DWARF HOTOT RABBITS

OMG!  These are the cutest little bunnies ever!  As soon as I saw a picture of one of them, I knew I had to write about them in my blog!  So since I'm supposed to be telling you about different kinds of rabbits anyway, during The Year of the Rabbit, today I'm going to tell you about Dwarf Hotots.










First of all, you need to know that Hotot is pronounced "oh-toe" or sometimes "hoe-toe."  Another name for this breed is "Eyes of the Fancy."  Just like their name says, they are dwarf-sized.  They are not supposed to weigh more than 3 pounds, and the ideal weight is 2.5 pounds.  They have compact, stocky bodies, with round heads and dark, bright eyes.  They look like they are wearing eye-liner, but that is actually a ring of black fur.  The rest of their fur is soft and thick and fine and white all over.

The Dwarf Hotot breed was developed in both East Germany and West Germany during the late 1970s.  In those days, the two parts of Germany were separate countries, so the Dwarf Hotots from each area looked sort of different from each other.  Then after the two Germanys got put back together again, the rabbit owners started breeding their Dwarf Hotots to each other to make one breed.

Eventually, they came up with rabbits that were strong and healthy and more like the bigger size of the East German Dwarf Hotot.  But breeders today still have some trouble getting the eyes to look right, and also they sometimes get bunnies that have spots on them instead of being all white.  But this problem is being worked on, both in Germany and in the U.S.  And of course, it's only a "problem" if you are entering your Dwarf Hotot in a rabbit show.





The first time the Dwarf Hotot was shown in this country was in 1981 in Syracuse, NY, at a convention of the American Rabbit Breeders' Association.  After several showings, the Dwarf Hotot was accepted as a standard breed.

These cute little bunnies are affectionate, playful, and good with children.  Since they are small, they don't need as much space to live in as some types of rabbits do.  Most Dwarf Hotots like to be held and petted, or to just hop around in a person's lap.  And according to this picture, you can even put silly little outfits on them.

I hope you have noticed that I have not said I would like to eat one of these Dwarf Hotot bunnies, and that is mainly because I got in trouble with some of my readers after I said I might like to eat an Angora Rabbit.  So I am keeping my mouth shut this time, even though it is a natural desire for an animal such as a dog to want to prey on a small, furry animal such as a bunny rabbit.  But I did mention to Mom that it would be nice if we had a Dwarf Hotot or two around the house, just to play with.  And as usual, she said we couldn't have one.