French Lop

The French Lop ranks among the biggest rabbit breeds kept as pets. A grown French Lop typically weighs 4.5 to 6.8 kg (10 to 15 lb), and plenty tip the scales beyond that. The frame is heavy and broad, propped on short, thick legs, with the long hanging ears that mark out every lop breed. Owners tend to describe the French Lop as a gentle giant, since all that bulk comes with a placid, unhurried nature.

The breed was bred up in France during the 19th century, where fanciers crossed sturdier meat rabbits with the English Lop. What came out of that cross kept the lopped ear but carried a stockier, more solid build. These days the French Lop is kept chiefly as a house pet and show animal rather than for meat.

Given its size, this is not a rabbit for every home. It wants more floor space, more food, and steadier handling than a small breed would. In exchange, it is usually tolerant of people and slow to spook, which suits an owner after a big, sociable house rabbit rather than a skittish one.

Who it suits

The French Lop suits owners with room to spare who can manage a heavy animal underfoot. It works best for someone after a large, hands-on rabbit who can commit to daily handling and a roomy setup. It is a poor match for a small flat or a home with very young children, since the rabbit is heavy to pick up and can be hurt by rough handling.

The French Lop's story starts in France in the mid-1800s. Breeders paired the English Lop, already known for its extravagant ears, with heavy continental meat rabbits such as the Butterfly rabbit (Papillon) and other large stock. The goal was straightforward: a lop-eared rabbit solid enough to earn its keep at the table.

The cross threw up an animal far heavier and more compact than the English Lop. Where the English Lop had been pushed toward ever longer ears, the French Lop carried shorter, thicker ears on a much bigger frame. By the close of the 19th century the breed had taken hold in France and was spreading across the rest of Europe.

Over the 20th century the French Lop's role shifted away from the pot and toward the show bench and the living room. Its steady nature and impressive size made it a hit at exhibitions, and later as a house pet. The breed reached North America in the 1970s and has had a following among hobbyist keepers there ever since.

The French Lop also left its mark on other lop breeds. Crossing French Lops with Netherland Dwarfs helped produce the much smaller Holland Lop, now one of the most widely kept pet lops anywhere.

The French Lop is thickset and powerfully built. The body is short and broad, with deep shoulders and hindquarters carried low on short, heavy legs. The head is large and wide, more pronounced on bucks, and the ears hang down either side of the face to below the jaw. Unlike the English Lop, these ears are moderate in length and thick rather than trailing on the ground.

Coat and colours

The coat is short, dense, and rollback, meaning it springs back slowly when stroked against the grain. It is far less work than a longer-haired breed. The French Lop is accepted in a wide range of colours grouped under the usual standards, including solid (self) shades such as black, blue, and white, agouti patterns like chestnut, shaded colours, and broken patterns that mix white with patches of a second colour.

The French Lop has a name as one of the most easy-going rabbit breeds going. It tends to be calm, good-natured, and affectionate, and plenty of individuals like nothing better than being near their owner and put up with gentle handling well. That relaxed temperament matched against the sheer size is exactly why the breed picked up the gentle giant tag.

Around family it is usually sociable and ready to interact. It is slow to startle, which makes it steadier around a busy household than some smaller, more highly strung breeds. Most settle around strangers too, once they are given time to get used to them. As with any rabbit, personality varies from one animal to the next and comes on best with regular, calm handling from a young age.

The French Lop can get along with other pets, though its size means it should never be left alone with a dog or cat. Two rabbits can become companions, but introductions need to be gradual, and both should generally be neutered or spayed to cut down on territorial behaviour. Young children need supervision at all times, since the rabbit is heavy and may scratch or struggle if it feels unsteady while being lifted.

Day-to-day care comes down to the rabbit's size. The hutch, the litter tray, even the carrier, all of it needs to be built for a 4.5 to 6.8 kg animal. The short coat keeps grooming straightforward, but the heavy body calls for soft, supportive surfaces and careful lifting.

Grooming

• Brush once a week to lift out loose hair, more often during a seasonal moult.
• Check the lop ears regularly for wax, mites, or infection, since hanging ears trap damp.
• Trim nails every four to six weeks.
• Check the teeth for overgrowth, and keep hay and chew items on hand to wear them down.

Exercise

• Give at least three to four hours of supervised time out of the enclosure every day.
• Set up a secure, rabbit-proofed area where it can hop, stretch, and explore.
• Offer tunnels, boxes, and safe chew toys to keep it occupied.

Environment

Keep the French Lop indoors or somewhere sheltered from both heat and damp. Rabbits cope with cool conditions far better than with heat, and a giant breed with a dense coat overheats fast once it gets above roughly 27°C (80°F), a rare but not unheard-of spell in an Irish summer. Use soft, firm flooring rather than wire, which can leave heavy rabbits with sore hocks.

Most of a French Lop's diet should be unlimited grass hay, timothy or meadow hay work well, to keep the gut moving and the teeth worn down. Fresh leafy greens go in daily, and a measured amount of plain pellets adds extra fibre and nutrients. Fresh water needs to be available at all times, and a giant breed drinks more than a small one, so check it often.

Treats and extras

Use fresh herbs and small bits of fruit only now and then, no more than a tablespoon a day for an adult. A healthy rabbit getting good hay and greens rarely needs anything extra. Keep a close eye on weight, since the French Lop runs to fat easily, and cut back on pellets before cutting back on hay if the rabbit puts on too much.

The French Lop usually lives 5 to 7 years, a shorter run than many smaller rabbits get, partly because a giant breed carries more weight through its joints and organs. With a good diet, a clean setup, and regular checks, plenty reach the top end of that range. The breed's size and lop ears bring a handful of specific health issues worth watching for.

Preventive care

• Book a yearly check-up with a vet experienced with rabbits.
• Vaccinate against myxomatosis and rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) where advised; Irish vets increasingly recommend this given RHD2 cases in the wild rabbit population.
• Spay or neuter, which cuts the risk of reproductive cancers and territorial behaviour.
• Provide soft flooring to prevent sore hocks.
• Weigh the rabbit regularly to spot any gain or loss early.

Housing for a French Lop has to account for its bulk. A giant rabbit needs a good deal more room than a standard pet hutch gives. The enclosure should let it stretch out fully, stand up on its hind legs, and take several hops without meeting a wall. Indoor housing, a large pen or a room set aside for the rabbit, is generally the better option, keeping the rabbit cool and in regular contact with the household.

Setting up

• A large litter tray with paper-based litter, topped with hay.
• Heavy ceramic food and water bowls, or a large water bottle.
• A hide box roomy enough for the rabbit to turn around in.
• Chew toys and tunnels sized for a giant breed.
• Soft mats or fleece over any hard flooring to protect the feet.

Breeding a giant breed is best left to keepers with experience. The French Lop matures more slowly than smaller breeds, reaching breeding age at around 8 to 9 months, once the heavy frame has properly filled out. Pairing a doe before she is fully grown puts strain on her and risks her health.

Gestation runs about 28 to 32 days. The doe pulls together a nest from hay and her own fur shortly before giving birth. French Lop litters tend to be large, often 5 to 12 kits, in keeping with the size of the breed. A nest box scaled for the doe should go in several days ahead of the expected birth.

The doe generally nurses once or twice a day, so the kits can look neglected even while they are being fed perfectly well. Kits open their eyes at around 10 days old and start nibbling at hay and pellets by three weeks. Weaning happens at about six to eight weeks. Given the breed's size, keep a close watch on the doe's weight and condition through pregnancy and nursing, and have a rabbit-savvy vet on call in case anything goes wrong.