French Lop

The French Lop is one of the biggest rabbit breeds you'll come across. Adults typically weigh 4.5 to 6.8 kilograms, and plenty tip the scales past that. The body is solid and muscular, sitting low on short thick legs, with the long drooping ears that give every lop breed its name. Kiwi rabbit keepers often call it a gentle giant, since all that bulk comes with a steady, unflappable temperament.

The breed was developed in France during the 1800s, bred from larger meat rabbits crossed with the English Lop. The cross kept the lop ear but produced a sturdier, more compact rabbit. These days the French Lop is mostly kept as a companion animal and a show rabbit, including in show and pet circles here in New Zealand.

Because of its size, the French Lop isn't a breed for every household. It needs more room, more kai, and steadier handling than a smaller breed. In exchange, it tends to be tolerant of people and slow to spook, which suits owners after a large, hands-on house rabbit well.

Who it suits

The French Lop suits owners with room to spare who can manage a heavy animal. It's a good fit for people after a large, hands-on rabbit who can commit to daily handling and a roomy enclosure. It's less suited to small flats or households with very young tamariki, since the rabbit is heavy to lift and can be hurt by rough handling.

The French Lop's story starts in France in the mid 1800s. Breeders crossed the English Lop, already known for its extraordinarily long ears, with large Continental meat rabbits such as the Papillon (Butterfly rabbit) and other heavy stock. The goal was a rabbit that kept the lop ear but carried enough bulk for meat production.

The cross produced an animal noticeably heavier and more compact than the English Lop. Where the English Lop had been bred for extreme ear length, the French Lop ended up with shorter, thicker ears on a much bigger frame. By the late 1800s the breed was established in France and had begun turning up across Europe.

Over the 20th century the French Lop shifted from a working breed toward a show and companion animal. Its placid nature and sheer size made it a drawcard at shows and, later, a popular house pet. It reached North America in the 1970s, and New Zealand breeders have kept the line going in smaller numbers since, working mostly from established local stock rather than fresh imports, given how tightly this country controls the movement of live animals across the border.

The French Lop had a hand in later lop breeds too. Crosses with the Netherland Dwarf helped create the smaller Holland Lop, now one of the most common pet lops kept in backyards and on lifestyle blocks around the world.

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

Coat and colour

The coat is short, dense, and rollback, meaning it springs back slowly when stroked against the grain. It's easy to keep tidy compared with longer haired breeds. The French Lop comes in a wide range of colours grouped into standard categories: solid (self) colours such as black, blue, and white, agouti patterns like chestnut, shaded colours, and broken patterns that mix white with a second colour in patches.

The French Lop has a reputation as one of the most placid rabbit breeds going. It's typically calm, good natured, and affectionate, and plenty of individuals like being near their owners and put up with gentle handling without fuss. That relaxed disposition matched to such a large frame is exactly why the breed picked up the gentle giant tag.

Around family members the French Lop is usually sociable and keen to interact. It's slow to spook, which makes it steadier around household noise and activity than some smaller, twitchier breeds. Most settle around strangers once given time to get used to them. As with any rabbit, temperament varies between individuals and improves with regular, calm handling from a young age.

The French Lop can get on fine with other pets, though given its size it shouldn't be left unsupervised with dogs or cats. Two rabbits can bond as companions, but introductions need to be gradual, and both should generally be desexed to cut down on territorial behaviour. Young children should always be supervised, since the rabbit is heavy and can scratch or struggle if it feels unsafe being picked up.

Day to day care comes down to the rabbit's size. Everything from the enclosure to the litter tray to the carry cage needs to be scaled up for a 4.5 to 6.8 kilogram animal. The short coat keeps grooming simple, but the heavy body means soft, supportive surfaces and careful lifting matter a lot.

Grooming

• Brush once a week to shift loose hair, more often during seasonal moults.
• Check the lop ears regularly for wax build up, mites, or infection, since hanging ears trap moisture.
• 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 the rabbit at least three to four hours of supervised time out of its enclosure each day.
• Set up a secure, rabbit proofed area where it can hop about, stretch out, and explore.
• Offer tunnels, boxes, and safe chew toys to keep it busy and interested.

Environment

Keep the French Lop indoors or somewhere sheltered, away from heat and damp. Rabbits handle the cold far better than the heat, and a giant breed with a dense coat can overheat quickly once it gets much above 27 degrees Celsius, which does happen in parts of the country over summer. Use soft, firm flooring rather than wire, which can cause sore hocks on a heavy rabbit.

Most of a French Lop's diet should be unlimited grass hay, such as timothy or meadow hay, which keeps the gut moving and wears down the teeth. 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 the bowl or bottle often.

Treats and supplements

Use fresh herbs and small pieces 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 supplements. Keep a close eye on weight, since the French Lop is prone to putting it on, and cut back on pellets before cutting back on hay if the rabbit gains too much.

The French Lop typically lives 5 to 7 years, a bit shorter than many smaller rabbits, partly because giant breeds carry more weight on their joints and organs. With good feeding, a clean set up, 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 yearly checkups with a rabbit savvy vet.
• Vaccinate against rabbit calicivirus disease (RHDV1 and RHDV2), both established in New Zealand's wild rabbit population; ask your vet about the current schedule.
• Desex, which cuts the risk of reproductive cancers and territorial behaviour.
• Provide soft flooring to prevent sore hocks.
• Weigh the rabbit regularly to catch any gain or loss early.

Housing for a French Lop has to account for its bulk. A giant rabbit needs a lot more room than a standard pet hutch provides. The enclosure should let the rabbit stretch out fully, stand up on its back legs, and take several hops without hitting a wall. Indoor housing, such as a large pen or a dedicated rabbit room, is generally best so the rabbit stays cool and gets regular contact with the household.

Setup checklist

• A large litter tray filled with paper based litter and topped with hay.
• Heavy ceramic food and water bowls, or a large water bottle.
• A hide box big 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 giant rabbits is best left to keepers with plenty of experience. The French Lop matures more slowly than smaller breeds, reaching breeding age around 8 to 9 months, once the heavy frame has properly filled out. Pairing a doe before she's fully mature puts strain on her and risks her health.

Gestation runs about 28 to 32 days. The doe builds a nest from hay and fur shortly before giving birth. French Lop litters tend to be large, often 5 to 12 kits, because of the breed's size. A nest box scaled to the doe should go in several days before the birth is due.

The doe usually feeds the litter once or twice a day, so kits can look unattended even when they're being well fed. Kits open their eyes at around 10 days and start sampling hay and pellets by three weeks. Weaning happens at about six to eight weeks. Given the breed's size, keeping a close eye on the doe's weight and condition through pregnancy and nursing matters, and a rabbit savvy vet should be on call in case anything goes wrong.