Can I make a Rex coated New Zealand?

[GBov]

So with the trouble I am havine finding Standard Rex and only wanting them for the fur anyway, I got to wondering if its possible to get a NZ with a rex coat?

And then I thought, well, I know who to ask!

I have blue, black, red, rew adn gold tipped steel NZ to work with and on the rex side I have a broken blue buck and a red doe. Both of the rex are 5 plus years old and so far have not bred for me but it may be a combination of un receptive doe and heat sterile buck rather than their age. The black nz doe that I got at the same time and is the same age has bred with no problems and I am going to cross her with my blue buck next.

So, with that combo - and perhaps a mini rex buck if needed - how do I go about making a rex coated New Zealand?

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Breed the offspring back to the sire or to one another. You will not get Rex fur until the second generation, since Rex fur is recessive. You will need a Rex gene from each parent to get Rex fur.

 

[tnelsonfla]

I am not sure of your location but this weekend August 11th is a rabbit show in Bartow. I know they always have over 75 mini Rex at the show, I am not sure the count on the Standard Rex.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

So breed the cross, keep out the nicest does and breed back those to the Rex. You will then have your Rex coat. Keep the nicest meat type babies as your future breeders and eat the rest!!!!! As long as you are either using them for your own purposes or keep a pedigree to go with those you sell being completely honest with what is in there back ground....... No problem.

I am crossing the mini rex rabbits that I have with the NZ rabbits to get a larger rabbit with rex fur type. But I will be using them for meat and the pelts for myself. Those ones will not leave my property.
The Standard Rex that I am buying will be used for Show, pelts, meat. The does will only be bred by purebred standard bucks. The bucks I will use with my mutt stock to improve coat and color there.
Oh and I will be doing crosses to get my magpie rex line going too.
Good luck and have fun....

 

[akane]

A rex coated NZ would just be considered a rex since they have the same body type. It could be shown and sold as a rex. It just wouldn't have a full pedigree yet and personally I'd disclose the NZ breeding but some wouldn't. To get the rex coat if you are using a mini rex it would be better to breed the rex to 2 NZ and cross the half siblings to get your rex coated offspring. Otherwise if you breed back to the mini rex you will lose too much size. That's how we did our creme d'argent x mini rex. I crossed 2 bucks to my creme doe and then kept 1 buck from the first litter and 1 doe from the second to cross together. Real nice interesting colored rabbits. Especially since I used chocolate mini rex. I got all sorts of partially silvered colors including a harlequin and torts.

 

[GBov]

You know, there isnt enough time to do all the things with rabbits I want to do, there really isnt. :lol:

But work starts tomorrow on the new cages and I will see what happens when I start mixing and matching buns.

Will REALLY have to work on my record keeping though, am a bit slack on that and with a proper project its gunna matter.

So, just to be sure I understand, I breed rex to nz with two or three different matchings and keep the best one or two from each litter and then breed the second generation together to get rex coats onto my NZs.

How many generations do I do that until the NZ coat is lost altogether?

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I believe It will disappear once you breed rex coat to rex coat. I am in the same boat with magpie. Fun!!!!!<br /><br />__________ Thu Aug 09, 2012 7:11 pm __________<br /><br />They have to have two rex genes to get rex hair. So if both have rex hair the normal coat is lost. And you have rex rabbits.

 

[akane]

You will never get a regular coated rabbit from 2 rex coated rabbits. However the denseness of the rex coat may need to be improved on in future generations to do well at a show.

 

[skysthelimit]

Pretty much any rex fur on a commercial breed is now a Rex. The Rex is a type of fur more than it is a breed, it happens that the type of rabbit is was first noted on was a commercial type rabbit.

i'd like to cross my rexes to some other commercial breed to fix some prevalent rex issues.<br /><br />__________ Thu Aug 09, 2012 6:44 pm __________<br /><br />

You will never get a regular coated rabbit from 2 rex coated rabbits. However the denseness of the rex coat may need to be improved on in future generations to do well at a show.

Pretty much. You won't cause any more problems placing those in the Rex gene pool than most Rex breeders already have. From commercial breed to commercial breed, nothing weird is going to pop up that isn't already in the Rex gene pool.

 

[GBov]

You will never get a regular coated rabbit from 2 rex coated rabbits. However the denseness of the rex coat may need to be improved on in future generations to do well at a show.

How does one improve the coat once I have it on my NZs?<br /><br />__________ Thu Aug 09, 2012 7:13 pm __________<br /><br />

I believe It will disappear once you breed rex coat to rex coat. I am in the same boat with magpie. Fun!!!!!

__________ Thu Aug 09, 2012 7:11 pm __________

They have to have two rex genes to get rex hair. So if both have rex hair the normal coat is lost. And you have rex rabbits.

It is fun, isnt it?

Three days to go to see if my rex doe is preggers or not and if not, she gets to go with one of my bucks, perhaps the red as she is red too.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

They will no longer by your NZ. lol

Keep the ones with the best coat and breed back to a standard rex with an exceptional coat. <br /><br />__________ Thu Aug 09, 2012 8:16 pm __________<br /><br />Yes it surely is fun. I love all the color possibilities.

 

[GBov]

I thought a true rex has a different shaped head than a NZ but I will be happy to dress them up with that lovely coat and then relieve them of it :twisted:

But I find myself wishing I had discovered the fun of rabbits 20 odd years ago instead of two. :roll:

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I find my self calling my mom and sharing all my wonderful rabbit news with her. I get the feeling she has forgotten how wonderful bunnies can be.....

 

[GBov]

I find my self calling my mom and sharing all my wonderful rabbit news with her. I get the feeling she has forgotten how wonderful bunnies can be.....

My poor Mums eyes start to glaze over when I start talking about rabbits, just like my eyes go glassy when she talks about house cleaning and decorating.

Good thing you guys understand, otherwise I wouldnt get to talk rabbits at all. :shock:

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

My husband sits there and nods his head from time to time. But I see the blank "out to lunch" look on his face.
Thats ok I just continue on. At least I get to talk bunny talk.

 

[skysthelimit]

I thought a true rex has a different shaped head than a NZ but I will be happy to dress them up with that lovely coat and then relieve them of it :twisted:

But I find myself wishing I had discovered the fun of rabbits 20 odd years ago instead of two. :roll:

True, they will not be your NZ's anymore.

I have never heard a judge comment on a rex head, only to say that it looks masculine enough or feminine enough. There is not enough in the head to separate the breeds, really there is not much difference between the commercial breeds.

Improve Rex fur by finding good rex fur to add to it. Though I have to say, if you are having problems finding good Rex now, so that you need to cross, how are you going to find good fur to add? I'm having enough problems keeping good coats with a line that a breeder's been working with for years.
I would just wait to find some good Rex.

 

[GBov]

I would just wait to find some good Rex.

Wait?

Why wait? :lol:

What color are the rex in the second picture in the add? http://orlando.craigslist.org/grd/3047722004.html

I wont stop looking for some good standard rex but as I have the space and the intrest and the kids to make take care of them all :twisted: why not try to make what I want while waiting?

 

[skysthelimit]

We need a smiley with an evil dr.Jekyll, mad scientist laugh.

Those are tri colors.

Good rex fur takes some work, even with rexes breed as rexes for many generations--

 

[GBov]

We need a smiley with an evil dr.Jekyll, mad scientist laugh.

Those are tri colors.

Good rex fur takes some work, even with rexes breed as rexes for many generations--

I can see whay you mean about the fur just looking at CL adds! There are some very shaggy looking rex bunnies out there!

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

Yeah don't buy shaggy looking rex. lol