# Breeding Netherland Dwarf Bunnies



## ayr (Jun 26, 2010)

Me and my friends are in FFA and we want to show and breed netherland dwarfs. The colors we are interested in are blue otter, black otter, broken chestnut, and blue eyed white. We don't know much about genetics, but we are learning! Also how do pedigrees work? If we breed our bunnies how do we make pedigrees for them?


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## RAL Rabbitry (Jun 26, 2010)

If you are going to breed and show you should join the ARBA. They have paper pedigrees you can purchase very reasonably. You could also purchase software that will make pedigrees and keep them for you. I use Evans and I like it very much. If you purchase the Evans software they also have version that will help you with genetics.

Roger


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## aurora369 (Jun 26, 2010)

I moved this thread over to the Rabbitry and Showroom for you. More breeders will see it here and be able to answer your questions.

-Dawn


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## Jaded (Jun 27, 2010)

If you breed them you should join up with the ARBA (ww.arba.net) they have pedigrees ou can purchase from them, You can use Evens softwhere aswell. Dwarf rabbits are not that easy to breed aswell.


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## Icarus (Jun 27, 2010)

ayr wrote:


> Me and my friends are in FFA and we want to show and breed netherland dwarfs. The colors we are interested in are blue otter, black otter, broken chestnut, and blue eyed white. We don't know much about genetics, but we are learning! Also how do pedigrees work? If we breed our bunnies how do we make pedigrees for them?



Man, you would have loved the swap I went to today. They had papered ND's in broken, and a BEW doe (simply. gorgeous.) They where really stunning examples of a proper Netherland. I would have bought out the entire lot if I had the room in my program.

They also had adorable mini rexes.  I just wanted to run over there and yell "I'LL BUY THEM ALL! LET ME AT 'EM!" :biggrin:


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## mewlingcricket (Jun 27, 2010)

Icarus,
which swap did you go to? I heard about a really good one in my area and just didn't get there. But from what I understand they had some really good ND's too.


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## Icarus (Jun 27, 2010)

mewlingcricket wrote:


> Icarus,
> which swap did you go to? I heard about a really good one in my area and just didn't get there. But from what I understand they had some really good ND's too.



I went to the local one here, I live in Missouri though, about an hour from the city of Joplin. 

Swaps are really great for finding good stock, the people who brought the ND's where from 75 miles away. I'd also try posting an ad on Craigslist, there might be a breeder with kits or older bunnies available 

I would have splurged and bought their BEW doe...but she was the wrong breed! She was either a Loinhead or a Netherland, I can't quite remember. All my bunnies are standard 5 pounders.


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## mewlingcricket (Jun 27, 2010)

Very cool, although I live in va, my husband is originally from MO so we get out there every so often. He is from rolla


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## lelanatty (Jun 27, 2010)

Otter genetics are plain and simple, and it will be very easy as they are very popular. Broken genetics are very complicated, and blue eyed white genetics are strange. Nevertheless, I will tell you what you need to know about each one. Also, in another post I will try to find people who breed those colors in Arizona for you. 

Otters:

Blue otters and black otters are absolutely great for beginners. You should be able to find some great stock to start with and you can breed your blue otters and black otters together when you get them. Actually I would recommend doing that because if you breed a blue to a blue you will get lighter blue color which is not good.

Brokens:

The broken is a huge balancing act with color. All broken netherland dwarfs are to have no less than 10% color and no more than 50% color, and the rest of the rabbit is white. Also, there are two different kinds of broken rabbits. There is the spot pattern, which the rabbits look likethe English Spot breed, and then there is blanket pattern, where the rabbit has color all over its back and places like it has a blanket of color over it. You will find rabbits that only have spots on their face, to rabbits that are almost completely covered in color and only have small areas of white on them. Choose rabbits across the entire spectrum of the amount of color on the bodyand breed the ones with more color to the ones with less color to get the desired balance of color. Broken chestnuts in particular are not very popular, so good luck finding them. They do pop up sometimes.

Blue-eyed white:

First of all- expensive. Blue-eyed whites are very rare and sought after. You will not find very good ones for cheap.I am not sure how much you would be willing to pay, but these are not cheap. 

To breed them all you need is two blue-eyed white rabbits and you will get all blue-eyed white babies. However, there is anothercolor of rabbit that will give you BEW's as well. They are called Vienna Marked. They are netherland dwarf rabbits that look like dutch rabbits. when you breed these with blue-eyed whites you will get BEW and also more vienna marked. That's the strange part about the BEW color. 

And now some things about pedigrees, they are really quite simple. With each rabbit that you purchase you should make sure that you get a pedigree with it. Most pedigrees have 3 generations that show information for the rabbit, its parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. When you breed two rabbits together, all you have to do is put that rabbit's information in the first box and copy the rest of the information from the parents' pedigrees. It is actually a bit more complicated than that so if you have any specific questions feel free to ask :biggrin:


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## ayr (Jun 29, 2010)

*lelanatty wrote: *


> Otter genetics are plain and simple, and it will be very easy as they are very popular. Broken genetics are very complicated, and blue eyed white genetics are strange. Nevertheless, I will tell you what you need to know about each one. Also, in another post I will try to find people who breed those colors in Arizona for you.
> 
> Otters:
> 
> ...


Wow that helps alot! Thanks! We are getting a male broken chestnut, so would I breed him to a female chestnut then?


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## dixonsrabbitry1 (Jun 29, 2010)

www.arba.net best informative site you get on for arba stuff. 

Yes you can breed broken chestnut to chestnut. 

If you want to purchase good stock, go to a rabbit show. there are tons of netherland dwarf breeders at them. They can tell you about any color you want to know about. Sometimes you will find decent stock at swap meets too.


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## lelanatty (Jun 29, 2010)

that depends, how much color does he have? If he doesn't have a lot of color, i would consider breeding him to a regular chestnut doe, but if he has plenty of color, then I would try to find a broken doe to breed him with. 

Here's a bit more about brokens:

This is a blanket pattern:







This is a spot pattern:




but it should have more spots on the sides

And this is a special kind of broken called a Charlie bcause they look like Charlie Chaplin with their color moustaches:






if you get this kind of broken,when you breed it to a non-broken rabbit you usually get some very nice brokens. Charlie Brokens do not have enough color to show and usually only have color on the face. 

Good Luck :biggrin:


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## ayr (Jun 29, 2010)

That's very interesting! Thanks so much! He is a blanket pattern I suppose. so maybe a broken chestnut doe?


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## lelanatty (Jun 29, 2010)

You are very welcome! Probably a broken doe would be best if he has a lot of color.
We would love to see pictures of him when you get him.


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## Jaded (Jun 30, 2010)

Wow Lela you do know alot abou rabbit colours
That Charlie Broken is gorjus! Looks like my Cinna-Bun


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