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Another breed of rabbits with a mysterious origin.
Either the breed comes from the Patagonian giant rabbits, which were either brought to Europe in the XNUMXth century, or they died out there long ago. That is the product of crossing Patagonian rabbits with European large Flemish (and where did the large Flemish come from?) rabbits, that is, with a European species of rabbit.
All these theories sidestep the problem of interbreeding, in which the offspring of South American, if such a real existence, and European rabbits would be sterile. And, of course, no one pays attention to one small discrepancy: the separation of the continents happened long enough for the South and North American continents to develop their own animal species, and the Eurasian fauna, which crossed to the North American continent via the Bering Bridge, simply did not have time to penetrate the South American continent. Therefore, it is easier not to multiply entities, but to use Occam’s razor and admit that artificial selection works wonders if you clearly know what you are trying to achieve.
Everything in the picture is good. Rabbit. Giant. Already extinct. The trouble is that he lived in Menorca, and not on the American continent. Although he weighed those same 12 – 26 kg.
Presumably, as a breed, the Flanders rabbit took shape in Flanders, which is today part of Belgium. But on the question of where the ancestors of the Belgian giant came from in Flanders, a lot of spears have been broken. However, if you remember that the first rabbits of the Flanders breed were rather small animals, weighing less than 5 kg, there is most likely no secret.
Flanders rabbits, apparently, were bred by simple selection for the tribe of the largest individuals.
After the spread of the Flemish rabbit throughout Europe, local offspring of this breed appeared quite logically in different countries. Somewhere the flanders were crossed with local breeds of rabbits, somewhere they simply selected for desirable traits.
Almost all breeds of rabbits that have the word “giant” or “giant” in their names are descendants of the Flemish or Belgian giant rabbit. German, English, white, gray giants – all come from the Flemish rabbit. True, if the English and German giants were simply adapted to the climate of their countries, then the blood of other breeds was added to the gray and white giants in order to increase endurance and resistance to the climate. The French descendants of the Belgian Flanders, as a result of the influx of other blood, turned out to be lop-eared in general, receiving the name of the French ram.
But usually all spawns of flanders have erect ears, although they often look like burdocks.
Belgian Giant Standard
The description of the flandra rabbit usually begins with a general impression. And the general impression of this rabbit is a large, powerful, clumsy animal with powerful paws and a wide chest.
The minimum weight of the flandra is 5 kg. Breeders are striving to increase the live weight of the rabbit, and today the average weight of animals of the Flemish breed is 6-7 kg. The record weight of Flanders is up to 12 kg.
Moreover, the network often comes across photos that show just giants. The network contains information about the Belgian rabbit Ralph, listed in the Guinness Book of Records and weighing 22 kg according to some sources, 25 according to others, and 28 according to others. However, not only weight, but also nicknames differ. According to other sources, the huge Belgian is called Darius.
You need to start with the fact that only one rabbit is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records. And he’s fluffy. Got in the Book for wool length 36,5 cm.
Here is Darius. It seems that not only has a large size, but also knows how to levitate, since the second hand of the rabbit lady clearly does not support. The first one is a bit too big for a woman, but what only does not happen in the world.
But in the photo with the chihuahua, the true size of the rabbit Darius is already visible.
The second largest Flemish rabbit in the world is Ralph.
If the photo of the flandre was genuine, the girl would have to be included in the Guinness Book of Records for exorbitantly large hands.
So there is no need to flatter yourself and hope to grow a giant weighing over 20 kg. With luck, individual specimens after fattening and before slaughter will gain 12 kg.
Therefore, we return to the standard weight, appearance and articles of the Belgian giant breed.
The normal size of the Flemish giant is “stretched” to better show the length of the body.
According to the results: the Belgian flandre does not grow larger than 10-12 kg, unless this is a rare genetic deviation.
The Belgian giant has a large wide head with well-defined cheeks. By the way, this is often a distinguishing feature of breeds derived from Flanders. Especially those who were bred by selection according to the necessary characteristics, without the influx of blood from other breeds. The ears of the Flanders are narrower at the base and widening towards the middle. As a result, the shape of the ears resembles a primitive spoon.
The body of the flandre must be at least 65 cm long with a chest girth of at least 42 cm. The back is even, the same in width from the withers to the sacrum. Legs supporting a massive body, powerful, widely spaced, thighs well muscled.
The disadvantages of this breed include incorrect paws, chest girth less than 35 cm, body length less than 65 cm.
The Flemish breed has 10 standard colors: silver, agouti, blue, gray, black, dark gray, white, fawn, opal, sand. Any other color is a fault.
Features of keeping and breeding the Flanders breed
The maintenance of rabbits of the Belgian Fland breed has certain restrictions associated with the size of the animals.
Cage for flandra
Since the Flemish rabbit is a very large animal, it needs a cage measuring 1,0×1,1 m to live. The height of the cage should also be 0,5 m, instead of the standard 0,4 for ordinary rabbit breeds. The ideal option would be to keep any breed of giants on the floor in a mini-aviary, where they will not have a height limit. But such mini-enclosures take up a lot of space. This method is suitable for professional keeping of breeding animals or amateurs who breed large breeds in the country.
The slaughter herd is usually kept in sheds to save space.
When kept in a cage, experienced rabbit breeders take a galvanized sheet of iron, make holes in it, bend one long side at an angle of 90 degrees and place it on top of the grate. At the back of the cage, a portion of the mesh is usually removed so that the homemade inner tray can be taken out of the cage and cleaned of droppings without removing the rabbit from there. Urine drains itself through hay and holes.
The bent part of the pallet, directed upwards, closes the gap cut in the grid.
Hay is used as bedding in cages.
There is no need to make pallets in enclosures, but it is more convenient to make a two-component bedding, since in an enclosure, unlike a cage, there is nowhere for urine to drain. Therefore, sawdust is laid down in the aviary, which will absorb moisture. A thick layer of hay is placed on top.
After each cleaning of the aviary, it must be disinfected. For the convenience of cleaning and disinfection, rabbits are placed in other cages for this time.
Ideally, enclosures should first be singed with a blowtorch, burning out the “megafauna”, and then sprayed with a disinfectant solution until the surfaces are wet in order to destroy pathogenic microorganisms.
Feeding rabbits of the Flemish breed
Although here the Flanders do not differ much from ordinary breeds, except that they need more food than usual. Professionals prefer not to overdo it with juicy and wet food, not wanting to get problems with rabbit intestines. Fans often save on feed by adding kitchen waste and tops from the garden to the Flanders’ diet.
When eating succulent fodder, the flanders will not give you any special surprises, except for the already familiar diarrhea or bloating. And with the skillful giving of this type of feed, it is possible that there will be no usual problems either.
The specifics of breeding the Belgian breed
Breeding rabbits of the Flanders breed is also not very different from breeding ordinary rabbits. In technical terms. The female also needs a mother liquor, and she, like an ordinary rabbit, builds a nest there.
Flanders are late. If ordinary rabbits are allowed to mate at 5 – 6 months, then flandres can be mated no earlier than 8 months. At the same time, their puberty begins at 4 months. But early littering will result in weak babies that most likely will not survive. And the time for the maintenance of the female mother and feeding the unviable litter will be lost.
If one rabbit needs 1 m², then a rabbit with a brood needs 2 m².
Flandra rabbit brings 6 – 10 rabbits in a litter. The rabbits are growing up fast. Already by 4 months they reach a slaughter weight of 3,5 – 4 kg.
This is what explains the loss of time during early birth.
Buying a Flemish Bunny
The purchase of a rabbit of the Flandre breed should be made no earlier than the rabbit is 3-4 months old. It is better to buy a rabbit in a nursery or on a farm.
How to choose a rabbit
From animals of any kind, the first litters are usually unsuccessful. From old animals, too, one does not have to wait for high-quality offspring. Therefore, it is better to take young rabbits from a middle-aged rabbit. Only a farm or nursery can provide such a choice of uneven-aged rabbits.
When choosing a rabbit, a buyer who takes an animal for breeding will have to puzzle over how to combine two incompatible factors.
For breeding meat animals, it is beneficial if the rabbit brings the maximum number of rabbits in the litter. This factor is inherited through the maternal line. But with a large litter, each individual rabbit gets less milk than its counterparts from small litters. And this means that the quality of a rabbit from numerous offspring will be lower.
To keep a rabbit of the Flemish breed as a decorative animal, it is better to take a rabbit from a small litter.
In addition to the number of rabbits in the litter, you need to pay attention to the appearance of the animal. A healthy rabbit of any breed has bright eyes, a clean nose, and a pleasant coat to the eye and touch.
If there is matted hair on the paws, and on whites it is also brown, discard this particular rabbit. Such hair appears if the rabbit has discharge from the nose or eyes. Trying to clear his nose and eyes, the rabbit rubs them with his paws.
Discharge may be symptoms of rhinitis or myxomatosis.
Although the rabbit of the Flemish breed is a calm animal, the “rag” in the hands should not hang either. Such lethargy indicates a disease.
Conclusion
When buying a Belgian rabbit, keep in mind that all giant breed rabbits are already beginning to lose their importance as meat animals, since the slaughter yield of meat from the carcass of the Flemish rabbit is only 50%, while the California breed rabbit gives 80%. The advantage of giant breeds is in the size of their skins. But the quality of animal skins of the Flemish breed is also often inferior to other breeds of rabbits.