Lionheads..ARBA...why?

Question

why doesn't ARBA recogize lionhead rabbits as one of the official breeds of rabbits?what is wrong with it?i see no reason for leaving out the breed of lionhead rabbits.why are they not in the official list of rabbit breeds ARBA had?

opinions?

Answer 1

Maybe because it's still a relatively young breed.

If, for example, it was made by humans in the last fifty years, and all the others are hundred years, that could be why.

Or maybe because it's a designer rabbit, like a 'toy' dog? Made simply for looks, like a giant rabbit.

Answer 2

It just hasn't had enough qualified showings at convention..

To become a recognized breed, it has to be 'proved out' or shown that the breed can continue to reproduce from it's own genetic material. Lionheads were imported from Europe, but, then bred with other breeds of rabbits such as Jersey wooly's and Holland Lops to give them blockier, fluffier heads..  Only one breeder at a time is given a certificate to show them at convention for the purpose of proving out the breed. They have to successfully pass close enough to standard three years in a row to be declared a breed. The first person to hold the certificate unfortunately failed the second year showing, so, a different breeder will be given the chance to start proving them out again this year at the annual convention.

Apparently, 3rd generation animals lose a lot of that obvious mane as the genetic material seems to be diluted breeding them to other lionheads, but, hopefully this next breeder will be able to get 3 successful showings.

You can't just add breeds without verifying that they are in fact real breeds with a stable genetic background. If you have to keep breeding in another breed to preserve the characteristics, then it's not stable enough to be an official breed yet. That's what the three years of showing is for, to prove that they can be bred as pure lionhead and retain enough characteristics to make them a distinct breed..

I love the look of the lionhead, it'd be awesome if someone has a strong enough line to get them to recognized status..  

Answer 3

Lionheads are a relatively new breed of rabbit. They were imported from Europe not too many years ago, and some breeders took up the challenge of getting them recognized by the ARBA.

To be recognized by ARBA, a breed standard must be created. Here is the current working standard for the Lionhead rabbit:

http://www.lionhead.us/standardallCODs.h...

This standard is slightly differen from the standard in England. So, American breeders had to cross Lionheads with other breeds to get the proper mane, stance, and body type. Once they got the type that correctly mirrored the working standard, they had to start breeding (once again) only Lionhead to Lionhead crosses, bringing the animal back into a purebred state. From this point, the goal was to consistently recreate this ideal Lionhead through breeding. Easier said than done! Lionheads were presented at multiple ARBA conventions for approval, but they ultimately failed their test, and are now starting over. I don't remember who currently holds the COD for the breed, but they will be presenting their Lionheads are future ARBA conventions with hopes of getting them recognized within the next few years.

The main problem with Lionheads (no pun intended) is genetic consistency and consistently producing the same type on multiple animals through multiple generations. It's getting there, but just not quite perfected yet.

As with Lionheads, there are always new breeds being worked on. If they are not accepted, it is not because something is wrong with it. It's just because they have not matched the working breed standard to the liking of the ARBA comittee. Lionheads are still new, but in time, I am sure it will become a recognized breed.