# Is this a silver fox?  If so, is cross breeding a good idea?



## Rex79 (Nov 5, 2020)

Male rear breed boy | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire | Pets4Homes
					

Very friendly loves being holden also loves kids viewing well come his fur is like wire due to breed these are hard to come buy hes so loving and frie...




					www.pets4homes.co.uk
				




I saw this advert this evening and wondered if this is a Silver Fox.

What kind of temperament do Silver Foxes have? 

I already have 3 Rex does and 1 NZW doe.  Would I get a good meat rabbit if I bred the silver fox buck in the advert with my Rex, or with my NZW?

Also what kind of fur would I get?  I know I'd lose the Rex velvet fur but would I get white fur or black fur or black n white kits?


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## secuono (Nov 5, 2020)

Not Silver Fox, the US version. 
Fur is flat and slick. It's a ticked black rabbit with smooth fur, like a US Satin.


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## messybun (Nov 5, 2020)

I agree, it’s just black. Looks thin too.


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## Rex79 (Nov 6, 2020)

Thanks.  I'll keep looking - I'm  not in any rush to buy more rabbits at the moment.


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## Nao57 (Nov 16, 2020)

I have silver foxes.

Their fur feels like so soft and the most silky thing you've ever touched. Its truly amazing.

However, about the pic...

I'm still a student so don't get mad at me for speaking up. 

When I picked up my silver foxes I spent time talking to the seller to learn from them but also appreciate their efforts. It seemed to me that she was saying that silver foxes (in the US at least) are considered true bred if the silver white edging on the fur comes in deeper, rather than lighter. And it seemed to be that she was saying if possible to look for the silver/white to be thicker over the black rather than lighter. 

But me personally I like the look of the black being slightly more prominent as long as it doesn't eliminate the white/silver coming in entirely. I think it looks nice like this. 

But I don't know if choosing lighter silver coloring will mean that the silver/white will be weakened in successive gene blends in 'descendants' of the parent rabbits, and their posterity. 

Maybe others can comment on this. 

Later today I will try to post a pic of the differences in looks of two silver foxes, one of each type with a lighter silver/white, and one with a darker silver coloring over the black to help show this. 

I wish you luck and success.


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## Bunnylady (Nov 16, 2020)

As the ad states, that rabbit is a Silver, a normal-coated breed of rabbit that weighs around 6 pounds, and features a lot of silvering (interspersed white hairs) on a coat of black, brown, or fawn. It's an old breed, with nothing particularly snazzy about it to create popularity (like lop ears or a crazy fluffy coat), nor is it in the size range of what are now considered meat-type breeds, so describing it as "rare" is probably reasonably accurate.


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