These colors are split into five groups: self, shaded, agouti, tan, and any other variety. There and many different colors for this breed that are accepted by the ARBA. We will go into more detail about grooming later on. They will shed moderately a few times a year during shedding season, during which time they may need to be brushed more. The Netherland Dwarf’s coat is short to medium in length, soft, and does not need much grooming. Their ears can look a little out of place as they are small and erect on top of their large head! Their legs are also short. They have a compact body, a large head, short face, short ears and large eyes.

These little rabbits often look like a kit for their whole lives. The Netherland Dwarf is, of course, a small rabbit and normally weighs between 2 to 2.5 lbs. A Netherland Dwarf kit will usually cost around $30 and $90, which is more than many rabbit breeds. The Netherland Dwarf is normally born in litter sizes of between two and four kits. Rabbits with one copy of the gene are not small enough to be show Netherland Dwarfs, and rabbits with two copies of the gene will be too small to live longer than a few days. If two true dwarfs mate, the result can be offspring with no copies of the gene, one copy of the gene and two copies of the gene. The Netherland Dwarf first arrived in North America in 1965 with the purpose to breed and improve Polish rabbits in the United States.Ĭharacteristics Of The Netherland Dwarf RabbitĪ Netherland Dwarf rabbit of “perfect size”, known as a “true dwarf” has one copy of the dwarf gene. The Netherland Dwarf Club was also set up in England in 1949. In 1947, some English breeders were given some of the remaining Netherland Dwarfs in various colors and they were recognized as a breed by the British Rabbit Council in 1950. However, WWII interrupted further development. The Netherland Dwarf was recognized by Holland in 1940. They began breeding all-white Hermelin rabbits with local wild rabbits as well as other domestic breeds until the Netherland Dwarf was created. The Netherland Dwarf rabbit originated in Holland, hence their name, when five men worked for 30 years to create a standardized small rabbit that would be accepted and available in a variety of colors.

The Netherland Dwarf remains one of the most popular rabbit breeds in the United States. The American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) recognized the Netherland Dwarf rabbit in 1969 and several other dwarf breeds have sprung up since. A breeder in Holland was the first to use this gene to create very small rabbits. Their small size is actually due to a dwarf gene, which was first discovered in rabbits in the mid-1900s. They are often compared to the Holland Lop as they both have compact body types but, while the Holland Lop is the smallest lop, the Netherland Dwarf is the smallest rabbit. Netherland Dwarf rabbits are a true dwarf breed, which means they carry the dwarf gene. If you’re interested in learning more about the Netherland Dwarf rabbit and seeing whether they might be the bun for you, keep reading below.

While these rabbits can be shy and scared when you first bring them home and therefore may not be the pet for you if you have small children in the house, with the correct training and socialization they can grow up to live a happy life with their owners. These bunnies have an excitable and energetic temperament and this combined with their compact size makes them a perfect companion to many. The Netherland Dwarf rabbit is one of the smallest breeds of rabbit and is a very popular pet throughout the United States and the rest of the world.

Netherland dwarf rabbit black