Just got a bunny, trying to figure out her breed

[pshepard]

Hello Everyone!

I just bought a bunny this past weekend from a local breeder who sells them for meat. I'm trying to get some solid information on her breed and what size I can expect her to grow too and the like. The breeder told me she was born about eight weeks ago and that she's a New Zealand White. After doing some searching online I'm not so convinced that's what she is though. First of all, she's not white. She's a tan color. Second, her eyes aren't red. I'm going to post some images here for you all to take a look at and maybe you can tell me your thoughts. She's about 2-3 lbs right now. I had a pet store person that I trust tell me she's way too big to be eight weeks and she figured she was more like four to six months. Also, one of her ears stays flopped over while the other one stays up. Not sure if that is a breeding issue or what.

She does seem to hop a little funny. She'll hop straight a few hops and then kind of tilt her head and hop sideways. I didn't know if that's because she's not used to hopping since she was confined to a cage all her life or if she might have an ear infection or something. Thoughts on that?

 

[mdith4him]

Oh, goodness, what a cutie!! I'm not a breed expert, but I've never seen a picture of a New Zealand White that looks like that! NZWs have ears that stick straight up and hers look like they're at least partially flopped.

I would look for a rabbit-savvy vet to take her to. You can ask about the hopping (it sounds like it might just be a binky--a 'happpy hop') and the age. Even if nothing is particularly wrong, it's a good idea to get a new bunny checked by a vet (especially if you bought her from someone that doesn't seem to have given you the right information). If your pet store friend is right about the age, then this might be about as big as she gets. Smaller bunnies tend to stop growing at around 4-6 months (larger breeds I believe grow a bit more after 6 months).

In any case, enjoy your new friend!

Oh, and welcome to the forum

 

[ZRabbits]

Your bunny definitely looks like a Mix. Some meat breeders do use lop eared bunnies. She could get up to about 6-7 lbs by adulthood. But it's tough to know with mixes. Regarding the head tilt, I would definitely get your bunny to a Rabbit Savvy Vet. She could have an inner ear infection or ear mites that you can't see. If you notice her eyes moving rapidly, it's an inner ear infection. I went through that with two of my rabbits.

She's a cutie. Wishing you luck with her.

K

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Some lop in the mix.

 

[Dulmit]

The sideways hop could be a binky. Also larger breeds can take a long time to get to full size. My Flemmish Giant didn't fully stop growing until about 12-14 months.
Looks like your bun still has its baby coat to me and looks like she is fairly young and my Flemmy was about 4 pounds of so at 8 weeks. I think she could be right around the age you were told. Harder to figure by weight though without knowing the breed. If you track her weight as time goes on you could probably get a good idea of her age in about 6 months or so.

 

[1234bunnies777]

I don't know what she is but she defiantly not a pure bred new zeland white for sure. Maybe a mix and she defiantly has some lop in her!!!! what i do know is she's a cutiee!!!

 

[StitchLover]

Maybe a mini?

 

[wendymac]

Well, I have French Lops and Californian babies at the moment. They all weigh in at around 3 pounds. The French are 7 weeks and the Cals almost 6. So I'd think she's right around the correct weight for a NZ, at 8 weeks (if not a bit on the small side).

As for NZ, could she be a NZ red? It looks like she could be a red, but too light for showing/breeding purposes. But not sure what's going on with the ears. LOL Eye color for the reds is brown.

 

[Nela]

I suspect she's either a full or part french lop. Those are most often the lops used for meat breeding I believe and she's not a small girl for her age! Lol. A pet store person is usually much more accustomed to the smaller breeds because they sell better so that would explain why the pet store employee thought differently. She definitely has that baby look so I think she's just a big bun. Again, not surprised seeing what she was bred for. She's really cute!

Unless she's scratching at her ears plenty and shaking them, I would agree with LakeCondo and say that she is learning to binky. :biggrin:Bunnies are goofy little things and they have fun ways of expressing their happiness!

Congrats on your new baby!