Flemish Giant Help

[Mom2IrishBoys]

 

[Mom2IrishBoys]

I'd LOVE to see a pic or 2 of your FG Himi

 

[TroyerGal]

I'll post a pic later today!! Those other bunnies are adorable!!!

 

[Bunnylady]

Flemish Giants do not come in broken, nor does the gene for Himilayan exist in the FG gene pool. Clearly, someone has been doing some out-crossing to other breeds. Lots of people do outcrosses for a variety of reasons; sometimes it's just because they don't have two of the same breed to put together. In addition to the coloring, the shape and length of the head and ears on most of the rabbits you have pictured are just wrong - it looks like there is a New Zealand pretty close to that breeding; probably no further back than a grandparent. If the breeder says they are all purebred FG's, either they don't know what a FG is supposed to look like, or they are hoping you don't. I am sure there is some FG in there, and they will all wind up as big rabbits. If the parents are docile, friendly rabbits, the offspring are more likely to have that easygoing temperament too, whatever breed(s) they may be.

 

[Bunnylady]

Hello there!! I have a Flemish with Himalayan coloring... From what I understand the Ruby eyed White, the Grey and the Himalayan have similar genes. So not show quality, but fairly pure

I am not sure what this is supposed to mean; the genes for REW, Chinchilla (which is called "grey" in the FG's) and Himalayan all occur in the C series. EVERY rabbit has genes from the C series; full color and Siamese-type shading genes occur there as well. Himalayan-type coloring clearly points to something other than Flemish Giant in the gene pool.

This much color on the points in a young rabbit probably indicates that the Himi gene came from both sides, so both parents are most likely crossbred. There is a strictly commercial breed called the Altex that has Flemish and Californian as some of the foundation breeds; they typically wind up 12 to 20 pounds as adults. If someone crossed an Altex back to a Flemish, that could account for points showing up on really big rabbits. But if you compare the head/ears on this rabbit:

you see what I mean - it's just not quite the same.

 

[Mom2IrishBoys]

Flemish Giants do not come in broken, nor does the gene for Himilayan exist in the FG gene pool. Clearly, someone has been doing some out-crossing to other breeds. Lots of people do outcrosses for a variety of reasons; sometimes it's just because they don't have two of the same breed to put together. In addition to the coloring, the shape and length of the head and ears on most of the rabbits you have pictured are just wrong - it looks like there is a New Zealand pretty close to that breeding; probably no further back than a grandparent. If the breeder says they are all purebred FG's, either they don't know what a FG is supposed to look like, or they are hoping you don't. I am sure there is some FG in there, and they will all wind up as big rabbits. If the parents are docile, friendly rabbits, the offspring are more likely to have that easygoing temperament too, whatever breed(s) they may be.

UGH!! THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I WAS AFRAID OF. **** IT! I'm already almost there. Any idea on what they might be size-wise? I really really really wanted to Flemish because of the size and the temperament so I just really I'm sad and disappointed now

 

[Mom2IrishBoys]

Any idea if the blue I posted looks pure? That was the 2nd one I was going to get

 

[Mom2IrishBoys]

I'm guessing not because the ears look different, more cupped, not as wide n open. I'm so mad. Why do people do this crap

 

[Bunnylady]

Why do people do this crap

A lot of people don't know any better. A rabbit is a rabbit is a rabbit to them; they aren't breeding to the standard and may not even know that a standard exists. Even people who breed for show may do an outcross for some reason (like creating a new color), but they then have to work pretty hard for several generations to get everything else back to the standard. When the only reason someone is breeding is to make more rabbits, they can wander pretty far from the standard and not even know it.

The Netherland Dwarf enjoyed explosive popularity when it first came to this country. For the longest time, every ND I saw was an ugly little bug-eyed thing; I wondered, "why would anyone want to create a breed that looks like this?" Then I started running into the "good" ones, and I realized that Netherland Dwarfs are actually cute.

 

[balloonflower]

So, is the main way to know all the standards to purchase the arba book? Is membership in that, or in the individual breed clubs worth it? I know for me with my silver fox, the breed club says it has a guidebook, but I have no idea weather it would be worth the cost.

OP--I'm sorry that the rabbits you're finding aren't what they're advertised to be. That is really frustrating!