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2 This Edition of The Rabbit Times Newsletter is Sponsored By: Rabbit Jewelry Gifts is the #1 source for finding quality bunny rabbit themed jewelry and gifts for sale online. We sell necklaces, earrings, bracelets, costumes, backpacks, stuffed bunnies and more. Special Offer for Newsletter Subscribers: Use coupon code TheRabbitTimes at checkout and get 15% OFF your entire purchase. CLICK HERE TO BROWSE THE FULL RABBIT JEWELRY GIFTS CATALOG

3 Rabbit Photo / Selfie Content Announced Want a chance to make your bunny rabbit famous? Interested in winning cool prizes? This month we are super excited to announce that we are launching an exclusive ongoing weekly bunny rabbit photo contest. Each week we will select a new winner to win a cool prize and have their rabbit s photo featured in our weekly edition of The Rabbit Times newsletter. To participate simply: your best rabbit photos to therabbittimes@gmail.com with the subject as Photo Contest Entry. Within the attach the photo(s) you wish to submit and a short description about your rabbit(s). Please include rabbit name(s) and name of breed (if not sure or breed is mixed just put that). Photos will be judged based upon quality, cuteness and uniqueness. Alternatively you can simply post your photo to the Rabbit Breeders facebook page to be entered as well: A new photo winner will be selected each week and announced via this newsletter! So stay tuned and good luck!

4 Weekly Rabbit Photo Contest Winners Photo 1 (submitted by Chesser Bunnies) - Baby Tort Holland Lops Melon and Mandarin snuggled up next to Twilight, a day old baby goat. Photo 2 (submitted by Chesser Bunnies) - Baby Holland Lop Ninja taking a ride in a tractor

5 Photo 3 (submitted by Samuel Clark) - Cookie is a mini rex. He loves giving kisses. This is him about three years ago when we first got him. He will eat anything. Photo 4 (submitted by Mickey Bunal) - This is Sugar, 3 yr old Holland Lop kissing Fred- the bearded dragon!

6 Photo 5 (submitted by Virginia Clark) - Hello! This is my rabbit, Basil in her hand-tailored winter dress. She is a Holland Rex, or a mini rex and Holland lop mix. She is a three-year rabbit whom we rescued from a pet store. Her full name is Basil P. Bunn.

7 Photo 6 (submitted by Donah Smith) - This is my granddaughter's 4 year old mini lop Flopitude or Flop for short. She is in 4H and shows him in the state fair. He has won best in show before and has won ribbons for showmanship and tricks.

8 Rabbits in the News Latest News Stories and Headlines: 29-year-old man dresses up as a giant rabbit in his spare time: Mum raises awareness of parasite in rabbits: Rabbits are a symbol of new life and fertility - here's how to care for them: New rabbit sanctuary coming to Richmond: Children save the lives of two starving rabbits found dumped 'like litter' in Burton:

9 Breed of the Week American Chinchilla Rabbit information and facts about the American Chinchilla Rabbit Breed. American rabbits give us an insight of what it takes to become a legitimate heavyweight rabbit. With its large size, it s truly undeniable that American Chinchilla can capture the attention of anyone. Made up of three rabbit breeds that are recognized by ARBA, Chinchilla rabbits are bred for a coat that closely resembles that of chinchillas. However, this resemblance does not extend to them being related to chinchillas, nor does it pose any possibility that it can interbreed with them. Chinchillas are species of rodent and rabbits are lagomorphs. The dilution of the yellow pigment in the hairs to almost white is caused by mutation, which has changed the way the color of the fur of the wild rabbit or agouti into chinchilla. This gave rise to the formation of American Chinchilla rabbits, which are also called Heavyweight Chinchilla rabbits. Some Standard Chinchillas that were reproduced to come up with large sizes have the American Chinchilla rabbits as their offspring.

10 1. History The origin of Chinchilla rabbits is France. French engineer M.J. Dybowski bred them to the Standard Chinchilla. The first time they were shown was in April 2013, at Saint Maur, France. This new breed skyrocketed in popularity because of its ideal fur rabbit, which so greatly resembled the South American Chinchilla Ianigera. Then the mobility of the Chinchilla continued all over the globe. A woman named Haidee Lacy-Hulbert of Mitcham Surrey imported the first breed to England in the summer season of Then, a British exhibitor had a presentation of his rabbit breed s shipment at the New York State Fair in After this show, all of the stocks that he has were sold to Edward H. Stahl and Jack Harris. Chinchillas are originally small in size from 5 to 7 ½ pounds. But since rabbit breeders wanted to develop the breed to serve its meat and pelts purposes, they were bred to produce a larger animal. Successfully, after selective breeding, they were able to achieve the larger size, fine bones and a good dress-out percentage. These characteristics can be seen in the first set of Heavyweight Chinchillas, which were later called the American Chinchilla. In the year 1919, they were introduced into the United States. While there is no certain person who can be solely credited for making a large impact to rabbit keepers and breeds, the growth of American Chinchillas is so fast. Indeed, in just a year from November 1928 and November 1929, about 17, 328 Chinchillas were registered through the American Rabbit and Cavy Breeders Association (which is now called the American Rabbit Breeders Association). And this record is yet to be broken. As a result of this, large commercial operations were set up for the mass production and selling of the American Chinchillas. The Chinchilla rabbit has contributed a lot in the development of breeds and different rabbit varieties all over the world. As a matter of fact, sports from the Chinchillas paved way for the creation of the Silver Martens and American Sables in US, and Siamese Sable and Sallander breeds overseas.

11 Today, the American Chinchilla is considered to be the most rare among all of the Chinchilla breeds. This is because of the demise of the rabbit fur industry during the 1940s, which is a big reason for the raising of the American Chinchilla in the first place. They fell out of the fur market. Despite having outstanding meat quality, the shift of preference in the meat market has affected the raising of the breed. 2. Characteristics and Appearance Of course, the name itself already suggests something about its size, right? It s quite larger compared to the Standard Chinchilla that weighs around 5 ½ to 7 pounds. For American Chinchillas, bucks weigh around 9-11 pounds while the females would weigh as much as pounds. Bucks and does under six months and 9 pounds are considered junior rabbits. When they are around 6-8 months of age, they are considered intermediate rabbits. They are good breeders and they can produce as many as 6-9 kits. American Chinchillas have a commercial, compact body type of medium build.they have a slight curve to their medium length bodies, which begins at the nape of their necks and follows through to the rump. Their short ears would stand straight erect. They have a short neck. The first time you look at the American Chinchilla, they are salt and peppercolored. They have this agouti coloring. Once the fur is blown along their length, four distinct bands of the color will appear. A banded hair shaft produces this color, with each hair having bands of black and pearl gray pigment. Their hair is soft, silky, dense and of medium length. The under color, next to the skin, is a dark slate blue. The middle color band is pears and the color of the hair tips is grey. Guard hairs are unevenly distributed for most parts of the body. The neck, belly, flanks, as well as the eye circles, have pale, pearl ticking and the ears are laced at the back.

12 The coating of the American chinchilla rabbits is roll back. The ideal length of this coating is 1¼ inches. When the coat is below an inch, they are usually faulted in shows. Coats that are so long, so much so that they closely resemble a wool already, are also being faulted. They do not require regular grooming. The quality of their pelt is the most important consideration when they are being bred against the Standard of Perfection. 3. Purpose American Chinchilla rabbit can serve different purposes. Despite being bred to be a meat and fur rabbit, American Chinchilla rabbit can also be shown or exhibited in different rabbit shows and country fairs. They are a six-class rabbit in show. This is due to the fact that any rabbit that, at the age of maturity, weigh over 9 pounds is a 6-class breed. Those under this time frame are classified as 4-class breeds. Now, some rabbit breeders still continue raising American Chinchillas for show and also as pets. But many enthusiasts argue that in order to save the small population of the variety of chinchillas, there has to be tracing back to the original purpose of the breed which is for the meat and the fur. 4. Personality and Traits American Chinchilla are seen as large yet gentle rabbits. They are also being attributed for their good mothering instincts. It can also be a stocky and a hardy pet. Generally, they are docile and good-natured. 5. Status Quo Today, the American Chinchilla rabbit is considered as the only critically endangered rabbit at this time that is listed on the Livestock Conservancy.

13 With its deep loin and broad shoulders, it s very important for rabbit breeders to leverage the advantages of American Chinchilla for the fur and meat. Only then, we can ensure that we can save the existence of this critically endangered rabbit breed. Rabbit Deal of the Week: Store: Rabbit Jewelry Gifts is the #1 source for finding quality bunny rabbit themed jewelry and gifts for sale online. We sell necklaces, earrings, bracelets, costumes, backpacks, stuffed bunnies and more. Use coupon code TheRabbitTimes at checkout and get 15% OFF your entire purchase. CLICK HERE TO BROWSE THE FULL RABBIT JEWELRY GIFTS CATALOG

14 Training your Pet Rabbit The more time you spend with your new pet, the more you will enjoy him. As you get to know your rabbit you can train it, much in the way you can train a dog. House Training If you keep your bunny in your home and don t want to keep it shut up in its cage all day, you can train it to urinate in a litter box. This type of training is best begun when your rabbit is still young, such as eight to twelve weeks of age. Keep your rabbit in its cage until it selects one corner as its potty spot. Then move the litter box into that corner of the cage. When your rabbit has gotten used to using the litter box, you can open his cage door and let him run around the floor of a closed room in your house. Watch him closely, and if he starts to urinate anywhere besides in his cage, stop him by saying no! and shooing him back to his cage. Once he has learned to urinate in his box, you can let him run around the rest of your home. Some rabbits will always leave dry droppings outside of the cage, but that is normal and not a big concern. Chew Prevention

15 One problem with having a house rabbit is that he will probably chew on anything he can find. This is not only damaging to your furnishings, but could be harmful to your bunny if he chews on electrical wire or toxic paint. If you can, try to keep things out of the rabbit s reach, but you can also train him to stop chewing at the command no! Clicker Training -- Teaching a Rabbit Tricks Rabbits can be trained to do all kinds of tricks: jump hurdles, come when called, give kisses, and even walk on their hind legs. The most effective way to train a rabbit is with a clicker. Find out what treat your bunny likes best and then teach him to associate that treat with the sound of a clicker. Then sit down with your rabbit in a small play pen. Play with him until he performs a behavior that you want to replicate, then click the clicker and give him a treat. (Always wait till the rabbit does the behavior naturally. For instance, if you want to teach him to walk on his hind legs, wait till he stands up on his hind legs of his own accord, and then click the clicker. Don t try to lift him on to his hind legs he will probably wind up confused.) Clicker training is most effective before a bunny has had its full meal for the day, while he is active and interested in his surroundings. In training, it s also very important to teach a rabbit its name. As soon as you get your bunny, pick a name for him and repeat it many times in his hearing. Say his name as you pet him in his favorite spot. Say his name when you give him a treat. Set him down on one side of a room, then walk to the other side, call his name and make eye contact with him. If you can teach your rabbit to respond to his name, you will have come a long way toward teaching him new tricks.