Thoughts on These Rabbits

[RoxxRabbits32]

I am looking at buying a few pedigreed Netherland dwarf rabbits. I was wondering what you guys thought of these rabbits. Please let me know any faults about them that you can see from the pictures. I am not for sure getting them but here are a few I am looking into.
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[Aki]

I don't know about the rabbits, I don't show. I know I wouldn't buy from a breeder keeping rabbits in cages which look like that though (if the cages shown in the photos are where the rabbits are usually kept). That looks terribly small, the rabbits are standing directly on wire, where are the protections against humidity / the wind / the cold? I've only seen this kind of accomodations from people who breed for meat before...

 

[woahlookitsme]

I am not going to comment at all on Aki’s statements except that the rabbits look very well fed not diseased and in good health from the photos and that the way Breeders raise rabbits is much different than how a pet home would raise a single rabbit.

At any rate I need some background.
Are you located in the United States?
And are these rabbits going to be shown?

The main reason I ask is that if you purchase a rabbit from this breeder make sure you get very detailed pedigrees and that you are not missing a thing! It appears the breeder has a BEW herd and is making Vienna marked offspring. In the US Vienna marked rabbits are not showable and BEW rabbits must NOT be mixed with a herd of other colors. Of course this only depends on if you are going to show or breed for show quality.

Also your answer will determine whether or not you should even be considering buying the babies you have pictured. Those babies look about 3-5 weeks of age and there is no way you can pick a show quality animal with rabbits that young especially in Netherland Dwarfs.

 

[RoxxRabbits32]

I am from Canada and the breeder is very well known so I know that the rabbits are well taken care of. They all have pedigrees. It will be quite a drive for me but I am planning to go to her rabbitry so I can see the rabbits myself.There are very few rabbit shows near me so I don show them. I have a few rabbits right now and I sell the kits as pets once they are old enough. Not many people breed Netherlands around me so they are in high demand as pets right now, and my kits are spoken for before they are born. My current Netherland Dwarfs aren’t pedigreed. The kits in the pictures are older now, she just hasn’t had time to take updated pictures. They aren’t going to be shown and I would sell the kits as pet quality for the time being. I just want to invest in higher quality animals so that’s why I was asking if any faults could be seen through the pictures. I have done a lot of research about the BEW gene and if anything, I will buy a BEW pair and a pair of coloured rabbits and I will keep the lines separate.

 

[woahlookitsme]

from just seeing the photos I cannot see anything structurally wrong with the animals. Netherland dwarfs are NOTORIOUS for teeth issues also known as malocclusion. Be sure to ask you breeder if she has ever had any issues with it in her older rabbits.

A good thing to do when you are at a property before you buy is to do a brief exam. Feel all over the body for injuries or lumps. Flip the bun over to check misaligned teeth (the top should always be in front of the bottom) and check the jaw for abscesses. Also check nails and feel down the belly to make sure there is no deformities on the sternum. Check the bottoms of the feet for sore hocks. Also don't forget the genitalia. Expose the vulva to check for discharge or masses and expose the ***** to check for split ***** or masses as well. Feel down the tail bones for breaks. Also check eyes and nose for discharge and ears for mites.

This is basically what judges look at during rabbit shows and it helps you have an understanding of what general health your bunny is in before you purchase. ALSO see if you can let the rabbit run around or walk. Check structure and skeleton as well.

I did want to mention most of the rabbits in the photos look a lot to me like polish instead of netherland dwarfs. Im not sure if its supposed to be different but ill link to a show breeder in teh US so you can see if you have ever seen a dwarf that looks like the ones in the link? Breeds may have variations between countries so it may be totally normal for your area i just found it odd. Or it could just be a difference in how people breed them in the US. Here they want the total bulldog appearance but those buns look more round to me. *shrug*

http://championdwarfs.com/bucks.html

 

[woahlookitsme]

Oh I forgot to mention. Im sure you already know since you breed is to ask about breeding history for does and bucks if they are of the age. I went to a discussion about Breeding at an American Rabbit Breeders Association Convention once and they talked about how netherland dwarfs have a bad rap for being bad moms or hard to breed and that the breeder doing the presentation felt with her dwarfs this was genetic. So ask how the mom to the rabbit is as far as production goes if the animal is too young to breed and or ask if there have ever been issues

 

[RoxxRabbits32]

The breeder has never had any teeth issues. When posed, the rabbits in the pictures have a much more bulldog appearance than when they are relaxed. The breeder is very reputable so I’m sure that they are Netherland Dwarfs. A couple are a little long in the ear, but she clearly states that and they are at a slight discounted price. The BEW pair are proven and the Doe had 4 kits and raised them her first litter. The others are younger but come from good mothering lines. It’s quite a drive for me but I want rabbits from a reputable breeder so I’m willing to travel and pay the bit extra to get quality animals. Many people around me advertise crosses as purebred Netherland Dwarfs and charge ridiculous prices, and people who don’t know better buy small kits, who turn out to be medium to large sized rabbits. I always find homes for my babies because I charge much less for actual purebred animals. All my rabbits are treated as pets and not a business.

 

[woahlookitsme]

Well it sounds like she is good place to get dwarfs from and you should be fine. I don’t see anything wrong with the rabbits in the photos and it shouldn’t matter too much if there are small faults as you are not breeding for show quality animals. Overall they look like healthy rabbits and the Breeder seems trustworthy. I still would recommend doing the judges exam on each rabbit before you purchase because a photo doesn’t tell you much in detail. But other than that I’m sure you will be fine and don’t forget to post photos of your new bunnies!