Rare Breed Rabbit List 2010

The Rare Breed Rabbit List is updated for 2010!

Here is the short version
#1 is most rare, #16 is less rare

2010 Rare Breed Rabbit Rank
1 Blanc de Hotot
2 Giant Angora
3 Cinnamon
4 Beveren
5 American
6 Satin Angora
7 Giant Chinchilla
8 Lilac
9 Silver
10 American Sable
11 Belgian Hare
12 American Chinchilla
13 Rhinelander
14 Creme d'Argent
15 Silver Fox
16 Palomino

Note: Standard Chinchilla was #16, is now #17 and is off the list.
Palomino has joined the Rare Breed List.

To show the differences from 2010 and 2006,
Here is the list again with the rankings from 2006 added
Rare Breed List 2010 - 2006

1st number is 2010 ranking, 2nd number is 2006 rank.

2010 Rank - Breeds - 2006 Rank
1 Blanc de Hotot - 3
2 Giant Angora - 2
3 Cinnamon - 8
4 Beveren - 7
5 American - 1
6 Satin Angora - 4
7 Giant Chinchilla - 5
8 Lilac - 11
9 Silver - 14
10 American Sable - 10
11 Belgian Hare - 9
12 American Chinchilla - 6
13 Rhinelander - 15
14 Creme d'Argent - 12
15 Silver Fox - 13
16 Palomino

For more information, see the Rare Breed Rabbits USA webpage
http://www.rabbitgeek.com/rarelist.html

For discussion, please join us at Rare Breed Rabbits on yahoogroups
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rarebreedrabbits/

Many thanks to Susan Baker and Eric Stewart at ARBA for providing registration
and Convention data to make this updated list possible.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios

Interesting! Should be a helpful guide for those who are in the process of choosing a heritage breed. Thanks for posting this, Rabbitgeek.

Making the satin angora even more appealling to me ...

Brody":2mxjlr73 said:

Making the satin angora even more appealling to me ...

Click to expand...

sigh...me also. drat.

It did lead me to making the final decision about the Americans. There are a couple of breeders here in Wisconsin, both blue and white. SO. meat colony is about to get some color!! Since I'm keeping the bucks in separate areas, I can keep the Americans breeding pure.

Thanks for the update, Franco. Prompted me to join the American rabbit group, as well.

I had hoped to support a true rare breed like Beverens, Silver Fox, or Cremes, but I never had any luck in finding sound unrelated stock around here. It was cost prohibitive to have them shipped across the US, too. I ended up working with Dutch as my utility breed and I am very happy with them, but I still think I would jump on an opportunity to work with a heritage if I had the space and the option presented itself.

Lauren

I think we need a list of all rare breeds recognized by other clubs like the British Rabbit Council and the Dominion Rabbit and Cavy Breeder's association. Since there are plenty more rare breeds out there that aren't recognized by ARBA but are recognized by other clubs.

I am surprised that Pals make the list. At our fair last year there were at least 20, maybe more.... We only have 11 breeds (I think it is) that get their own class at the fair (we have "all other heavyweights" and "all other lightweights" too). I actually can get my hand on some blue Americans when/if I start raising for meat maybe I'll get them instead of Cals. Will be more pricey but worth it =) Would actually perfer Beverans but no idea where to get them - lol. Of course, my dad raised American chins and, well, maybe I'll get those in his honor (he passed away a little over a year ago). Hmm.. decisions, decisions...

I am honestly not surprised Belgians are on the list. They seem to have loads of issues and are definately not for everyone. I'm actually surprised they aren't #1 to be quite honest...

I was at the state show all weekend and saw a sign that said the Hotot was #1 on the list. I was surprised, as there were soooo many there. There were quite a few Pals and a ton of Cremes.<br /><br />__________ Sun Jun 06, 2010 6:37 pm __________<br /><br />I was at the state show all weekend and saw a sign that said the Hotot was #1 on the list. I was surprised, as there were soooo many there. There were quite a few Pals and a ton of Cremes.

DevonW":kq0f84vp said:

I think we need a list of all rare breeds recognized by other clubs like the British Rabbit Council and the Dominion Rabbit and Cavy Breeder's association. Since there are plenty more rare breeds out there that aren't recognized by ARBA but are recognized by other clubs.

Click to expand...

You can contact the Rare Variety Rabbit Club in England that actually supports those breeds not recognized by British Rabbit Council. They do not currently have a website available.

You can contact the Dominion club and ask them what they consider to be rare breeds.

The yahoogroup Rare Breed Rabbits also supports those breeds and varieties that are not recognized by ARBA. That is the one place I know that actively promotes all breeds and varieties of rabbits.

I hope that info helps.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios<br /><br />__________ Sun Jun 06, 2010 7:17 pm __________<br /><br />

pfaubush":kq0f84vp said:

I was at the state show all weekend and saw a sign that said the Hotot was #1 on the list. I was surprised, as there were soooo many there. There were quite a few Pals and a ton of Cremes.

Click to expand...

There are regional pockets of most of the rare breeds. But the Rare Breed List is generated based on data that covers the whole country. Every year rabbit breeders from all over the country go to ARBA Convention to show rabbits. Hotots average 25 entries per year, open and youth combined. That is a very low number. The top breeds have hundreds and thousands each year.

Registrations are done all over the country, all year. Plenty of opportunities to get rabbits registered. Hotots average 2 registrations per year.

That is why they are being treated like they are the most rare because they have have the lightest track record right now.

Have a good day!

That there are regional pockets of larger numbers is a VERY good sign, don't you think? It's the way a breed of animal starts to make a comeback. One or two people actively start to promote in their area..they show...and sell offspring. Then someone in a nearby region falls in love with the breed and buys a trio..and it starts all over again. Spreading over the country.

Regional pockets seem to be what keep the breeds alive. The problem is when we can't get rabbits out of that pocket. In 2001 there was no American Blue & Whites in Calif. A trio was purchased in San Diego from the Indiana breeders who brought some to the ARBA Convention.

For the next few years, that trio was the basis for the only west coast herd. By the time I got into it in 2003/2004, there was 8 descendants available. About the same time Becky Reugsegger, a former American breeder/exhibitor, was taking up the breed again and was bringing in rabbits from Indiana from ARBA Convention.

The next big break came in 2006 with the discovery of mandolin body type white rabbits in Canada. Could they be Americans? Yes, they could be, so the Can-Am migration was born. Blue rabbits from Calif, Ore, Wash were sent north to Canada and Whites were sent south.

This was a great boost for the genetics since the rabbits from Indiana were linebred for years and years.

Anyway, that's just some info I thought you might like.

Have a good day!

How interesting! So the blues in California are closely linked to the Indiana group? I see we have a couple of breeders here in Wisconsin. Goodness. This might mean a major ROAD TRIP to find rabbits! :bananadance2:

There were several American Whites down here too. There were a lot of breeders up from CA here, since the show was so far south. The only way I could tell them from the NZ's were by their ears. It is nice to see that if I ever decide to try a heritage breed, there are some closer than the mid-west. I sure wish I could say the same for good NZ's.

Anntan, yes, the American Blue rabbits in California can most all be traced back to Berger and Schrader from Indiana and Moeller in Wisconsin.

Just about all the rabbit pedigrees will lead back to those three breeders. But don't let that stop you from buying some.

Here is the good news. This proves that line breeding can sustain healthy, viable populations.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios<br /><br />__________ Mon Jun 07, 2010 3:36 pm __________<br /><br />

pfaubush":13502fnp said:

There were several American Whites down here too. There were a lot of breeders up from CA here, since the show was so far south. The only way I could tell them from the NZ's were by their ears. It is nice to see that if I ever decide to try a heritage breed, there are some closer than the mid-west. I sure wish I could say the same for good NZ's.

Click to expand...

The biggest difference is the mandolin body type, an American should look very big and round starting behind the shoulders.

I hope that helps.
Have a good day!

OK, I can see a difference there. Most of what I saw was crammed into the show cages. I would love to see the blue. Google, here I come.

American rabbit info page
http://www.rabbitgeek.com/abwrc.html

Have a good day!