What's the smallest breed?

[Jaiyla]

Hi! My boyfriend has a netherland dwarf male bunny. We have compared him to a lionhead and those seem to be so much bigger than this little guy. We want a spayed female, and it seems the humane society would be best. The only problem is that there aren't really any other female netherland dwarfs in the Wisconsin humane society, as of right now there's only one and it's on the other side of the state! Why are these so hard to come by? Are there any other breeds comparable to the size of the netherland dwarf? We don't want his sweetie to be 2x the size of him! I've been searching on petfinder.com, are there any other websites I can look on to find more bunnies in our state? Any help would be greatly, greatly appreciated! Thank you!

 

[Alexah]

From what I understand (and remember - meaning I could easily be wrong ) the smallest breed of rabbit is the brittania petite. However, I think you'll be hard pressed to find one in a shelter locally. I would be more inclined to suggest looking for a polish. And if you're from the UK, I believe those two breeds would be switched meaning the polish is smallest. Confusing, I know. And I just butchered trying to explain all that. Sorry!

Size doesn't always matter in bonding rabbits. I wouldn't say put a giant with a dwarf, but a medium sized or other small breed rabbit would be fine if their personalities meshed. Have you considered a holland lop? They are small, but not nearly as small as a netherland. However they do have pretty laid back personalities on average. And I wouldn't automatically dismiss a lionhead, but that's just me.

My suggestion would be to think personality rather than size right off the bat. I don't think a flemish would be the best choice, but someone small to medium could be a perfect match. Either way, good luck and let us know how the search for a new bun goes.

 

[Jess_sully]

Something else worth noting here is that the smaller bunnies, generally, have more attitude. In my experience, it seems that more laid back, larger, mellow does have a better time bonding with smaller bucks, like your nethie. Many shelters offer "bunny dating services" where you can introduce your bunny to different potentials to gauge initial responses. This might be a good option.
Now, that being said, my personal favorite "small breed" is polish- they are just a little bigger than nethies, very comical and amusing little guys, with not quite as much attitude as nethies, in my opinion. A polish might be a good choice, but they are very very rarely found in shelters.

 

[Luv-bunniz]

Jaiyla wrote:

Hi!  My boyfriend has a netherland dwarf male bunny.  We have compared him to a lionhead and those seem to be so much bigger than this little guy.  We want a spayed female, and it seems the humane society would be best.  The only problem is that there aren't really any other female netherland dwarfs in the Wisconsin humane society, as of right now there's only one and it's on the other side of the state!  Why are these so hard to come by?  Are there any other breeds comparable to the size of the netherland dwarf?  We don't want his sweetie to be 2x the size of him!  I've been searching on petfinder.com, are there any other websites I can look on to find more bunnies in our state?  Any help would be greatly, greatly appreciated!  Thank you!

Have you tried searching on http://rabbittrader.com/ ?

 

[Jaiyla]

I haven't!! Thank you so much for the new website !!

 

[Dragonrain]

Some lionheads are smaller than others. I have a bonded pair - a neitherland dwarf and a lionhead. My lionhead only weights about half a pound more than my dwarf. He does look bigger, but it's mostly all hair!

 

[BSAR]

The smallest in weight is the Netherland dwarf. The smallest in size, Polish or Britinania petite. I have seen the Britianias and they are so small and ugly!!!

 

[aurora369]

If it was me, I wouldn't be overly concerned with the new girls size. Bunnies of all sizes can and will bond together and live very happily together.

I would be looking for a bunny with a compatible personality. Doing some bunny dating and seeing if there are any girl buns that my boy really "clicked" with.

--Dawn

 

[RAL Rabbitry]

I have a couple of friends that have Brittania Petite and they are not the most social breed out there. They didn't get the name "land shark" for nothing.

How about a holland lop or a mini rex. They are very sweet and not too big.

Roger

 

[timetowaste]

just to throw this in here, first of all i commend you for getting info before just going out and snagging a new rabbit friend.

but, in that same token, you unfortunately do not get to pick who to bond your rabbit to...your bunner gets to pick who he wants to be life mates and friends with! so try him with a few females and watch his reactions in a small enclosed area (make sure its a neutral area to both of them).

ya know? ya know.



Tracy

 

[Jaiyla]

timetowaste wrote:

just to throw this in here, first of all i commend you for getting info before just going out and snagging a new rabbit friend.

but, in that same token, you unfortunately do not get to pick who to bond your rabbit to...your bunner gets to pick who he wants to be life mates and friends with! so try him with a few females and watch his reactions in a small enclosed area (make sure its a neutral area to both of them).

ya know? ya know.



Tracy

Over the last three months I have been looking and researching. I've been looking on humane societies a lot since they have the pet dating. My only want is that the bunny is a little guy like the one I have! I love bunnies with personality, or laid back ones: they're all a treat to experience, even if some training is needed. This hasn't been a spur of the moment decision! I've been doing my research.

 

[Jess_sully]

BSAR wrote:

I have seen the Britianias and they are so small and ugly!!!

Can I just say that calling Britianias "ugly" is a bit offensive/judgmental, some find their extremely fine bone structure to be quite beautiful. I, however, may not be one of those people so perhaps I shouldn't be the one complaining
Also, "american" polish not only weigh more but are also larger than netherland dwarves.
There's a lot of confusion because I know in the UK "polish" refers to the US "britiana petite".

:?

You are doing the right thing by researching and looking. But, it is true, that your bunny will ultimately basically be the one to choose his new friend.

 

[JadeIcing]

No one is saying you aren't doing research putting it here shows you are. When you look at buying as an optional bond mate, you have to consider that the bunny is not spayed or neutered. So that can effect relationships.

Your best bet would be letting you bun meet multiple rabbits and choose for itself.

Jaiyla wrote:

timetowaste wrote:

just to throw this in here, first of all i commend you for getting info before just going out and snagging a new rabbit friend.

but, in that same token, you unfortunately do not get to pick who to bond your rabbit to...your bunner gets to pick who he wants to be life mates and friends with! so try him with a few females and watch his reactions in a small enclosed area (make sure its a neutral area to both of them).

ya know? ya know.



Tracy

Over the last three months I have been looking and researching. I've been looking on humane societies a lot since they have the pet dating. My only want is that the bunny is a little guy like the one I have! I love bunnies with personality, or laid back ones: they're all a treat to experience, even if some training is needed. This hasn't been a spur of the moment decision! I've been doing my research.

 

[kirst3buns]

I have a 3 lbmini rex buck with a lot of attitude bonded to a 6 lb laid back mini lop doe. I've had a netherland dwarf in the past and they can have big personalities so perhaps yours doesn't know he's a little guy? My mini rex thinks he's the biggest bunny in the world by his attitude.

If you are worried about a bigger rabbit hurting the smaller one, I would try the bunny dates. My smaller one is so much more aggressive than my larger laid back doe that I actually worried more about her during the bonding process.