Adding color to NZW's?

[grumpy]

I've never delved into the genetics of "color" in rabbits. ""NO"" knowledge
whatsoever.

Now..........I've been requested to "add" color to the meat rabbits shipped
every other week. "Not all".....but a few different colors for a group of young
artisans wanting to experiment with the pelts for different articles for sales in
crafts' fairs and what have you.

Of course, the easiest way is through the buck. And I realize I can control the
numbers available by the number of does bred to the buck.
But, my question is: What would be the best colored meat buck to get the
most varied colors?

He doesn't necessarily "have" to be a NZ. There are other meat type breeds
that offer a multitude of varied colors. Satins, Rex, ??? What others and what
would be your suggestions?

Years ago, I bought a "wild-type" colored meat buck and got some
truly beautiful colors when bred back to my NZW does.
Reds, blacks, fawns, wild-types.
Has anything changed? I'm open to all suggestions and opinions.

grumpy.

 

[Dood]

If you like a real mixture I'd try to get a brown or black buck who had one red or fawn parent and one chinchilla parent. You might not get blacks but you should get the most variety and if bred back to a daughter you'd get blacks

BUT

Because your stock is all white we don't really know what other colour genes they secretly have and must wait and see what shows up in the nest box.

I woulnt get a chinchilla or sable as these colours are on the same color section/locus as the white colour genes you already have and you will only get chins, sables, Cali's, and REW's (maybe blacks)

.

 

[Zass]

The colors you mentioned sound like what is typical from NZW crosses. A Flemish or flemish cross buck with fawn and/or chin in it's background might also be a good choice for making the best of what the NZW are likely to produce.
I see litters like this for sale locally all the time:
http://classifieds.pennswoods.net/class ... ex=2755235

Nice colors there, but FG pelts aren't as long or dense or plush as some other breeds.

If you want to stick with new zealands, perhaps a broken red or black with a red ancestor?

Broken pattern is easy to add since only one rabbit needs to carry it. Do they come in broken blue? I think they do, if you can find one, blue is better then black for turning up colors.

Another idea, how about a palomino buck?

 

[akane]

If you are using the same does a red carrying chin would make a few colors but if you aren't using the same does as before there's no guarantee a red or black would give you anything but a chestnut (wild type color). The does have to carry the genes for red/tort or self like the black to get those colors. If the does are simple chestnuts under the white the only thing you can get is by using a chin or sable to make chins, chestnuts and usually himi or whites. No way to know until you try it. If you use a red or black and don't get those colors you can keep a daughter to breed back to the buck and you will then get those colors. Another idea is silvered meat breeds. You get less silvering from crosses but the breeds with stronger silvering like argents will pass along enough silvering to make a difference in the pelt. Young pelts can also carry interesting markings if the line is slow to shed out. They can come out with little streaks of silver on dark pelts or little splotches of silver and the normal coat color. Some won't actually like the lack of uniformity though.

 

[grumpy]

Thanks for the replies.

What about a broken-blue? Isn't this color a "dilute"? Again, I'm dumb on this stuff.

grumpy.

 

[Dood]

Yes, blue is dilute but I doubt your rabbits carry it so you will most likely get chestnuts, broken chestnuts, blacks and broken blacks. Maybe some broken and solid gold tipped steels depending on if your whites carry it.

 

[TwoAcreDream]

How about a broken color NZ ?
Or a broken standard size rex ?

I use a broken, white with black, mini rex, on several of my mixed does.
They are not big does is why I am using the mini rex. I seem to come up
with quite a few brokens, and some solid colors ones. I have one current
litter, the doe is like a wild rabbit brown color. She has 6 broken and 2
solid black ones. Dad is the rex.

 

[Zass]

Yeah blue is dilute black. It could produce all the same colors a black would, plus dilute shades, like blue, blue steel or opal, and broken versions of all those, but only if one of your girls also carries it. There simply is no way to tell without checking.

My own opal mutt lines are from a NZW cross, so I know some lines do carry it.

 

[Comet007]

I am obviously brand new to rabbits, but I just got my breeding trio on Saturday, along with their pedigrees. I was really surprised to find out that our two broken black doe's come from a mother that was white, as were the grand and great-grandparents! On their father's side, all the rabbits were red, white or broken red. Their NZW dam was bred to a broken red NZ, and the litter had REW's, blacks, and broken black.

The buck we bought is a broken red NZ, and shares the same broken red NZ father with the does. My research shows now that we have eight possible colors when we breed the buck to our does:
[A_B_C_D_E_] agouti - black - full color expressed - Intense - full extension = Chestnut
[A_B_C_D_ee] agouti - black - full color expressed - Intense - non-extension =Orange (red because of the rufus modifiers)
[aaB_C_D_E_] self - black - full color expressed - Intense - full extension=Black
[aaB_C_D_ee] self - black - full color expressed - Intense - non extension = Tort, Black Tort, Tortoise Shell, Madagascar
[cc with any other genes] = REW

Of course, these calculations assume that our buck carries the recessive self & REW genes, which is possible but we won't know for sure until we start having litters. If he doesn't carry the self gene then we will get all Agouti's [so, only TWO colors possible!], and if he doesn't carry the REW gene then we won't get any REW's at all. I also did make the assumption that none of our rabbits carry the recessive chocolate or dilute genes as well.

I know that the colors that are possible for us are because of the recessive traits carried by the REW mother, so you might get different results, this was just an example.

 

[skysthelimit]

White still has a genetic color and pattern underneath.

My last MR's litter, REW to Castor, I was please to find a broken Castor in the group. So gentically the REW was broken.

I would not recommend Rex. Unless you can get one of those breeders who has fast growing kits, the Rex will slow down the grow rate, even if they are not growing the Rex fur.

I'd be all in for a Chestnut Satin with a rainbow pedigree.