Policy Statements

Brachycephaly essentially means that the nose and mouth are less prominent and more flattened, changing the shape to a “cuter” one, but also affecting the anatomy of the head in several ways, none to the benefit of the rabbit. Whilst there is crowding of the back teeth and a definite but not absolute link with incisor malocclusion (not all brachycephalic rabbits have the congenitally out-of-alignment incisors seen so dramatically in some cases), the main problem is the way the normal nasolacrimal duct, which carries tears from the eye to the nose, becomes tortuous and convoluted and more easily blocked. However, these rabbits aren’t thought to be significantly affected by the respiratory issues seen in dogs. They are already obligate nasal breathers, and so an overlong soft palate doesn’t really get in the way. The airway size does not seem to decrease in such breeds; their nostrils remain normal, and so the effects are mainly regarding teeth and tear drainage, which can result in infections and blockages of the duct.

Lop ears, likewise, cause slightly different issues than in dogs with long drooping ears. In the latter, ear infections, grass seeds and trauma are common. In rabbits, the lop nature of the ear creates a situation akin to taking a cardboard kitchen roll inner and folding it in half. The lumen, the hole down the centre, closes, and the sections of the tube separate. In rabbit ear terms, this narrows the ear canal, reducing airflow into the ear and making it more difficult for anything to drain from the ear. More significantly, the separation of the cartilage hoops that make up the ear allows any build-up of waxy material to push between them under the skin. This isn’t an abscess, or at least not initially, until it bursts and releases material into direct contact with the tissues. But the mass may grow and spread round the delicate structures of the head and become impossible to remove, damaging soft tissue and bone alike in the process.

Our survey a few years ago demonstrated that only 27% of such masses were found solely or mainly in “up-eared” rabbits.

This is what we consider to be brachycephalic breeds:

• “Holland Lop”
• Jersey Wooly
• Mini Lop – of any variety inc, mini cashmere lop, and mini lion lop
• Plush Lop
• Anything “Mini”
• Dwarf Lop
• Anything “Dwarf”
• French Lop
• (Anything Lop)
• Netherland dwarf
• Lionhead
• Polish
• Thrianta
• Dwarf Hotot or Hottentot

There are also welfare problems in other breeds, such as Angora and Cashmere for example, who have extreme features, in this case, very long hair. These rabbits are incapable of grooming and looking after their own coat and require grooming daily. This will be stressful for the rabbits, and it is totally unnatural for them not to be able to keep their own coat tidy. It also puts them at higher risk of fly strike. These rabbits often have their coat harvested as wool, and this is done by plucking or shearing, which is either painful, stressful or both. There is some debate about sourcing #ethical’ angora wool from a pet rabbit who has all the welfare needs met and whose fur comes away as part of the normal moulting process. In reality, though, this is going to provide such a small amount of wool that it would be insignificant and not enough to produce anything on a commercial scale.

On the opposite end of the scale, Rex rabbits have no guard hair, which means that their coat feels very soft, like velvet, but that means they have less protection against the weather and are more likely to suffer from conditions such as pododermatitis of the feet. Giant rabbits suffer from a number of health issues because of their size, such as sore hocks, arthritis, spondylosis and heart problems.

To this end, we will move to not using images of such breeds in Rabbiting On and the RWAF website other than to illustrate breed-specific health and welfare issues. We may make the occasional, rare exception where an uncommon condition which is of significant concern to the membership can only be illustrated with such a rabbit, and we will still be featuring people’s pictures of such individuals where relevant.