False Netherland Dwarfs

I have been breeding rabbits (homesteading) so mostly new Zealand or new Zealand x Flemish... I have done as much research as I can, but there just isn't a lot of info or pictures online, or maybe i am just blind. I am looking for images of a true ND vs a false ND. My two NDs I want to breed don't quite have the flat faces, but meet all the other standards, or maybe the examples I'm seeing are... I don't even know, to be honest.
Here are images of my local county fair "Best of Show" buck, Nugget. What would you consider him? True dwarf? False dwarf? I may need to get a side profile photo, if so, just let me know!

Here is a side profile of the does... maybe I am just crazy! For some reason, it doesn't look so squishy to me!

CookieK93 said:

I have been breeding rabbits (homesteading) so mostly new Zealand or new Zealand x Flemish... I have done as much research as I can, but there just isn't a lot of info or pictures online, or maybe i am just blind. I am looking for images of a true ND vs a false ND. My two NDs I want to breed don't quite have the flat faces, but meet all the other standards, or maybe the examples I'm seeing are... I don't even know, to be honest.
Here are images of my local county fair "Best of Show" buck, Nugget. What would you consider him? True dwarf? False dwarf? I may need to get a side profile photo, if so, just let me know!

Click to expand...

False dwarfs can be obvious, or they can be only identifiable when you breed them repeatedly and never see a peanut. We had a false dwarf Polish that never got very big and won G.CH. legs one after another - but out of 5 or 6 litters of 5-8 kits each, she never had a peanut, only true dwarfs and false dwarf kits from true dwarf bucks.

On the other hand, you can have true dwarf rabbits that are big and rangy. We had several true dwarf Mini Rex does that had longer ears and went over weight by the time they were older juniors. But they always had peanuts in their litters, so we knew they were not actually false dwarfs, just too big.

So, just looking isn't the litmus test.

I do think Nugget has fairly long ears and face for a ND; he's not posed, but my impression is that he's a bit longer in the body as well, all of which suggest false dwarf. Your siamese sable doe has a head and ears that are a lot more like what you're hoping for in a ND. The good news is that if the buck is a false dwarf and the does are true dwarfs, you won't have to deal with any peanuts (which I always found very sad).

If you don't have one, I'd recommend you get a copy of the ARBA Standard of Perfection, then go to an ARBA sanctioned show and listen to the judges' comments when they're assessing the NDs. That will help you refine your eye and judgment.

Alaska Satin said:

False dwarfs can be obvious, or they can be only identifiable when you breed them repeatedly and never see a peanut. We had a false dwarf Polish that never got very big and won G.CH. legs one after another - but out of 5 or 6 litters of 5-8 kits each, she never had a peanut, only true dwarfs and false dwarf kits from true dwarf bucks.

On the other hand, you can have true dwarf rabbits that are big and rangy. We had several true dwarf Mini Rex does that had longer ears and went over weight by the time they were older juniors. But they always had peanuts in their litters, so we knew they were not actually false dwarfs, just too big.

So, just looking isn't the litmus test.

I do think Nugget has fairly long ears and face for a ND; he's not posed, but my impression is that he's a bit longer in the body as well, all of which suggest false dwarf. Your siamese sable doe has a head and ears that are a lot more like what you're hoping for in a ND. The good news is that if the buck is a false dwarf and the does are true dwarfs, you won't have to deal with any peanuts (which I always found very sad).

If you don't have one, I'd recommend you get a copy of the ARBA Standard of Perfection, the go to an ARBA sanctioned show and listen to the judges' comments when they're assessing the NDs. That will help you refine your eye and judgment.

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I thought Nugget's ears were a little long, I was thinking he was a false dwarf. Are there any negatives to breeding a false dwarf buck to a true dwarf doe? I've heard the does should be false and buck true. The two does are proven breeders and pedigreed. Can they be pedigreed and be false? I've never really understood the pedigree part. Pedigree is just family history, like a family tree almost?

CookieK93 said:

I thought Nugget's ears were a little long, I was thinking he was a false dwarf. Are there any negatives to breeding a false dwarf buck to a true dwarf doe? I've heard the does should be false and buck true. The two does are proven breeders and pedigreed. Can they be pedigreed and be false? I've never really understood the pedigree part. Pedigree is just family history, like a family tree almost?

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Yes, you're right - a pedigree is a family tree, simply a list of ancestors (for rabbits that must include their varieties and adult weights as well as names or tattoo numbers). The ARBA considers a rabbit purebred when it has at least three generations of ancestors that are all the same breed. But those rabbits can be too big, too small, wrong color, etc., without invalidating the pedigree.

Sometimes breeders use rabbits with breed disqualifications (DQs) for brood stock because they have another characteristic that will improve the herd. A good example of that is using false dwarf brood stock. If they are otherwise good examples of their breed, they can make very nice babies, with the bonus, IMO, of never producing peanuts.

The main negative someone might be concerned with breeding a false dwarf buck to a true dwarf doe would be that the smaller doe might have difficulty delivering larger kits. In my experience, that has never happened. A more common cause I've seen for trouble kindling is that the doe has pinched hindquarters, which is even more risky in breeds that have large, square heads like NDs. So keep an eye on that in your does, no matter which buck you use.

Of course false dwarf x false dwarf will only give you more false dwarfs, so that's out. But I like using a true dwarf buck with false dwarf does because a false dwarf doe is bigger, and can often carry more kits, kindle easier, and feed a larger litter just because she's bigger, as well as eliminating the risk of peanuts. But genetically there is nothing I am aware of that would preclude a false dwarf buck x true dwarf doe combination. If your does are already proven, then you have less worry about kindling trouble.