kapfarm
Chillin' with the herd
Ok so my son and I are in love with holland lops. We have been looking for some to buy for months. Found some on craigs list and picked them up last night.
When we let them out to run around the 1 year old doe basically was tripping and falling over, like her legs were too weak.Even her head seemed to heavy for her(that has improved). She got a bit more corrdinated (sp) after a while but even today she is still very "clumsy". When she trys to hop out of her cage that is on the floor she will somtimes end-up on her back.
The breeder (4-h leader) that we bought them from said they are very rarely handled except to show, and they are housed in 2'x2' cages (normal for show rabbits, right?) So I'm wondering (and be nice I'm new) could it be from lack of exercise? I never thought to watch the rabbits walk/hop around. I was happy I remembered to check teeth. And I guess when she was so free to let me check them and she set them on the show stand all looked good, though I suspect I've been a sap because she also talked me into believing that Holland Lops ears can take up to a year or more to flop... So needless to say they won't be show girls.
So does anyone know what the deal is? The younger one (about 10-12 weeks old) was doing the same thing just not as severe and seems already improved today. I would be very grateful for any advice. We originally wanted them for breeding/pets but is this hereditary?
Oh and she also told me hollands are harder to raise because the are not as fertile as most rabbits. TRUE?
When we let them out to run around the 1 year old doe basically was tripping and falling over, like her legs were too weak.Even her head seemed to heavy for her(that has improved). She got a bit more corrdinated (sp) after a while but even today she is still very "clumsy". When she trys to hop out of her cage that is on the floor she will somtimes end-up on her back.
The breeder (4-h leader) that we bought them from said they are very rarely handled except to show, and they are housed in 2'x2' cages (normal for show rabbits, right?) So I'm wondering (and be nice I'm new) could it be from lack of exercise? I never thought to watch the rabbits walk/hop around. I was happy I remembered to check teeth. And I guess when she was so free to let me check them and she set them on the show stand all looked good, though I suspect I've been a sap because she also talked me into believing that Holland Lops ears can take up to a year or more to flop... So needless to say they won't be show girls.
So does anyone know what the deal is? The younger one (about 10-12 weeks old) was doing the same thing just not as severe and seems already improved today. I would be very grateful for any advice. We originally wanted them for breeding/pets but is this hereditary?
Oh and she also told me hollands are harder to raise because the are not as fertile as most rabbits. TRUE?