The Chocolate Project

During the early part of 2003 after long talks with Phil Batey from Ruskin Miniature Lops  (super geneticist extraordinaire) and Sarah Cox (a lady whose genetic know how always amazes), regarding the rarity of the chocolate colour in French lops in the UK, Hampton Stud from Worcestershire, started the chocolate project.  It was an exciting but difficult project, which would ultimately create the UKs first French Lops in all things chocolate.

 It was apparent that French Lop breeders from Holland had already partly achieved this goal breeding in the chocolate colour using other lop breeds and gradually upping the size with careful selection from each litter creating a line of huge chocolate in modified steel – they were not, however, at a stage where they could freely sell their hard work to other breeders, even those from a different country.

 It was mentioned to Phil that if this ever changed and he got the opportunity to import a pure bred French lop from the Holland breeders then all would be done to help them in return.

 And so it began at a bit of a plod rather than a gallop. This was always going to be a long and slow project and it was completely understood that as with most things that are worthy of time and effort, it could not be rushed, the tortoise getting to the finish line in the end!

 Using a friends large chocolate dwarf lop buck, thanks Emily, Hampton’s bred the first litter of French lop/large dwarf lop cross kits, all of which carried a recessive chocolate colour gene.

 We picked out the largest, typiest buck and doe and mated them together to visualise the chocolate colour, we got one visual chocolate in this litter, which luckily proved to be a buck.  Once mature this lad was mated to a huge unrelated agouti doe, this was done to up the size and introduce a new gene pool – this procedure was repeated again and again, adding in new genes and size on the side of the doe each time a visual chocolate buck was used.

 During 2006 Woodland Lops and May Cottage Lops came on board and the three studs became a known as Triple Chocolate Stud, all working with one goal, to create a French Lop sized chocolate coloured rabbit to the very best of our ability and to BRC Breed Standards.  We decided that one of our priorities was to ensure the line was kept steel free, using agoutis and otters to create steel free selfs rather U.K. visual selfs which could have the chance of carrying a rogue steel gene.

 By November 2007, Triple Chocolate Stud had managed to get visual chocolates and cinnamons up to a showable French lop weight 10lb, it was time to bite the bullet and get opinions of others on some of our youngsters.

The first UK showable chocolate rabbits, one chocolate otter and one cinnamon (chocolate agouti) were taken out to meet the rabbit world and entered into the Under Five Month classes, it was an extremely exciting and nerve wracking weekend. 

 We chose two shows the first being Gloucester for the Chocolate Otter, chosen as the Judge was Hazel Elliott with Sarah Elliott on the book, it had long been believed that the Elliott’s had created the blue print with frenchies to which we and many other breeders now worked, the second show being  The Doncaster Excelsier for the cinnamon where the judge was Phil Batey,  another judge whose opinion was highly valued and would be honest and constructive.

 Both animals received extremely positive feedback, with the judges agreeing that the colours were excellent and with ear carriage, basal ridges and cobby type spot on, we just needed to up the size.   It felt like a huge pat on the back from two very well respected judges.

 Triple Chocolate Stud had done it, we had shown the UKs first chocolate otter and cinnamon in an under five French lop class and it felt truly fantastic!!

 Its now 2008, five years into the project, and by listening to genetic advise, learning and acting upon it,  we are a whisker away from our target which was originally set by Hampton’s five long years ago.

 In May 2008 another incredible event took place. Amazingly some five years after the original discussions re chocolate French lops in Holland, Phil Batey rang with information that “rocked our rabbit worlds”.

 After a certain amount of work on his part in cooperating and gaining the trust of the breeders from Holland he had been approached by a contact who was desperately searching for Chinchilla French Lops and would, in return, reciprocate with a pure bred chocolate coloured French Lop buck.  Lady Luck was certainly on our side as Woodland Lops had four Chinchillas to go and the deal was done!

 The new chocolate buck arrived in the UK, he was immediately test mated for modified steel which he proved to be, his offspring however, will all carry agouti and chocolate and these can be used back into our original lines to produce agouti bred chocolates whose kits will all be steel free.

It may seem a long way round but it is the honest way round and our fantastic self line will be guaranteed steel free which, in french lops world wide, is a very rare thing.

J

 We have since imported this chocolate butterfly buck from the same breeder in Holland and although he too is a modified steel we have the genetic know how and can use the butterfly pattern to really bring the project forward.

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And so the work continues with cinnamons, lynxes and chocolate and lilac in solid, self, otter, fox and butterfly.  We will, thanks to our new chocolate chaps, have chocolate French Lops who can truly hold their own on the show table far sooner than we originally thought possible. 

 We are now setting up other carefully selected UK breeders to take on the chocolate challenge and look forward to furnishing these select French Lop studs with breedable trios, to help start their own lines and keep the gene pool fresh.

We also hear that, following our lead, others are importing chocolate stock from the same dutch breeder, sadly some appear not to be test mating for steel, which is just sheer laziness on their part and is an absolute disgrace. 

This modified steel gene will now become as huge a problem in chocolate self and lilac self as it already is in black and blue selfs. 

We can only suggest that people who are looking to buy and breed a self chocolate line insist that the line is guaranteed steel free and if this guarantee is not forthcoming then consider buying from elsewhere.

oooOooOooo

We at Hamptons are also continuing to work on the orginal line, as Talulah is such a nice sized Lynx doe this will be the first time we can use a visual chocolate coloured doe to a pure bred french lop buck.

The projects for 2009 have started well by doing just that by mating Talulah to Sirious Black.  The litter was born on the 2nd Feb and has given us a huge typey doe shown below at four months old (otter or self carrier) who will be kept to use this coming winter. 

 We have also kept a visual steel buck called Remus who was fathered by our huge import chocolate steel buck, Remus carries agouti and chocolate and will be used to Talulah to carry on the the original Hamptons line and to improve the size and type in the cinnamons and lynx.

Watch out rabbit world in 2010, chocolates are well on the way!  :)

 Our hugs and thanks go out to Phil Batey and Sarah Cox for their support, friendship, considerable patience and for unselfishly sharing their fantastic genetic knowledge with us mere mortals!

Pic below show our under five month cinnamon and chocolate otter being judged by Phil Batey and Hazel Elliott