Jenson
Well-Known Member
Hi everyone,
I recently acquired a beautiful Belgian Hare girl, Isabelle, from a breeder friend. She is from very good stock that do very well at shows in the UK. The breeder is excellent, really cares about her Hares and has an amazing posh rabbitry. I've been told that Isabelle is a very good Hare and her parents/grandparents show record and bloodlines certainly seem to reflect that. She is a very well bred and raised Hare.
However, I look at Isabelle moving and I can't help thinking that something looks off. Health wise, she is fine, she runs around and binkies and enjoys herself, she was vet checked a month ago. But she can't balance properly on her hind legs when standing up, she can't clean herself without an effort to reach, she can't turn around easily without leaving her long legs behind, she stands on her tail, the list goes on. Basically her spine is just way too long for her to be able to move around like a normal rabbit does. I know the Hare standard calls for this and they have been bred to look this way, but I look at Issy and then at my Rex and I can't help feeling she is a bit distorted compared to a normal rabbit shape. My Rex can hop around in a tight circle, Issy has to do a 3 point turn. When she poses she looks fantastic, but when she's just doing normal bunny things she looks a bit awkward.
For those of you who have experience of Hares, is this something you have noticed? I am hoping it is just Issy and not the breed in general, but since she is from very good stock, and all the Hares belonging to the breeder were the same, I suspect in the UK at least this is the case for most Hares. I have also been told they often suffer from spine and leg problems as they age. Obviously I'm hoping this will not affect Issy although it wouldn't surprise me. Have Hares been bred into too much of an exaggerated shape? Has anyone seen or owned a Hare that had the mobility of a normal breed? I have owned arch breeds before, I bred English Spots for a few years before Rex, but they had no issues at all and moved completely normally. Is it just Issy?
So, are Hares generally okay? Any thoughts on the mobilty issues I am seeing? And for those of you who don't have experience of Hares, what do you think of them?
Here is Issy, you can see here how far under her tail is, it's like her spine curves really sharply when she is sitting because her back is so long. For some reason she very often has her front paws crossed too, like in this photo!
I recently acquired a beautiful Belgian Hare girl, Isabelle, from a breeder friend. She is from very good stock that do very well at shows in the UK. The breeder is excellent, really cares about her Hares and has an amazing posh rabbitry. I've been told that Isabelle is a very good Hare and her parents/grandparents show record and bloodlines certainly seem to reflect that. She is a very well bred and raised Hare.
However, I look at Isabelle moving and I can't help thinking that something looks off. Health wise, she is fine, she runs around and binkies and enjoys herself, she was vet checked a month ago. But she can't balance properly on her hind legs when standing up, she can't clean herself without an effort to reach, she can't turn around easily without leaving her long legs behind, she stands on her tail, the list goes on. Basically her spine is just way too long for her to be able to move around like a normal rabbit does. I know the Hare standard calls for this and they have been bred to look this way, but I look at Issy and then at my Rex and I can't help feeling she is a bit distorted compared to a normal rabbit shape. My Rex can hop around in a tight circle, Issy has to do a 3 point turn. When she poses she looks fantastic, but when she's just doing normal bunny things she looks a bit awkward.
For those of you who have experience of Hares, is this something you have noticed? I am hoping it is just Issy and not the breed in general, but since she is from very good stock, and all the Hares belonging to the breeder were the same, I suspect in the UK at least this is the case for most Hares. I have also been told they often suffer from spine and leg problems as they age. Obviously I'm hoping this will not affect Issy although it wouldn't surprise me. Have Hares been bred into too much of an exaggerated shape? Has anyone seen or owned a Hare that had the mobility of a normal breed? I have owned arch breeds before, I bred English Spots for a few years before Rex, but they had no issues at all and moved completely normally. Is it just Issy?
So, are Hares generally okay? Any thoughts on the mobilty issues I am seeing? And for those of you who don't have experience of Hares, what do you think of them?
Here is Issy, you can see here how far under her tail is, it's like her spine curves really sharply when she is sitting because her back is so long. For some reason she very often has her front paws crossed too, like in this photo!
