New Zealand colors

[Pheasant283]

Looking at getting a few New Zealands to add to the herd. Just had a question about the different colors that New Zealands are now. Should you only breed white to white, and black to black and red to red to keep the colors pure? Or can you breed white to black, or red?? If so what is the dominant color? or will you get 50% white 50% black. Or does breeding white to black or red cause them to have unnecessary white hairs??

 

[Shara]

The white is only an albino gene =, so no white hairs will come of breeding them, however, you dont know what color the rabbit ACTUALLY is, if it were albino, so you would have no clue what you were getting.

 

[DevonW]

White hairs have nothing to do with Albino rabbits.

Black to Black, White to White, and Red to Red is always your best bets. Any other colour cross tends to result in Chestnut coloured Kits.

 

[moonkitten]

Black to Black, White to White, and Red to Red is always your best bets.

The exception to the rule is if you KNOW what colour is behind the white. For example, if you breed 2 blacks together and there are a couple of white kits in the litter that grow out really well. Those whites are black with a double 'cc' making them appear white. You could go ahead and breed those back to a black as long as you don't mind keeping both whites and blacks in the bloodline.

Most of the blacks I've purchased also carry for white, so I get white kits that I know have black genes. I don't keep the whites anymore, but there's nothing wrong with them if you like the rew rabbit and at least you know the genes that are there.