leo9lionheads wrote:
TinysMom wrote:
Definitely a nice doe - I would consider her for sure if I was back in lionheads (not that you asked). Then again - I tended to have short bucks with the dwarfing gene and longer does. She has the length I like for breeding.
It seems to me like I used to hear cautions about breeding in a dilute into the shadeds - like it could mess up the colors somewhere down the line. Its been years - I don't remember all the details - but you might want to think some about that.
Then again - if your shadeds are smutty - I was thinking a dilute might help. (Doesn't sound right for some reason).
Either way - she's a cutie. I love her face and her ears.
At this point Smoke pearls and Blue Points are show able in LH's. I reserved her as a sable point actually but when she opened her eyes it was apparent she was dilute. I wasn't interested in bring dilute into my sable points but she has the HQ's I am looking for in my sable points and color comes after type and I can breed it out if I eventually want to.
You should get back into LH's, Theresa has awesome rabbits and should do well with presenting this year.
Yes, I am seriously considering it. I am currently contacting the three breeders I would like to work with (one wants to get out of breeding - so I'm getting more information about their stock).
If I get lionheads - I will definitely be getting them from Nita and Kaela Shannon of Legendary Minis - and from Lisa Brown of Castlegate Lionheads. I have some specific reasons for doing this though - Legendary Minis have a lot of rabbits that came from Theresa's lines and I think go back to Tuborg. Castlegate has lots of rabbits that go back to Cimmaron's Firebear because she bought out a lot of Diane Ostrem's stock (DJ's Rabbits) when she got out of breeding.
The third breeder I won't mention because they aren't really talking much about wanting to get out and are still trying to make a decision.
Both of these breeders that I want to buy from - compete on the local and national levels and both do fairly well at the shows. They are also respected among the "veteran" lionhead breeders who have been around a while - and I know stuff about their lines simply by keeping in touch with those who have been breeding and have bought rabbits from them and kept breeding them for a while, etc.
The hardest decision is what colors (ok - so type does matter first). Originally - I was going to be pulling a COD (last month) for chocolates and the otter group as those are my favorite colors. (I LOVE chocolate tort too).
But the breeders I want to buy from - don't tend to work with those colors....I know Nita has done a lot with the reds...that would be very interesting.
I have a lot of thinking to do about this though before I jump back in. Like...how many would I add (I'm thinking a maximum of six) - and would I want them from one breeder's lines or from more than one breeder.
I used to do the " roam the websites and buy odds and ends from various breeders because this one was cute and that one was cute...." - and learned the hard and expensive way that they might be cute and showable - but that not all lines "click" well together when breeding.
I'd really like to find folks who have lines out of Bob Whitman's Blue Boy as any and ALL offspring I ever had from him (even single manes) ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS kept their manes - and I had at least 30 or so lionheads that had him in the pedigree. They would molt out their manes and it would come in fuller...it was so nice.
Anyway - lots to think about - mull over - talk to some trusted breeders about, etc.
I've heard people say for five years (even before I started) that Theresa will be the one to get the lionheads passed. I agree with this - because I've watched her lionheads over the years and she consistently produces the same type and has culled hard to reach that point.
I would consider buying directly from her....but Nita & Kaela's rabbits are more in my reach financially - and they are friends that I trust.
About your doe - I sure understand it about "colors comes after type". I did like her hindquarters and as you say - you can always breed out the dilute. I hope she'll add a lot to your program - I LOVE her ears.
I think that seeing lionheads of that caliber showing up on the forum is part of what is making me think of getting back into them. I started seeing the lionheads go in that direction type-wise about 2 1/2 years ago ....but now I'm seeing it more often among the breeders I follow.
CONGRATS on your doe!
