# Pedigree-ing Magpie Harlequin Babies



## HomesteaderLexi (Mar 14, 2018)

This is my girls first litter, so pround of her! They are 9 weeks old this Friday and I'm in the process of having them Pedigreed..but the problem is figuring out what color they are. Mom is Lilac Magpie and Dad is Chocolate Magpie. 2 of the babies I know are forsure chocolate but the other 4 I can't figure out. Any suggestions? Most were looking to be lilac but they have recently began to get some chocolate coloring in them.


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## Bunnylady (Mar 14, 2018)

Mags can be stinkers! I remember entering one about this age in a show as a blue, and by the time the show rolled around, she was getting her junior coat, and the new coat looked black. At that time, we were showing each color separately, so being entered as the wrong color could have gotten her DQ'd (yeah, long,_ long_ time ago!) 

If they look chocolate _anywhere_, they are chocolate. The junior coat starts to appear at the nose first, then the prime line of new hair slowly moves back to the tail. The color of the more mature coat is often a bit more intense than the baby color, so you will probably see the darker color on the face first. If you are unsure, wait a couple more weeks; by then, there should at least be enough new hair on their heads to be sure.

Between the genes for chocolate and chinchilla, Chocolate Mags often get rather weird-colored eyes - some of mine had brown, others looked almost lavender. A lilac's eyes will be almost silvery, but it may take seeing a few of each before you learn to tell the difference there.

Congrats on a lovely litter! Looks like you have some good splits there; are any showable?


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## promiseacres (Mar 14, 2018)

All look chocolate to me. Most dilutes have different "shades" , particularly while growing.
@Bunnylady any other insight? Hey... you just gave it...lol


Lexington


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## HomesteaderLexi (Mar 14, 2018)

Thank you so much for that great advice! I'm new to the breed so still alot to learn, but thats why I chose them. I wanted something unique and a bit more challenging. I don't believe any of them are showable but a couple look to be good potentional breeders.


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## Alibo (Mar 14, 2018)

My magpies do not show their true colours until about 8 to 10 months and usually darken up. I have even had some lilacs end up blue! In my opinion most of yours will end up chocolate. I am working on my champagne harlequin right now and it is like waiting for Christmas to see what babies will keep their light colour! Good luck and I cannot wait to see how they end up Love Harlequins!


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## HomesteaderLexi (Mar 21, 2018)

Alibo said:


> My magpies do not show their true colours until about 8 to 10 months and usually darken up. I have even had some lilacs end up blue! In my opinion most of yours will end up chocolate. I am working on my champagne harlequin right now and it is like waiting for Christmas to see what babies will keep their light colour! Good luck and I cannot wait to see how they end up Love Harlequins!


Thank you for the great information! Good luck on your Champagnes! Harlequins are without a doubt my favorite breed of rabbit


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## Alibo (Mar 30, 2018)

What do you think? Lemon blue? Hard to tell from the photos but it's almost more of a lavender than blue


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## Bunnylady (Mar 30, 2018)

Looks like a Blue Japanese to me. Since Lilac is the dilute of Chocolate, it isn't just a lighter shade of gray, it's a pinkish dove-gray that definitely shows that it has a Chocolate base. 

That one looks like it has pretty good color; not a lot of brindling.


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## Alibo (Mar 30, 2018)

Fantastic thank you!


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