Before proceeding to the mode of breeding rabbits, we will glance at the varieties into which these creatures are modified by careful management.
The three chief points in a “fancy” rabbit are the ears, the dewlap, and the curve of the back.
The ears must in every case be exceedingly long, and must never stand upright, as in the common rabbit of the warren. The most perfect and valuable form is the Full, Flat, or Perfect Lop. In this variety the ears lie as if hinged to the head at their bases, and bent downward, so that when the animal is reposing the tips should quite or nearly touch the ground. The convex part of the ear must be upwards, or the value of the creature is deteriorated.
The next valuable variety is termed the Oar-Lop, because the ears spread horizontally from the head, like the oars of a waterman’s boat. A really good Oar-Lop rabbit is seldom seen, and when found is thought by some to be equal to the Perfect Lop, of which, indeed, it seems to be the preliminary stage. In all cases the measurement across the ears from tip to tip ought never to be less than sixteen inches; the more they exceed that measurement, the more valuable is the animal.
PERFECT-LOP RABBIT.
OAR-LOP RABBIT.
PERFECT-LOP RABBIT.