FRENCH ANGORAS - HISTORY AND CARE
I LOVE French Angoras over all other Angora breeds! They are much less work than an English Angora to groom. They have many more guard hairs (the English have very cottony coats that mat very easily, nearly impossible to keep up with), little or no facial hair, and less hair on their feet.
French Angora tort (left) vs English Angora tort (right)
The French is probably the nearest in type to the original angora rabbits, all other breeds coming from it. France was certainly the first European country to widely raise Angora rabbits for their wool. The story goes that French sailors brought these longhaired rabbits back from Ankara (Angora) Turkey in 1723. The first wooled rabbit found in an American standards book was the “Angora Wooler,” which was split into the English and French breeds in 1944.
The French Angora may show small tufts on the tips of the ears, but generally the ears, face, and lower legs are free of wool. In fact, heavy furnishings on the face and wool below the ankle (front feet) or hock (back feet) are disqualifications. These DQ’s help keep the angora breeds separate, discouraging the practice of crossbreeding any wooled bunnies that are available then showing the offspring as whichever breed they most resemble. The wool of the French Angora is characterized by a high quantity of guard hairs – the straight, strong hairs that protect the softer underwool. This gives the wool its coarse texture as compared to the English Angora, which should also have guard hairs but fewer of them. A coarse texture makes French Angora wool easier to groom, but frequent brushing and/or blowing is still necessary to keep a coat in good condition. The French has commercial body type and is the only Angora breed (currently) to recognized broken pattern colors.
Website credit: http://rabbitbreeders.us/french-angora-rabbits
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