Harlequin Mini Rex Veriety

[MiniRexGirl]

I was wondering if anyone out there is working to get the Harlequin variety accepted by the National Mini Rex Club? I thought of doing this but don't think that that is a very good goal for a beginner. If so, and if you are in or near ID then maybe I can sell you any harlequins I get. That is if you are interested. I really like this color and would like to see it accepted. I am thinking about breeding my harlequin as soon as I get a buck. This buck will most likely ether be a black or a broken black (depending on what is available) and so I may or may not get harlequins from her.

My Harlequin Doe (Metta-Harlequin X Red)

 

[cattlecait]

I don't think anyone is aiming to get Harlequin Mini Rex accepted any time soon. Getting the pattern on a regular Harlequin is hard enough, then adding in trying to keep size down and proper fur quality and everything else necessary in a Mini Rex it'd be a huuuuge pain in the butt.

The Harlequin variety is seen in nearly every breed that accepts tri-colors, because the Japanese Harlequin variety is used to produce tris and acts as a solid version of a tri.

 

[dbunni]

Contact ARBA ... Cheryl has a list of the breeds & varieties and who holds the current COD.

 

[Bunnylady]

Do you know what "the" Harlequin pattern looks like? Basically, it is a checkerboard. One side of the face is dark, the other, light. You have one dark ear, and one light ear, with the dark ear on the same side as the light side of the face, and vice versa. One side of the chest and the same side front paw are light, the other, dark; these colors alternate with the face, same as the ears. the back paws are one light, one dark; with the dark back paw on the same side as the light front paw. The body has bands or bars of color.

I have been breeding Harlequins (the breed) for over 20 years, and I could count on one hand the number of rabbits I have owned that do the entire pattern. Almost all rabbits born to Harlie parents do some part of the pattern; they must have a good split face and at least alternate to either the ear or the chest/paw to be showable. Most of them show at least some brindling; Harlies with really solid areas of color are rare. I had one buck that did do the whole pattern, but he brindled so much you almost had to look at him twice to see it. (Some judges did see it; he had 3 GC legs!)

The Harlequin club has had an ongoing struggle with the ARBA standards committee; the committee can't seem to understand why we can't turn out carbon copy, complete unbrindled patterns every time. There is one committee member who seems to have a vendetta against the Harlequin breed in general, and certain members of the Harlie club in particular. If the Harlequin weren't already in the ARBA standard, it would have a very tough time being accepted in the current climate.

The reason that there are several breeds that have tri's, but not harlies in their standards, is because the ARBA standards committee would insist on the standard for any other breed's harlequin patterns being at least as exacting as that of the Harlequin breed. Considering how few of the rabbits bred specifically for the pattern actually have the whole thing, I can't believe there would be that many MR's with it. The really annoying thing is, if someone did manage to get enough good harlie patterned MR's to get harlequin accepted into the standard, it wouldn't be long before the standards committee insisted that the tricolor (being a broken harlequin) would have to have the one light ear, etc, just like the unbroken version. I'm not sure, but I suspect that an animal that really looks like a broken version of the standard harlequin pattern may be genetically impossible. Every tricolor I have ever seen has spots, not big patches of color. So, if the harlequin became a showable color, the tricolor would be technically still showable, but in actual fact unachievable.

 

[therealsilkiechick]

since u r talking about harlies, i hope u don't mind my posting this, i have a few questions never thought to check on before. i have a holland lop harlie is that a standard color for her breed that can be shown? and what colors r best to breed her too? does jazzy have proper markings?

thanks for any help noone close to me breeds them to ask anyone here about her. these r not the greatest cell pics so i hope u can see her enough.

 

[dbunni]

Harli is not a showable/recognized color in HLs. One of the color patterns allowable use to state specificially that harli markings were a fault. Cannot remember which it was though.

 

[cattlecait]

Do you know what "the" Harlequin pattern looks like? Basically, it is a checkerboard. One side of the face is dark, the other, light. You have one dark ear, and one light ear, with the dark ear on the same side as the light side of the face, and vice versa. One side of the chest and the same side front paw are light, the other, dark; these colors alternate with the face, same as the ears. the back paws are one light, one dark; with the dark back paw on the same side as the light front paw. The body has bands or bars of color.

I have been breeding Harlequins (the breed) for over 20 years...

What is your rabbitry name? I didn't see any rabbitries in North Carolina as members of the AHRC or any Harlie breeders in NC on the ARBA website. I'm not doubting you, I just was curious and wanted to see pictures of your Harlies and couldn't find you.

 

[therealsilkiechick]

k that's what i thought but wanted to make sure, thank you.

 

[Bunnylady]

Do you know what "the" Harlequin pattern looks like? Basically, it is a checkerboard. One side of the face is dark, the other, light. You have one dark ear, and one light ear, with the dark ear on the same side as the light side of the face, and vice versa. One side of the chest and the same side front paw are light, the other, dark; these colors alternate with the face, same as the ears. the back paws are one light, one dark; with the dark back paw on the same side as the light front paw. The body has bands or bars of color.

I have been breeding Harlequins (the breed) for over 20 years...

What is your rabbitry name? I didn't see any rabbitries in North Carolina as members of the AHRC or any Harlie breeders in NC on the ARBA website. I'm not doubting you, I just was curious and wanted to see pictures of your Harlies and couldn't find you.

I don't have a website. I keep thinking about it, but I've been too lazy/busy/technologically challenged (take your pick, they are all true) to set one up. And no, I am not a current member of either the AHRC or the ARBA; I allowed my membership to lapse some time ago. There used to be several clubs that held shows within a couple of hours'drive from me, now the closest ones are about 4 to 5 hours away. I've only managed to make it to one or two shows for the last couple of years; so membership didn't seem that important. I find it depressing to think that there aren't any Harlie breeders listed, though. There have always been a couple of die-hard Harlie breeders in the western part of the state (I'm in the extreme southeast corner), I hate to think that they have given up. Come to think of it, I don't remember a single Harlequin at the last show I went to (I didn't have anything I felt was good enough to show, so I hadn't entered any either). When I met up with Judy Bustle at that show, I asked her about the lack of Harlies (she's one of the die-hards, and frequently one of the show secretaries). Her response was, "I've gotten tired of showing against myself." I know a lot of people breed "under the radar," maybe there are other undeclared Harlie breeders around as well. I hope so; I'd hate to think that the breed is dying out around here, too. They used to be a lot more popular, but since the ARBA standards committee ramrodded a couple of changes into the standard (against the wishes of the AHRC members), way fewer Harlies are showable. I can remember, quite a few years ago, when a judge that came up from Florida for a show specifically asked to judge the Harlies in a show, because he didn't see them very often where he came from and wanted to get to know the breed better.

 

[rabbitgeek]

I used to have Harlequin Dutch and ran into the same issues. Jill Dobson managed to get a Certificate of Development for the variety, but failed to get past the Dutch Club standards committee before her first showing at Covention.

There is definitely some resistance to the Harlequin breed and the Harlequin variety, which is surprising since the harlequin gene is needed to create the dazzling tri-color varieties. Many breeders have told me they are concerned that the harlequin will start to pop up and ruin the other varieties in the breeds.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios