The Alaskan rabbit is a medium-sized rabbit breed, weighing around 7-9 lbs (3–4 kg) with glossy jet-black fur. Any colour other than black is a fault for this breed. Despite its name, the Alaskan rabbit originates in Germany, rather than Alaska.
It is recognised by the
British Rabbit Council
The British Rabbit Council (BRC) is an organisation for rabbit enthusiasts in the United Kingdom. Rabbits are the UK's third most popular pet.
History
The British Rabbit Council was formed in 1934 when the British Rabbit Society and the National ...
; however it is not recognised by the
American Rabbit Breeders Association
The American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) is a national club for domestic rabbits and cavy breeders. The ARBA is headquartered in Knox, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Its membership is composed of rabbit and cavy exhibitors, commer ...
.
The Alaskan rabbit was created in 1900 by Max Fischer of
Gotha
Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine Wettins from 1640 until the ...
, a rabbit judge, as well as a man named Schmidt of
Langensalza. They crossed
Havanas,
Dutch,
Himalayans and
Champagne d'Argents with the goal of obtaining a rabbit that looks like the
Alaskan Fox, which were profitable in the
fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...
of that time. They did not achieve this goal, and instead ended up with the jet-black Alaska. These Alaskan rabbits, with jet-black fur were first shown in 1907, and imported to North America in the 1970s by Bert Reurs of Canada. They were added into the American Rabbit Breeders Standard, but after Black Havanas were created in the mid-1970s, interest waned and they were dropped from Standards in 1981.
The Alaskan rabbit weighs 7-9 lbs. It is considered a Normal Fur breed by British Rabbit Council standards, and only comes in its standard, pitch black colour. The Alaska Rabbit Club is the British Rabbit Council's national specialty club for this breed.
See also
*
List of rabbit breeds
As of 2017, there were at least 305 breeds of the domestic rabbit in 70 countries around the world raised for in the Agriculture, agricultural practice of Selective breeding, breeding and raising domestic rabbits as livestock for their value in m ...
References
Rabbit breeds originating in Germany
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