Ah, rabbits...one of the best pets you could ever have. With their little cottontails, pansy-like faces, ears that flop around as they hop, and their twitchy little noses--how could any child ever resist the temptation--especially with an Angora Rabbit?
Angora's tend to get lots of attention wherever they go from young and old alike, This is because Angora's don't even look like they could be a living thing. They instead look like something you snuggle with when you are put to bed--a stuffed animal.
This is why children are so attracted to them. They often see one at the fair and will ask their parents to buy them one. Parents, who want to please their child, may buy them one. The child may have fun with her pet for a couple of weeks...then, she realizes that the rabbit is a lot more work than cut out for her.
Before people purchase an Angora, they should do lots of backup and research about the animal before going straight to a breeder and buying one. Before I bought my first Angora, Ruby in 2013, I did lots of research abou the breed--and realized I had a heck of a lot of work to do. However, we love eachother very much and she has not died of any complications. She is a happy, healthy rabbit that is a sweet as cake.
However, I still do not sell my rabbits as pets. If I was breeding a different kind of bunny such as Holland Lops or Dutch Rabbits, then I would be selling those as pets. HOWEVER, since I raise Angora rabbits, selling them off as just pets for small children does not work out so well. The reason? It's because Angora's take a lot more work than most rabbit breeds. A lot of work and patience, both things are something children don't want to do or have.
This, however, is just the beginning of it. It wasn't until I recently talked to the Satin Angora breeder I bought my rabbits from, Shannon Shanks. It was then did I know what horrifying tales could come from giving a rabbit away as a pet.
"There is a reason I don't sell my rabbits as pets anymore," she said. "It's because I have given rabbits to people who knew nothing about the breed, and that result in them giving the rabbit back to me."
She then started to tell me horrific stories about why she no longer sold Angora's as pets.
"There have been instances of when I've given a rabbit away to a person who wanted it just as a pet. The result was the rabbit never being brushed. The neglect on its fur was so bad all the fur on the bunny knotted up into one big mat, and it was so painful for the rabbit it couldn't walk. I ended up taking the rabbit back and having to put it down."
After she told me a couple others that were just as horrible, if not worse, She then said to me "No matter how many people call asking to buy rabbits for their children as pets, I now turn them down. No matter how many times they curse or swear at me, I still always turn them down."
The other reason I don't sell Angora rabbits for a special occasion other than illness or for pets is for Easter Bunnies.
If you do not know what those are, let me explain. In some families, parents will buy their child a real rabbit on Easter for the child to enjoy. The child may have fun with the rabbit for a while, but then after maybe less than a year, most Easter bunnies are taken to a shelter...which is a place I do NOT want my rabbits to be heading.
I decided then that I, as an Angora Rabbit breeder, would only sell to the following:
Fiber Artists, People who are Interested in the Breed/have done research, Show Homes, Wool Homes, Other Breeders, and 4-H kids.
These are the type of people who I want to be selling to. I don't expect all the people I sell to to have experience with the breed, but I want to sell to a person who has studied the breed and can show me that they are, very interested.
I'm not saying that they don't make good pets. I treat my breeding rabbits like pets all the time, but what I'm saying is that there also needs to be another reason why you want to have this breed other than just being "cute and fluffy." My reason is that, well, obviously breeding and showing. I only sell to those that have a good reason for wanting this breed.
I wrote this article to those who were probably wondering why the heck I was not selling these things as pets and Easter bunnies.