Lesser known endangered breeds of rabbits

摘要

There are about 100 breeds of rabbits in the world, differing in body conformation and size, and hair coat colour and structure. Rabbits are most often classified according to three criteria. The first criterion is production type: meat, meat-fur, fur, wool, laboratory or amateur. The second criterion is hair coat structure. Rabbits are classified as normal-haired, short-haired (Rex rabbits with a hair coat resembling plush) and longhaired (Angora and fox rabbits). Until the 1980s, normal-haired rabbits such as New Zealand Red, Chinchilla. Alaska and German Checkered Giant enjoyed the greatest popularity due to their attractive hair coat. Today, however, the use of skins of normal-haired rabbits for fur coat production is limited because of low durability of these products. The skins of Rex rabbits are popular because their hair coat is much more durable.