Rabbit breeding questions

Hi everyone. So I have a black mini rex buck (well I think he is a mini rex, got him from the pet store and they didnt really tell me anything, he might have some dwarf but I don't know). He had a girlfriend last year who was also a mini rex and I was planning on breeding them once she was old enough but something killed her :( Anyways, I'm on the hunt for a new girl now but I wanted to ask a question about breeding.

He is a solid black. My aunt and I were having a discussion on if that is dominant or recessive, but she was bringing in human examples although I thought they were irrelevant. Anyways, I read online that it is recessive to a spotted rabbit but dominant to another solid??

His girlfriend was white with gold/yellow spots on her ears, around her face, and on her back. If they were ever bred, what kind of babies would I have had? Black, or mixes of the 3 colors?

Also what would I get if I bred him with either a solid gold, white w/black, or white w/grey?

Thanks!

Bump??

I love bunnies <3

BUT I do not at all like the idea of breeding just for 'the heck of it' or whatever ... can put a bad name out there for us breeders that really enjoy the hobby and go to shows and try to better our breeds. Every breeding should have a good purpose, like making the breed better and winning on the show table... not to make babies and sell them to who knows who to make a little extra cash. As rabbit breeders we go into the hobby knowing that you usually don't make any profit. We do it because we love our hobby. And I'm really sorry if it sounds mean and awful of me, but I've repeated this many times and it's just how myself and a lot of other breeders feel. I'm sure some horse breeders feel the same way.

The doe sounds like she might have me a tri color... which is like a broken 'spotted' genetics wise I think. You would get both colors when breeding to the black... just as breeding a black to any other broken color, you would get solids and brokens of whatever colors were bred AND even something that is back generations...that's why show and brood rabbits have pedigrees. So you know what breeding lines they come from and what colors are possible from breedings and whether you get showable or non showable colors.

Genetics can be very confusing... took me quite a while to understand it and I still get confused.

Ok thank you! That's what I needed clarified, I even went as far as to ask my biology teacher if the whole idea of a solid being recessive and dominant was possible.

And I understand how you feel about it, I'm not for backyard breeding just for the heck of it and to make profit. Mainly why I wanted to breed in the future was because there aren't many mini rex rabbits in my area and I know that they're so versatile. My rabbit lives outside 24/7 and has the best fur because I feed him natural greens and carrots, not only pellets. I know that if I found homes for the babies (if I did breed) that they would NOT go as meat rabbits but instead make someone happy. I even have a few friends who would provide great homes for them, even some who have a couple of goats and many chickens/birds :)

But take my word - I am not out there to put a bad name to genuine breeders, I appreciate what they do for any animal! They put some awesome babies out there for sure :)

Well that makes me feel better. Lol :)

Yeah my goal isnt to breed every 2 months and sell the rabbits to whoever wants to buy them, don't worry :) I wouldnt even dream of breeding anytime in the summer or winter.. im very careful about even that kind of stuff so no need to worry ;)

If there aren't many Mini Rex in your area, your best bet would be to find some breeders close to you and get started with them correctly, after all you're not even sure if your boy is a MR?

Attend some local shows, talk with MR breeders, and breed to better the breed. I can guarantee you won't have much of a market, even if you're rehoming as pets, if you're not sure what you have, and are advertising them as Mini Rex. ;)

Actually, rabbits can be bred yearround, though sometimes it's more hard in the Winter/Summer, but it puts no more stress on them then it does any other time of year. ;)

Emily