Giant Continental Infomation
Breed History
Colours
The Continental is one of the largest and oldest breeds of rabbit, with evidence suggesting that the breed may stretch as far back as the mid-16th Century. They can grow to be huge – more than 15lbs in some cases and should be looked upon much like a pet dog. They aren’t keen on being picked up and so aren’t the best breed to keep if you have children who might want to carry them and have a cuddle. They will be more than happy to be petted and stroked however, and as they are such gentle, inquisitive creatures they do make fantastic pets.
Most Continentals are descended from the ancient Flemish Giant, a breed that originated in Ghent, Belgium. It’s thought that the Flemish Giant was created by breeding larger examples of fur and meat breeds – probably the Steenkonijn or Stone Rabbit (so called because it was said to weigh as much as an old Belgian stone – about 8.5lb) and the Patagonian, an old European breed that is now sadly extinct.The European Patagonian was bred in France and Germany and was not related to the Argentinian Patagonian rabbit, which was a small, wild species that weighed around two pounds. Nor is the European Patagonian related to the Patagonian Hare, a separate species that is more closely related to cavy-type rodents that cannot interbreed with rabbits. The first standards for these Continental Giants were written in 1893 and the breed shares a common heritage with many other rabbit breeds – not least the Belgian Hare, which was brought to the UK in the middle of the 19th Century. The Flemish and Continental Giants were sent to the US from Britain and Europe in the late 19th Century to improve the size of the meat animals there during the infamous ‘Rabbit Boom’.Shortly after their arrival in America the Giant breeds began to appear at small livestock shows and quickly became popular as pets because of their docile nature. They were also useful as show, meat and fur animals.
Black - A deep solid black carried well down the hair shaft with blue/black undercolour. Eyes hazel or black.
Dark Steel - Dark steel grey merging to a slate blue undercolour, the whole interspersed with black guard hairs. Extreme tips of the fur to be tipped withgrey. The mixture to carry well down the sides, flanks and hind feet. Belly colour may be a duller and lighter shade. Ears to match body. Eyes deep hazel. (pictured above)
Light Steel - A medium grey merging to a sandy/brown band with a grey/blue undercolour going down to the skin, the whole interspersed with grey guardhairs. Extreme tips of the fur to be tipped with gold/brown. The mixture to carry well down the sides, flanks and hind feet. Belly colour may be a duller and lighter shade. Ears to match body. Eyes deep hazel.
Agouti - A rich chestnut shade with
black ticking over an intermediate
orange band and dark slate
undercolour. Ears laced black, eye
circles, underside of tail and
belly white with slate undercolour.
(pictured right).
Red Agouti - A rich deep chestnut red shade with black ticking. The under colour to have an intermediate orange band with a dark slate under colour. The under side of the tail on the belly to be cream with a slate under colour.
Opal - Top colour a pale shade of blue over an intermediate fawn band and slate undercolour. Ears laced blue. Eye circles, underside of tail and belly to be white with a slate undercolour.
Yellow - Top colour is a uniform pure yellow, which covers the visible body in an even shade. Colour extends onto the front legs, pelvis and thigh area. Nostrils, eye and jaw line light to cream colour. Belly colour white/cream with yellow groin patches, underside of tail white/cream. Undercolour is white for approximately 6mm and then increases to a yellow shade and finishes intensively under the top coat.
Lynx: Overall impression grey dusted yellow fawn colour edged with white. Back - pearly white under colour yellow fawn band lilac tips. Belly -pearly white under colour and white, white top colour. Ears - laced lilac. Under jaw/eye circles/inside of ears/under tail white. Nape of neck and groin streaks yellow-orange. Eyes blue-grey or brown. Nails light horn.
Blue:Medium blue-grey all over. Eyes brown or blue-brown. Nails dark or light horn.
Chinchilla:Pure grey hairs with white undercoat. (pictured below)
White - Immaculate white, eyes pink or blue. Nails un-pigmented. A serious fault would be coloured nails or fur.
housing
Healthcare
Feeding & Care
It’s vital that any rabbit owner keeps a close eye on their pet’s teeth. Rabbit’s teeth grow continually and if they are not kept worn down by a good diet that contains plenty of roughage, then they may overgrow. Overgrown teeth can cause your pet to experience difficulty eating and may also cause injuries in the mouth that could become infected. Gnaw toys, good quality hay and plenty of fibrous green vegetables will help keep the teeth worn down, and they should also be checked regularly by the owner.All rabbits should be vaccinated against myxomatosis and Viral Haemorrhagic Disease – both conditions which can be passed on by infected animals or bedding and utensils and both of which can prove fatal to unprotected pets.Your rabbit should not be allowed to become overweight. Obese animals cannot groom themselves properly and may become susceptible to flystrike, where flies lay eggs in soiled areas of fur – usually around the rear end – and the emerging maggots cause injuries to the skin. All rabbits should be wormed and treated for fleas and ticks on a regular basis. All our rabbits are treated regular and all Kits leave having being treated for the prevention on mites/fleas and worms.
House Rabbit:
The Giant makes a fantastic house rabbit and a large dog crate will provide the perfect hideaway if he needs some peace and quiet. Cables, wires, shoes, papers and anything important should be kept out of his way or he’ll chew them with abandon. He should also be taught how to use a litter tray.
Outdoors:
If you’re going to keep your Giant in a hutch it should be no smaller than 6’ x 3’ and preferably larger than that to enable your bunny to be able to stand on its hind legs, to lay out fully stretched and to be able to do three consecutive hops. A garden shed would be a ideal home providing it’s secure, well ventilated and has plenty of natural light.
Here at forever young's bunnies our rabbits are kept in hutches 7ft x 3ft x 3ft, we also have some that are 8ft x 3ft x 3ft contained in a shed plus we are in the process of building walk in kennels which are 8ft long 3 1/2ft wide and 6ft tall to enable plenty of space, ventalation and also easier to clean..
Our rabbits also have access to a secure garden (weather permitting). so they can have regular daily excercise. we also provide toys to encourage natural rabbit behaviour and we regularly swap and change the hutch/kennel around to stop boredom.
We use a mixture of bedding such shavings and chopped straw and then standard straw for the bedding areas, we find this works for us as its good for absorbing urnine and easy to scoop up.. All our rabbits have their dirty corner cleaned daily by removing any poor or wet areas the a full hutch/kennel clean out every week where we disinfect eveything before replacing with fresh bedding etc.
Temperament
These rabbits are gentle, friendly and very intelligent. In fact, many people say they act more like dogs than rabbits. They are easy to train and can be encouraged to play games, use a litter tray and even come when their name is called. In order for the Giant to be relaxed in human company he must be handled gently and frequently when young. If this is carried out (most reputable breeders including ourselves will ensure their kits are used to human company before they leave for their new homes), then you should take delivery of a happy, playful and gentle pet. Because of their large size, they are not often happy being picked up and any reckless or irresponsible handling could result in spinal injury or worse, injury to the handler. Any rabbit that is fearful or in pain may struggle and kick out and this would almost certainly cause injuries to the person holding it. Because of its size and strength the Giant is not perhaps an ideal pet for inexperienced owners or children. They require lots of food and produce a lot of waste so they care they need is significant. Anybody considering giving a home to a Giant rabbit should think carefully about whether or not they can meet its needs.
We try our best here to handle and socilaise all kits with people of all ages as well as well as other pets to ensure happy hoppy bunnies..
My rabbits are all fed twice a day first feed being early morning, this consists of pellet feed, We use Alan & Page breeder grower Pellets, we also provide fresh veggies, fruit and hay. We also give our rabbits barley rings, brusied oats and readigrass. All babies when ready to leave here at 12 weeks old are fully weaned and enjoying a diet of pellets, small amounts of fresh vegetables and as much hay as they are able to eat…. (hay should make up around 80% of a rabbits daily feed allowance).
All kits leave with change over feed which should be mixed gradually with whatever food the new owners choose over a period of 7-10 days so not to cause any tummy upset. Water bottles are washed out and re-filled. Remember clean fresh drinking water is vitally important and should be available 24/7.
The Second feed of the day (late afternoon/evening) is usually a substantial amount of quality hay/readigrass and top-up of water bottles and perhaps a odd treat. All my rabbits are given as much hay as they are able to eat, this is often the first food the babies nibble at around 10 days old when first venturing from the nest! Hay is essential for rabbit`s digestion and the wearing of their teeth. My rabbits are bedded on wood shavings and chopped fine straw. Hutches are completely cleaned out and disinfected weekly, then picked-out daily - just removing any wet soiled areas/droppings and replacing with clean shavings. Most continental giants are very organised in their toilet habits and have a designated area thus making then so easy to litter train as house rabbits.
Dark Steel
One of the largest types of domestic rabbit, the Continental Giant is a semi-arch breed. This means that the arch of its back begins at the shoulder and stretches all the way back to the base of the tail. This gives the animal a ‘mandolin’ shape.The body of the Continental Giant is long and very powerful and it has broad, muscular hindquarters. Male examples of the breed have a large, wide head that’s much bigger than the doe’s. Female examples have a pronounced, evenly spread dewlap. Their eyes are round and bright and the ears are long and held erect.The fur of the Giant is thick and glossy, and is accepted in black, white, blue, grey and lynx.. Most Giants weigh around 6kg, but a rabbit weighing 10kg would not be unusual. So please take this and all the other infomation provied into consideration before purchasing as its a huge commitment.
