# Which rabbit color is recessive against others?



## sr98 (Oct 18, 2017)

Hello. I'm going to start a little rabbit breeding in our house but have a question; what color is recessive always?? I want to buy one recessive buck and six does in different colors in every breed... (I know albinos have this property but i don't like their eyes!)


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## majorv (Oct 19, 2017)

Which breed are you interested in using? I'm definitely not a genetics expert but typically for the breeds we showed the dilutes were more recessive. A white rabbit actually hides the color that's in their background.


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## sr98 (Oct 19, 2017)

majorv said:


> Which breed are you interested in using? I'm definitely not a genetics expert but typically for the breeds we showed the dilutes were more recessive. A white rabbit actually hides the color that's in their background.



Not one, but I don't think there be any difference in this race in any breeds, they are of the same species


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## Aki (Oct 19, 2017)

I'm not sure I understand what you mean - something like chihuahuas and great danes are both dogs so you can reproduce them together but with rabbits? You are aware it's not a good idea to reproduce rabbits from different breeds together to create mutts on purpose, right? And you know you shouldn't take a male bigger than the female or a lop with a female with straight ears because it could cause problems to deliver the kits? I'm not against breeding done very seriously to better the chosen breed. You sound like you should read those articles and think carefully about what you will be trying to accomplish by breeding those bunnies:
http://rabbit.org/category/breeding/


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## sr98 (Oct 19, 2017)

Aki said:


> I'm not sure I understand what you mean - something like chihuahuas and great danes are both dogs so you can reproduce them together but with rabbits? You are aware it's not a good idea to reproduce rabbits from different breeds together to create mutts on purpose, right? And you know you shouldn't take a male bigger than the female or a lop with a female with straight ears because it could cause problems to deliver the kits? I'm not against breeding done very seriously to better the chosen breed. You sound like you should read those articles and think carefully about what you will be trying to accomplish by breeding those bunnies:
> http://rabbit.org/category/breeding/



No no, I don't want to mate several breeds with other! I said there is no difference between rabbits with distinct breeds in color genetics. tnx


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## woahlookitsme (Oct 23, 2017)

First I will say where are you located? 

In the US we have 49 different breeds of rabbits. Yes domestic rabbits all have the same genetics but if you are responsibly breeding you are not just crossing breeds for no reason. In the US there are many rabbits in shelters and we as Breeders do not want to contribute to this overpopulation. Hence Breeders choose a specific breed and then use the standard of that breed to try to attain a better quality animal. 

Now outside of the US there was a girl, I do not remember where she was from but they did not have a rabbit population problem, she could find proper and long term homes for her offspring and her goal was to learn about rabbit color genetics. She imported different colors of rabbits and used them to figure out and do work with the color genetics. She was actually working on a Rufus project which interested me. If you are trying to do something like this you need to start with websites dedicated to color genetics in rabbits. There are not a lot of people on here that are well versed with color genetics (me included) so I don't know if this would be the right place for you to ask questions about them. Now when you start breeding you can ask questions because we have lots of people knowledgeable about breeding and baby bunnies. 

If you are from the US or even the UK I will ask that you actually make a plan for a breeding program before you start breeding this one to that one. To be a humane breeder you need to find how you will sell or cull your offspring and which babies you will retain for the program. You also need to realize that breeding rabbits can be very difficult. You need to be prepared to have baby rabbits die and even mothers dying from birthing complications. You also need to check what common diseases you should be aware of in your area. Once you figure this all out then you can look into breeding for color genetics. You also need to try and find rabbits from reputable sources. Don't just go out to a pet store and start breeding those rabbits because they will probably come up with all kinds of recessive health problems like malocclusion, sore hocks, cryptorchidism, etc. you need to also figure out a documenting system to keep track of your pairings.


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## woahlookitsme (Oct 23, 2017)

Here are some starting places for you to read up. 

http://www.debmark.com/rabbits/genetics.htm

http://oakridgerabbitry.weebly.com/uploads/2/6/0/7/2607357/color_genetics.pdf

http://www.thenaturetrail.com/rabbit-genetics/rabbit-color-genotypes-chart/

Color Calculator
http://www.ephiny.net/tim/pedigrees/color_calc.php


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## woahlookitsme (Oct 23, 2017)

Oh also a red eyed white rabbit does not have a recessive property. They actually hide color genetics but are useful in helping to determine color genetics of other rabbits as long as you know what color the Red eyed rabbit actually is carrying.


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## sr98 (Oct 25, 2017)

woahlookitsme said:


> First I will say where are you located?
> 
> In the US we have 49 different breeds of rabbits. Yes domestic rabbits all have the same genetics but if you are responsibly breeding you are not just crossing breeds for no reason. In the US there are many rabbits in shelters and we as Breeders do not want to contribute to this overpopulation. Hence Breeders choose a specific breed and then use the standard of that breed to try to attain a better quality animal.
> 
> ...



Thank you for your concerns but when I say want to start a breeding this means I surveyed any problem! (I'm not in US too)


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## sr98 (Oct 25, 2017)

woahlookitsme said:


> Oh also a red eyed white rabbit does not have a recessive property. They actually hide color genetics but are useful in helping to determine color genetics of other rabbits as long as you know what color the Red eyed rabbit actually is carrying.



You need the resources you announced more!

(I previously read them, tnx)


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## majorv (Oct 25, 2017)

sr98 said:


> You need the resources you announced more!
> 
> 
> 
> (I previously read them, tnx)





Yes and no, the REW is a recessive gene but as one of the articles stated, it is very dominating. You don't really know what color the REW gene is hiding until you breed the rabbit to see what color possibilities you get. You may not like the eyes of the ruby-eyed white, but they can be very useful in a breeding program.


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## woahlookitsme (Oct 27, 2017)

sr98 said:


> You need the resources you announced more!
> 
> (I previously read them, tnx)



Apologies it is recessive. But "because two cc genes together negate whatever the other four genes are contributing to the rabbits coat color. All color is erased from the fur and eyes."

http://www.thenaturetrail.com/rabbit-genetics/color-c-series-chinchilla-sable-himalayan-rew/

And I did say I was not well versed at color genetics. Hence why posting here may not be useful to you if you are asking about this topic


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