Hairless Bunny, what would you pay?

[mommaebear]

I have a surviving hairless bunny, who is thriving. He is missing all the fur on his back and sides, and some of his stomach, but has fur on his face and extremities. I know they are rare, and there could be someone out there who will love an appriciate him, but because of his rarity I want to get as much as I can for him even if I have to wait on him a bit because he is such and oddity.
So how much would you pay, or how much to you think a hairless rabbit would be worth? I know they are not normally disirable, but let's stretch and find a range, so I can be open to negotiations and be wittled down

 

[BoxerMom]

I wouldn't pay a dime. But that's because of where I live, it would not survive the winter.

 

[eco2pia]

I wouldn't want him either, but I think you are right, someone might, as a house pet.

I think I would charge the same as my regular price, plus 20-30%. If you want more than that you might have trouble unloading him and that defeats the purpose, when you think about feed and special care (like no sun and heat in the winter)...

You would want to be sure that he is gonna STAY hairless before selling him, I think I'd hold him until at least 6 months.

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

nothing-- the genetics of hairlessness in most mammals also come with a lot of health issues-- like malocclusion, deafness, and digestive malfunctions.

 

[DevonW]

Nothing, hairless animals tend to have more health problems, you have to be super cautious about sunlight, drafts, and irritants plus you have to oil the skin to prevent it from becoming too dry.

 

[ladysown]

skinny pigs often sell for double the price of regular piggies. I've even heard of the breeding quality ones selling for $150+. So I expect a hairless rabbit would sell for a similar amount. So if in your area most GOOD quality rabbits sell for $30 each, I'd sell it for $60.

I would make sure it was healthy (so at least 12 weeks of age) before you let it leave your house. I would write a protocol of care. Aka...hay every day since you don't know if the hairless gene affects it's digestive system, NO health guarantee beyond 3 days, has to be kept as an indoor pet only, kept away from drafts/open windows and so forth. Pretend it's a skinny pig in a rabbit body and work up from there.

I wouldn't at all hesitate to sell it if I was convinced it was healthy. But I would STRONGLY encourage people to show their firm commitment to raising it by keeping the price on the higher end of the scale.

Your other option is to say hmm... can I get this to breed true? Can I replicate it? and then you'd have more to sell. Given the popularity of what to me are the horribly ugly skinny pigs ... breeding hairless rabbits would be a given if you could handle looking at them.

 

[Brody]

sadly you couldn't pay me to take him honestly

 

[ladysown]

to me a hairless rabbit is like all the other hairless things out there. cats, dogs, guinea pigs, mice (yes, had them thought them horrid little things and culled them), rats, and such like. Yes, they are fraught with health issues.... but some people actually like that sort of thing.

Me... can't stand them. Think them ugly, think them a whole lot of work... but then again,angoras, lionheads, shelties, persians and what not... they don't appeal to me either - I see them as work, not enjoyment. I'll pay for something that I like.

When it comes to those critters that take specialized care... make people PAY for them. it encourages them to be committed to their good care. it stops in the tracks those impulse buyers. Give them a fact sheet, make sure they read it, get them to sign if you can so you know they know it, but let them purchase what appeals to them.

might not be your or my cup of tea, but that's how we are all different.

 

[MaggieJ]

Well.... If I couldn't have a cat because of allergies, I think I would consider a hairless cat. Yes, they are kind of ugly, but the patterned ones don't look quite so bad. And they would still have the moggie personality that is so much a part of my life.

Other hairless critters... not so much. But I could see someone who feels about rabbits the way I feel about cats being thrilled to get one that did not trigger their allergies.

 

[akane]

Free and then it would be dog food. Hairless animals are ugly and have so many health issues sometimes I question the ethics of even breeding them. I also question the motives of people who buy oddities like that. Many just want a show piece and the animal suffers for it. Personally I would consider it a major flaw in the genetics of my rabbits if they produced hairless offspring and would do whatever necessary to prevent it from happening again.

 

[Miss M]

If it stays healthy, it might make for a good house bunny. I would definitely make sure to find it an owner who preferably has house rabbit experience, and will absolutely keep it as a house rabbit.

 

[DevonW]

He may not remain hairless either, a friend of mine had a litter of Mini Rex that all went bald (ugly alien things they were). By 4 months they all had rather nice coats on them. She had a fleeting suspicion it may have been fur mites that caused them to lose their hair because it all came back after being dosed with ivermec.

 

[Grasshopper]

He may not remain hairless, as said before. Personally, I love hairless animals. Yeah, there not very pretty, but there really cute and quirky (IMO). I'd pay maybe 100$... if a lot of people are interested in them, than trying breeding.

 

[Cattle Cait]

Since he's not completely hairless, maybe he has some connection to the Astrex gene? I've heard that some Astrex offshoots have hairless patches. Just a thought.

 

[PulpFaction]

Wasn't it the University of Texas that was trying to create a hairless meat rabbit breed? Maybe contact them and see if they would be interested, or could perhaps tell you more about the kits specific condition. What breed is this hairless wonder?

 

[xlt]

it's actually Texas A&M Kingsville... Dr. Steven Lukefahr that is doing the experiment. He's the lead guy that developed the Altex as well.