# Holland Lop Color Help Please ~ New to the Bunny World



## DuckyLou

Hello! I am new to the bunny world and need some help understanding colors! I have acquired 3 holland lop does and 1 holland lop buck. I'm posting pictures of 2 of my does and will post pictures of the other 2 later today. I think the picture of the first one would be considered a broken chestnut? But not sure. Please help! Thank you!!


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## samssimonsays

Looks like a broken black Tort for the first one. and maybe a blue tort for the second one?


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## DuckyLou

Oh! A broken black!  This goes to show how little I know!! All the different colors of HLs have my head spinning! Lol  thank you for your reply Samantha! I will post pics of the other 2 soon!


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## samssimonsays

Yep no problem. It is considered a broken Black Tortoiseshell. 

Here is a link to some pretty good info on color genetics. 

@Bunnylady also knows a ton about the genetics side of things. I just know my breed conformation and a lot of the colors lol. Even after 10 years of raising rabbits I am still constantly learning.


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## DuckyLou

Here is the other doe, she's black with chocolate swirls??


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## DuckyLou

And last but not least our buck P.C Pennhale


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## DuckyLou

I'm guessing a blue otter? But I really have no clue. I feel pretty dumb lol but I guess I gotta start somewhere! Any tips on confirmation of them and coloring?


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## TAH

Here are some pics of a blue tortoiseshell colored rabbit.


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## TAH




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## Bunnylady

Broken (Black) Tort





This looks like a Broken Blue, possibly Broken Smoke Pearl - it's hard to tell from this angle, is the body a lighter shade of gray than the face? The slight rusty cast looks like sun fading, which is a very common problem with dilute colors.





99% sure this is a Black, though there is a possibility of Seal. The lighter areas of brownish color are just sunfading/staining on old hair that hasn't shed out yet, not an actual color or pattern. She seems to have partially molted several times - I hope she isn't one of those rabbits that is constantly molting; they are a real nuisance in a breeding program.





Opal


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## Hens and Roos

very cute bunch of rabbits you have!


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## DuckyLou

Thank you Bunnylady! And thank you Hens and Roos! Here is another picture of Louisa from the side. I just got them a few days ago and the guy I got them from had them inside a dark shed, so I don't think she is sunbleached, but maybe? I felt bad for them inside that dark place. Anyway, thank you for your help on the colors!  
So if the black one constantly molts what does that mean? Is there anything I can do to help her out with molting? Thank you again for helping me and answering my questions!


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## promiseacres

Louisa looks broken blue tort from the 2nd photo. Cute bunnies.


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## Bunnylady

Yeah, the others were right - that's a Broken Blue Tort. The orangey color on the body is clear from this picture.


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## TAH

We have a Netherland Dwarf that constantly shedded and i just combed him every day.


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## promiseacres

My buns get a tsp of BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds) everyday . Helps with their coats.


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## DuckyLou

I think they have been on a pellet only diet all of their lives,  I have had them on Timothy hay and I have been giving them a tsp of Boss everyday since I've had them (which has only been about a week), hopefully that will help. They seem much happier already! They get outside playtime in the grass everyday as well, something they had never seen! I will try brushing Butterscotch (black one) out really good and see if that will help her coat. Thanks again for all of your help!


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## Bunnylady

Show rabbits are often kept indoors, because they get marked down for coats that aren't in top condition, and as I said, sunlight fades a lot of coat colors badly. 

A lot of things can cause a rabbit to molt - changes in light levels, changes in temperature, changes in season; those are normal and often unavoidable. Some hair is lost all the time, but a molt is supposed to be a complete change of coat, starting at the nose and working back down the animal all the way to the tail. Some rabbits never seem to complete a molt, or do repeated partial molts; there seems to be some genetic component to that. If the animal is a pet, that doesn't really matter, of course. This becomes a problem in a show herd, as a rabbit with patches of faded, dull, off-color hair is going to get marked down on the show table. People who breed for show learn to avoid animals like that, to avoid the possibility of having that tendency passed on to the offspring.


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## DuckyLou

Great information! Thank you so much! I will be interested to see what happens with her. All of them are shedding really bad right now, but being so new to rabbits I have not witnessed a molt yet.  The place that these were kept in was like a tiny shed and the ammonia smell could knock you flat down


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## TAH

That is sad. Glad you are able to give them a good home. A while back we rescued a Plush Lop buck. His cage was half full with mold and manure It was horrible. When we got him he was half starved and dehydrated. I had to find him a new home but he did go to a good home. Here are pics of him.


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## DuckyLou

Awww what a cutie! Good for you for rescuing him!!
 These were all sitting in their own manure too


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## TAH

It's so sad when animals are mistreated. We also rescued three baby Bunny's, when we got them they had been starved for a whole week they were so skinny. So we had bottle babys. It's pretty neat when someone is a ble to help a animal.


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