Rex Rabbit

About the breed

The Rex Rabbit is the original, standard-sized version of the rex breed family - the breed from which the American Mini Rex was later bred down onto a dwarf body. It is a medium-sized domestic rabbit breed created by a spontaneous genetic mutation in France roughly a century ago, and it has been recognized ever since for its uniquely velvet-soft coat. Beyond its role as a show and companion breed, it was historically significant in the fur trade, and today it is valued above all as a calm, friendly pet suitable even for first-time rabbit owners.

Origins in France

The mutation that gave its name to the entire rex breed family appeared spontaneously in 1919, in a litter of wild-colored (agouti) domestic rabbits in France. The first rex-coated rabbits were shown publicly in 1924 at the Paris International Rabbit Show, where they attracted considerable interest among breeders. Because the first perfected color was a beaver-brown shade (castor, from the Latin word for beaver), the breed was initially named Castorrex; the name was later shortened to simply Rex. That same year the breed was brought to the United States by John Fehr and Alfred Zimmerman, and the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) formally recognized it in 1929. Early commercial overbreeding initially thinned and weakened the coat, but breeders - among them geneticist Eugène Kohler of the University of Strasbourg - later improved it and developed numerous new color varieties. Thanks to the exceptional quality of its fur, the Rex was for decades one of the leading breeds in the fur trade, while also establishing itself as a popular show and companion breed.

The genetics of the velvet coat

The breed's signature coat is the result of a heritable, recessive mutation at the so-called r1 locus - a single-nucleotide deletion in exon 9 of the LIPH gene, confirmed by a peer-reviewed genetic study published in PLOS ONE in 2011. In normal-coated rabbits, the guard hairs are considerably longer than the undercoat; in Rex rabbits, the mutation shortens the guard hairs almost to the length of the undercoat, and instead of lying flat, the hair stands out perpendicular to the skin, producing the dense, velvety texture that gave the breed its name (rex, Latin for king). Three related but distinct rex mutations are known in rabbits (loci r1, r2 and r3). Similar, genetically separate mutations that produce an upright, curled coat have also been documented in other species, for example in guinea pigs (the recessive rex and waved genes) - showing that a comparable coat appearance can arise through several independent genetic pathways.

The original standard Rex versus the Mini Rex

This breed is the original, standard full-sized Rex, essentially unchanged in body type since it was developed by the first French breeders in the 1920s. Some sixty years later, in 1984, a dwarf version - the Mini Rex - was bred from it in Texas, USA; it was developed by Monna Berryhill by crossing dwarf Rex rabbits, and ARBA recognized it as a separate breed in 1988. The Mini Rex reaches only about half the weight of the standard Rex, while this original breed retains the full, commercial body type. Anyone looking specifically for this historic, larger-bodied Rex rabbit is looking for this breed, not the Mini Rex.

Appearance and body type

The Rex Rabbit is a medium-sized breed, weighing between 3 and 4.5 kg with a body length of 30 to 40 cm. The body is full, rounded and muscular (a commercial body type), with upright ears. ARBA recognizes 16 color varieties in this breed, ranging from the original castor (beaver-brown) to black, blue, white, opal, sable and others. The coat itself - dense, short and remarkably soft to the touch - remains the breed's defining feature.

Temperament and character

Rex Rabbits are considered one of the calmest and friendliest rabbit breeds, suitable even for less experienced owners. They are curious, bond closely with their owner, and enjoy gentle petting, but loud noise and abrupt handling can startle them, so they need a calm, patient approach. Contact with children and other pets should be supervised and introduced gradually from the start.

Care, diet and living conditions

The diet should be based mainly on quality hay, supplemented with fresh vegetables and a small amount of pelleted feed. The short coat is relatively easy to maintain - weekly brushing is usually enough, more often during shedding. Because the shorter guard hairs of the Rex coat provide less natural insulation than the coat of longer, denser-coated breeds, this breed is more sensitive to cold and heat extremes, so indoor housing with a stable room temperature is recommended; an outdoor hutch is not suitable in cold months without extra protection. The rabbit also needs daily exercise outside its enclosure.

Health

Like other domestic rabbit breeds, the Rex is prone to the health issues typical of the species: dental malocclusion caused by the rabbit's continuously growing teeth, gastrointestinal (GI) stasis, which can be life-threatening and requires prompt veterinary care, and ear mites. Regular veterinary checkups, a high-fibre diet and sufficient exercise significantly reduce the risk of these problems. Life expectancy is 8 to 11 years.

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