Rabbits are light, portable, and thrive in comparatively little space, and this makes them a gem for urban folks, families, and farmers that want an animal to love. One of the have-it-all rabbits is the Thrianta rabbit breed. This bunny is not only a reliable starter pet for bunny lovers but also farmers who benefit from their incredibly nutrient-dense manure and meat.
But if you are thinking about getting a Thrianta rabbit in the future, it would help to understand the approach to use on them. Below are some of the essential details you know about Thrianta rabbit breeds.
Quick Facts About Thrianta Rabbit Breed
| Species Name: | Oryctolagus cuniculus |
| Family: | Leporids |
| Care Level: | Intermediate |
| Temperature: | 45 – 70 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Temperament: | Docile, Friendly, inquisitive, gentle |
| Color Form: | Fiery Red-Orange |
| Lifespan: | 5 – 10 years |
| Size: | 4 – 6 lbs |
| Diet: | Alfalfa hay, timothy hay, orchard grass, oat hay, rabbit pellets, fruits, veggies, and plenty of clean water |
| Minimum Enclosure Size: | 4 – 5 times its size, generally 12 square feet |
| Habitat: | Indoors, outdoors |
| Compatibility: | Havanna Rabbit, Polish Rabbit |
Thrianta Rabbit Breed Overview
This domesticated rabbit breed traces its roots back to Holland. Mr. H. Andreae, a school teacher from the Netherlands, developed this breed to name in honor of the Netherland’s royal house, the House of Orange.
He crossbred three different kinds of domesticated rabbit breeds, Black and Tans, Havanas, and the self-colored Tortoise Pappilon, to develop a red rabbit species. He later named the new breed after where he lived, Thrianta.
Thrianta rabbit breed became a popular pet for the Dutch Royal family, making it officially recognized in the Netherlands in May 1940, days before World War II. However, it was hard to maintain due to its original hint of brown coloring amidst an orange coat. And for this reason, when World War II struck, taking a toll on the Dutch population and forcing food rationing, they didn’t hesitate to use it as a meat source.
The Second Great War almost wiped out the Thrianta rabbit breed completely. Luckily, prominent rabbit breeders preserved the few surviving Thriantas and bred them with German rabbits to preserve the strains.
An American rabbit breeder, Judith Oldenburg-Graf of Iowa, brought this new rabbit generation in the U.S. in 1996. As its popularity grew, the America Rabbit Breeder’s Association officially recognized it a decade later, in February 2006, as the 46th rabbit breed.
Decades later, after it almost seized to exist, the Thrianta continues to grow in numbers and is now a popular pet, as well as a show animal in America.
How Much Does Thrianta Rabbit Breed Cost?
If you are looking to buy a Thrianta, it would be best to get it from a reputable breeder. The good thing is, you can also get this rabbit online these days.
However, don’t be shocked by the rabbit’s price tag. A Thrianta rabbit that’s still too young or not of show-quality would go for $25-$35 as pet quality bunnies.
An adult and show-quality Thrianta bunny can easily run for $50-$75. And, you can pay more if a breeder has the bunny’s breeding records and the animal has winning grand champion limps on him.
Typical Behavior & Temperament
The Thrianta rabbits are quiet, gentle, mild-mannered, sweet, with a demeanor that makes them good companions for families with younger children and seniors alike. Although it is a small rabbit, it isn’t as fragile or easy to hurt by accident, making them manageable. They also don’t require excessive maintenance.
The Thrianta is also an active, curious, and lively breed that may require lots of play and exercise. However, it may sometimes prefer to stay in place and cuddle instead of play. And, it is much harder to potty train. But owners can hasten the training with lots of patience, time, and treats.
Appearance & Varieties
Appearance
A fully-grown Thrianta rabbit is of medium size, weighing from 4-6 pounds (1.8–2.7kgs), although most of them are usually under 5 pounds (2.3kgs). The Thrianta breeds have compact, rounded, plump, soft, and proportional physique with round hindquarters that befit their size, length, and build.
They have full, short heads that sit on short necks, with stocky, upright, and densely-furred ears that make them beautiful animals. A Thrianta’s back is streamlined with a definitive curve that starts from the ears and arch in an even line to its hip center before curving down to the tail tip.
These breeds have incredible auditory, vision, and smell senses. The big eyes set on the side of their heads offers them 360 degrees of eyesight, making them wary of danger from all angles. However, they might only have a little obstruction at their noses front.
Thrianta rabbits also have 28 teeth that never cease to grow throughout their existence. You can easily identify female Thriantas from their slight and feminine appearances that set them apart from the decidedly manly bucks.
Coat
Thrianta rabbits luck fur during birth. But as they continue to grow, the rabbit’s coat becomes short, dense with medium-length spinning fur. This fur is soft and tender to touch, giving them a cuddly appearance.
The coat does not require daily grooming, but it would be best to groom every fortnight with a slicker brush. However, it sheds heavily during the molting season and may require owners to groom it every other week to shed excess hairs and keep it healthy.
Color
The ARBA only recognizes one official color in the Thrianta strain – a striking signature fiery brown-red color. This redhead of the rabbit world has a uniform shade without visible markings though they may have a slightly lighter shade on the belly, eye circles, paws, and the tail’s underside.
The fiery color on the coat is deep into the skin, giving them the nickname “The Fire of the Fancy.” However, crossbred Thriantas have orange and crimson hues on their coats, similar to those of Irish setter dogs. Generally, Thrianta rabbits have brown eyes.
How to Take Care of Thrianta Rabbit Breed
With good care, love, food, and a good home, Thrianta rabbit species can live up to 5-8 years, with some extending as many as 10 years. So, how should you ensure a Thrianta’s well-being? Read on to find out.
Enclosure
For outdoor enclosures, owners can build the habitat from wood and wire. However, they need to raise the cages above the ground to protect the bunnies from predators. On the other hand, indoor enclosures should be made of bunny-proof wires.
It would be best for the cages to be 4-5 times the bunny’s size to give it room to play and stretch its legs as it rests. Thrianta’s cage’s overall size should be at least 12 square feet, with a 2-3feet height, high enough to allow it to stand on its hind limbs without hurting its head.
The cage’s width should be at least 2 feet and a minimum of 6 feet for the length. The enclosure can be a hutch, a small shed, or a spacious dog crate.
It would be best to use floors made of solid rabbit-friendly materials like carpet and wood. You can also use fleece fabric since it is digestible if eaten.
Since Thriantas are small rabbit breeds, they can stick their feet in openings and harm themselves. For this reason, avoid using wire flooring in their enclosures.
Bedding
Make your rabbit’s sleeping space with edible bedding. The best bedding material includes Timothy hay such as Oxbow Western Hay and Kaytee Natural Hay, natural fiber covers such as FiberCore Eco-Bedding, paper shreds, or other rabbit-friendly organic products.
Ensure that the bedding has adequate absorption capacity and is cleaned daily. Avoid harmful bedding material like straw, cardboard, wood shavings, sawdust, cedar, pine, and cat litter-any product that can ruin the rabbit’s dense coat and digestive tract.
Temperature
Both indoor and outdoor Thrianta rabbits require plenty of fresh air, sunlight, and protection from harsh climatic conditions. Thrianta rabbit breeds thrive best in a 45-70 degrees Fahrenheit environment.
Do Thrianta Rabbits Get Along with Other Pets?
Thrianta rabbits prefer having other bunnies for the company regardless of the breed. However, it’s no surprise to find them upset having them around, as these rabbits can be a bit territorial at times.
Apart from bunnies, these rabbit species can live together with cats and calm dogs with similar dispositions to those of Thriantas. But it would be best to supervise their playtimes because naughty cats and dogs can scratch or bite the bunny.
Keep in mind that Thrianta rabbits have prey instincts and can be scared to death just like other rabbits. For this reason, it would be best if you keep barking dogs and other predatory pets away from your bunny.
You might want to introduce your other pets to the bunny first before deciding to bring it home. You can take it with you if your pets will like the Thrianta and allow them to get along gradually. But if your bunny feels scared or the other pets get upset when around the new pet, it would be best not to force a relationship and keep them separate.
What to Feed Your Thrianta Rabbit
Like other rabbits, Thriantas enjoy crunchy and wet foods like carrots, hay, and dark leaf lettuce. However, their food quantities depend on factors like the rabbit’s age and weight.
Younger Thrianta rabbits require more high-quality food to facilitate their energy requirements and development. Alfalfa hay is the best option for young rabbits, thanks to its high caloric content.
However, gradually switch to timothy hay and orchard grass once the bunny clicks seven months of age. Hay has enough fiber content that helps with the rabbit’s dental well-being as well as its digestion.
Avoid overfeeding your rabbit and giving them high-sugar fruit treats as it could make them obese. Iceberg lettuces are also not a good choice because they contain excess water and little fiber – an unsuitable combination of rabbits generally.
These bunnies require most of their day-to-day diet to consist of 70% hay, 20% veggies, and 10% fruits and rabbit pellets. Offer them plenty of clean water, fruits, pellets, and veggies to provide vitamins and minerals that complete the animal’s dietary requirements.
Although they can eat grass, you should avoid grass from the yard because it could contain harmful chemicals like fertilizer, insecticides, and pesticides.
Keeping Your Thrianta Rabbits Healthy
First, ensure that your rabbit’s enclosure is clean and has suitable bedding. Clean the habitat with white vinegar or a rabbit-safe cleaning detergent every other week.
It would be best to avoid strong bathroom detergents as they could be toxic to your pet. Also, keep the bedding warm and moisture-free, as it could harm your rabbit’s coat and the dampness, could expose it to fumes that might endanger its little lungs.
Since Thrianta rabbits are simple to groom, you only need to brush occasionally. Also, only clean its coat by rubbing it with a clean damp cloth. Avoid washing it as the pet has a self-cleaning mechanism.
These bunnies are susceptible to overgrown teeth and ear mites. Therefore, owners should offer the bunnies hard foods to chew on to help with teeth shedding. Plus, it would be best to regularly check their coat and ears for flystrike and ear mites.
It is a golden rule to take your rabbits for regular vet appointments to assess their development, recommend proper feeding tricks, worm prevention, and be spayed and neutered. Take your pet out for playtime and give it nutritious foods. Most importantly, monitor it for signs of illnesses and take appropriate measures.
Breeding
Like other rabbits, the Thriantas get pregnant early in life-as early as 4 months of age. And, sexually mature bunnies stay sexually active throughout the year. Owners should know when to breed their pet rabbits because the does are only fertile for three days every month and do not have a regular heat cycle.
It would also be best to bring the doe to the back for mating and give them space for almost half an hour. You can re-introduce the pair for repeated mating, preferably 2-3 times in the same day.
However, once impregnated by the buck, the female’s gestation period lasts for 31-32 days. On average, mother rabbits give birth to about six litter sizes but can go as many as fourteen and as low as one.
The litter’s size depends on the female’s health conditions, the number of times they mated, and how many births they’ve had. Females can become pregnant again almost immediately after giving birth, meaning that you could have a litter nearly every month.
Are Thrianta Rabbits Suitable for You?
No doubt, Thrianta rabbit breeds are among the best household pets you can ever get, thanks to their sweet demeanor and gentle disposition. They are usually calm and not too playful, making them easy to handle.
Therefore, you can keep a Thrianta if you want a puffy redhead bunny to cuddle with and love. Apart from companionship, these rabbits can make good meat sources, and their feces can help to improve your garden’s soil composition.
However, the worst mistake you can make is locking up your bunny with little play, a poor diet, and little attention. These bunnies can also be cold and a bit aggressive, depending on the living conditions you subject them to.
Featured Image: Dagmar Hijmans, Shutterstock
