A bit of history and how it all started

Over in Europe...

There has been a lot of speculation on how the Lionhead rabbit began. Bob Whitman,

who was a very knowledgeable rabbit history buff and enthusiast, spent many hours

researching the beginnings of this breed. He believed that the precursor of the

Lionhead dated back decades earlier than first thought. Another widely held belief

holds that they originated in Belgium in a litter of bunnies that was the result of the

crossbreeding of the Swiss Fox and a Belgian Dwarf in which a genetic mutation

produced an early version of the mane we have come to recognize on today's'

Lionhead. Other crosses to a smaller wool type breed may have also been included in

the crossbreeding. Some sources list the Jersey Wooly, although more accurately it

would be the European Dwarf Angora (in the USA we have no Dwarf Angora so the

name Jersey Wooly was added here). Later, the breed was imported into England

where continued crossbreeding of small breed rabbits and additional wool breeds

were done. These cross breedings made in Europe and in England created the current

EUROPEAN LIONHEAD RABBIT. The one thing that we know for sure is that the result of the

Lionhead, however they came about, was the first true gene mutation since the 1930's.

Here in America...

The first Lionheads that were used as a basis for any concentrated breeding programs

in the United States were imported in 2000 by the late JoAnne Statler of Minnesota. In

the following years, other breeders brought additional stock into this country. Tom

Coats of Maryland, Theresa Mueller and Cheryl Rafoth of Washington State, Toni Tubbs,

also of Washington and the late Bob Whitman of Rare Bits & Pieces in Texas also

imported Lionheads from Europe. These imports, along with hybridizations made

throughout the United States have produced the American version of the Lionhead

Rabbit as we know it today.

The five Lionheads that were first brought into Northern Minnesota were of very

different varieties: a Silver Tipped Steel doe, a dark Siamese Sable buck(carrier of the

Harlequin and Steel), a Harlequin (Black/Orange) doe, a Broken Chestnut Agouti buck

and a Black sport buck (with a Dutch blaze, a carrier of the Vienna/BEW gene). In an

attempt to broaden the gene pool, several Minnesota breeders began crossing the

Lionheads to various other small breeds such as Netherland Dwarf, Britannia Petite,

Polish, and Florida White. Holland Lops have also been used by some in the Lionhead

breeding program.

The North American Lionhead Rabbit Club was born...

The North American Lionhead Rabbit Club (NALRC) was founded on September 29th,

2001 at the Minnesota State Rabbit Breeders Association State Show held in Elk River,

Minnesota. Since then, we have grown to a club of over 400 members. The NALRC

hosts a moving National Lionhead Rabbit show in the Spring of each year. The club

publishes a quarterly Newsletter called the Mane Musings, and all new members

receive a Guidebook and membership card. Each calendar year, the NALRC sponsors

a Lionhead Sweepstakes contest.

The first NALRC National Exhibition Show was held...

The first NALRC National Lionhead Exhibition Show was held in May of 2003 in

Columbus Ohio. The show was judged by Eric Bengtson. The show had an

overwhelming entry of 204 Lionheads. At that first show, Lionheads were shown the

same way as the Netherland Dwarf breed with varieties judged first, followed by

selection of best in each group.

This type of judging was used in hopes of persuading the ARBA to revisit the question

of allowing the Lionhead Breed to enter the ARBA Standard Book as a breed shown

in groups and not varieties. When the ARBA Standards Committee met during the

2003 ARBA Convention, a formal request made by Bob Whitman to make that change

was denied.

Every year since the first show in 2003, the NALRC continues to hold an annual National

Lionhead Exhibition Show. Varieties on COD are judged individually, and all compete

for Best of Breed. Results for each annual show can be found in our show archives.

NALRC will continue to hold a national breed show in the Spring every year, but with the

recognition of the breed came the ability for ARBA chartered clubs to bid to host the

specialty in other areas of the country. Stay tuned to our website for details about the

current upcoming National show!