It's a "Charlie" English Angora bunny! What is a "Charlie"? In genetics, the solid pattern gene is recessive to the broken pattern gene. When we breed our solid Angora to another solid Angora, we will always get solid. If one wants broken pattern bunnies, one of the parents will have to be a broken. In order to get a good broken pattern, the preferred method of breeding is one parent broken and one parent solid, the resulting litters will have some broken bunnies and some solid bunnies. These broken bunnies all carry one broken gene and one solid gene and the solid bunnies each carries two solid genes. If both parents are broken and both carry solid gene, the resulting litter has the chance of 1/4 of the bunnies carry two solid genes, 1/2 of the bunnies carry one solid gene and one broken gene and 1/4 of the bunnies carry two broken genes. The bunny in the picture is one that carry two broken genes, in rabbit jargon, a "Charlie". A "Charlie" has lots of white and very little color, not considered as an ideal pattern. This particular one is not suitable for showing because it lacks any color on the nose. However, a "Charlie" bred to a solid will guarantee an entire litter of broken bunnies. If you are really into broken, a "Charlie" is invaluable. If not, it is so cute that it'll make a very nice pet.
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2 Comments:
At 11:25 PM, Christine said…
I’ve been wondering about this! Do you know of anyone who breeds Charlie angoras?
At 4:27 PM, Northern California Angora Guild said…
Contact Debbie McCormick in NC. She does not breed Charlie but she sometimes has Charlie that are placed as a pet. She is one of the members of the Broken English COD team.
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