investigate for the rest of the show season.

Cattaraugus County RBA Show, Olean , NY

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 15:19:49 -0400

It was encouraging to see so many youth Lionhead breeders at this show. The quality of the animals needs improvement, but judge Roger Cota went over each rabbit with a fine-tooth comb so I’m sure the kids learned a lot about what they need to work towards in their herds.
There were fewer exhibitors in the open show and I was fortunate to win both BOB with BLD’s Bethany and BOS with RBB’s Skye, who will hopefully make it to the website soon.
It was a long day as we waited for the Holland Lop Specialty show to begin, but it was worth it as Dan took top prizes for BOB with Perrysburg’s Hope and BOS with LopNMop’s Ernie. It was the first time he’s won BOB and the first time either of us has won a cash prize.
We made a lot of new contacts at this show. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to visit.
This has become one of my favorite shows of the season. It’s a well-attended small show, and the people participating are friendly and always ready to talk rabbits.