Holland Lop
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Holland Lop Rabbit is the smallest breed of the lop rabbit family. All rabbits belong to the larger family of Lagomorphs, which include rabbits, hares, and pikas. The Holland Lop is very popular and well-liked by many rabbit enthusiasts, pet owners and breeders in the United States because of its compact size and attractiveness or "cuteness". It is characterized for having a bulky, stocky and a muscular body; its ideal weight is 3 lb (1.4 kg) although some may reach a maximum weight of 4 lb (1.8 kg).
This tiny gorgeous breed marked its beginnings when a man by the name of De Cock sought to combine the best qualities from two rabbit breeds, the French Lop (known for being large and having floppy ears) and the Netherland Dwarf rabbits, into a new breed. His scheme was to breed a petite French lop with the body features of a Netherland dwarf, thus creating quite a challenge.
In the winter of 1949-50, De Cock decided to breed a White Netherland Dwarf Doe to a French Lop Buck and obtained undesired dwarf lop rabbits. Unsatisfied, he decided to switch the genders in the breeds, he bred a French Lop Doe and a Netherland Dwarf Buck, and got six miniature lops.
In addition, De Cock bred an English Lop Buck and a Netherland Dwarf and obtained five lopped rabbits, two rabbits with upright ears, and the remaining ones were with half-lopped ears. He later thought that if he could make the lopped-ear rabbits reproduce, he would get the Holland lop, but got disappointed and unwanted looking rabbits were born. Finally, he inseminated a half-lopped doe rabbit to a buck from one of the initial breeding of six rabbits, producing what we know today as the Holland Lop.
Due to its thick fur, it needs an occasional grooming if you would like to keep it as a show rabbit. Once a week you should brush it with a cat comb or special rabbit comb. Also make sure to get out any hay, manure, etc. Rabbit spray-on shampoos are also available, but not essential. When done brushing, wet your hands and wipe them down to remove any excess fur. They molt about three times a year, and it might be best to clean your clothes with detergent that is specially formulated to keep lint and animal hair off your clothes.
