Mini Lop Rabbit – Everything You Need to Know

The Mini Lop is a small breed of rabbit that often gets confused with the Miniature Lop breed. They are, however, not the same breed. The Miniature Lop breed is a breed that is recognized in the United Kingdom and is sometimes referred to as the Mini Lop. But the Mini Lop breed we are referring to in the article is the Mini Lop that is recognized by the American Rabbit Breeders Association.

BREED PROFILE OVERVIEW
Breed Name:	Mini Lop
Other Names:	None
Country of Origin:	Germany
Breed Purpose:	Pets and exhibition
Breed Size:	Medium
Breed Weight:	Female/Doe: 3 to 6 lbs. Male/Buck: 4.5 to 6.5 lbs.
Breed Color(s):	Their colors come in two varieties there is the Broken and the Solid varieties. Each of these varieties can include the following colors: Black, White, Chinchilla, Chestnut Agouti, Lynx, Ruby-eyed White, Blue-eyed White, Blue, Lilac, Chocolate, Orange and Tri color
Physical Appearance:	They are a medium thick set rabbit with a muscular body and has good width and depth balance to it. They have a strong bold featured face that is sort of between a wedge shape and a stumped nose shape. Their ears lop downwards hanging close to the sides of their heads and their earl openings turned inwards. Their ears are usually no longer than .75 to 1 inch in length.
Temperament:	They are perky, inquisitive, quite easy to train, friendly and full of energetic fun

BREED CHARACTERISTICS

They have a decent sized litter and the females make very good mothers. Most rabbits have good maternal instincts and some breeds can be a bit testy and protective when they have young. They can also be uncharacteristically moody during mating season.
Their young open their eyes around 7 to 14 days with an average of 10 days after birth. When their eyes have opened, they can start to be introduced to food such as alfa pellets and water.
Even when the young start to eat it does not mean they are quite ready to be weaned from their mothers. The mothers will know when it is time to wean her young. It is important for the baby rabbit’s health, growth, immune system and development of a proper digestive system that they do not be removed from their mother for at least 8 weeks. They usually require her milk for a minimum of 8 weeks after birth.
Their average lifespan is 5 to 8 years although there have been some breeds that have lived to 10 years with the proper care.

Good Pets?	They do make good pets for families, elderly, singles and rabbit breed fanciers.
Child Friendly?	Children should be supervised around animals and properly taught how to look after them and handle them. Rabbits can bite and scratch
Ideal Climate:	All climates – rabbits should never be left outside without proper shelter and housing that must be raised off the ground and predator safe.
Conservation Status:	Not Listed by the *ALC Status/Rarity: They are not listed by the American Livestock Conservancy
Recognized by the ARBA?	Yes, There are quite a few colors accepted by the America Rabbit Breeders Association and these can be seen in the Rabbit breeds color section of this article.
Rabbit Associations/Clubs:	American Mini Lop Rabbit Club
Where to buy them?	Please refer to the American Mini Lop Rabbit Club for more information on breeders. The USA Rabbit Breeders Directory is a useful resource to find breeders, clubs, and information about the breed.
Note: *ALC stands for American Livestock Conservancy

GENERAL INFORMATION

For a slicker more glossy or shiny pelt, it is advisable to groom them every two to three weeks. During the molting season, it is advisable to groom rabbits every week to remove stray hairs.

Rabbits can be quite lively and energetic and need quite a bit of exercise and stimulation. It is a good idea to have a nice safe and secure run for them to play in and stretch their legs.

Toys, tubes and various obstacle courses for them is a good way to help them expend some of their energy and they are really fun to watch at play.

They are also sociable animals that do like to have a friend or two to play with.

Regular health and critter check once a week or every second week should become a habit. This will help to keep your rabbit(s) in excellent condition and health. Grooming does not require a lot if their coats are low maintenance. But it is a good idea to give them a nice gentle brushing to help remove any excess hairs regardless of the length of their coats.

It is also a good idea to check on the state of their teeth to ensure that they are not too long and causing the rabbit any discomfort.
Rabbits teeth never stop growing and getting fresh hay on a regular basis helps to control the growth of their teeth.

Rabbits need a good diet of quality pellets that are filled with their daily nutritional requirements. They do love dandelions, cabbage and various fruits as a nice tasty treat.

Rabbits that have quite a short coat are not really at risk for most of the digestive problems long fur seem to cause rabbits. They can still get other ailments such as flystrike, ear mites or overgrown teeth. These can all be controlled/maintained or avoided altogether with the proper health and grooming care of the rabbit(s).

If you have two rabbits and do not want to breed them it is possible to spay female rabbits and neuter male rabbits.
The females can be spayed as young as four months old, but vets prefer to wait until they are at least six months old before doing so.
The young males can be neutered as young as found months old.

Rabbits, just like any other pet, should be dewormed on a regular basis. Check with your local vet for proper guidance on the administering of worm medication to your animals.

HISTORY

Mini Lop breed was discovered in Essen, Germany in 1972 by Bob Herschbach. He found them at a German National Rabbit Show where the breed was known as Klein Widder. They were rabbits that had originated from the German Big Lop rabbit breed and the small Chinchilla rabbit breed.

The first procreation of Mini Lops was achieved by Herschbach in the United States with his breeding an Agouti Lop Pair and a white female lop. The first babies of this mix were of solid color and a second generation was of broken colors. As the breeding process continued the breed was improving and a higher quality of Mini Lop was developed.

The Mini Lop Hershbach Mini Lops that he had bred made their first appearance in America in 1974 at one of the American Rabbit Breeders Association conventions. The Association thought that the breed needed to be downsized to be a bit more compact.

With the help other breeders, Hershbach set about to achieve the required improvements set about by the American Rabbit Breeders Association.
Herb Dyke became a new sponsor of the breed and went about helping Hersbach to perfect it. In 1978 the pair created a correspondence club for the Mini Lop breed and within a year had over 500 members of the club all supporting the Mini Lop breed.

The breed was recognized by the American Rabbit Breeders Association in 1980 and a little while after the Mini Lop Club of America was started.