Perception is so important in many facets of life. Subjective matters often take on a certain personality of their own because of such perceptions. Judging is one of those matters. A judges perception of a breed can affect how that breed is judged even though it may be inconsistent with the breed standard. I like to see a judge take out the standard of perfection and review whats written about the breed. This can help eliminate some of the misconceptions that could be developed about a breed. That brings us to jersey woolies and netherland dwarfs.
I have heard this comment from judges and exhibitors on more than one occasion. “A jersey wooly is just a netherland dwarf with wool.” This could not be further from the truth. The ARBA Standard of Perfection clearly distinguishes between the two. However it is not uncommon to see jersey woolies be judged in this manner. Nor is it uncommon to see breeders try to achieve the netherland dwarf “look”.
The most important place to start is with body type. There are many similarities in body type between the two breeds. For example both breeds are to be short and compact. Additionally the standard for both breeds indicates that the shoulders and hindquarters should be of equal width. The key difference in body type is the topline.
The jersey wooly is to have a rise from just behind the ears to the high point over the loin. The netherland dwarf has no rise. If the rise is present as indicated in the standard, the animal will pose substantially different from a netherland dwarf. A quick review of the pictures in the Standard of Perfection will show the difference.
The ARBA Standard makes an interesting statement, that the rabbit should be posed naturally. However, you will often see a judge or exhibitor push down the head of a jersey wooly looking for that rise. If the rabbit had the rise and body type, the pushing down of the head into an unnatural position would not be necessary. This becomes particularly difficult with rabbits with longer front legs and no rise. In that case the rabbit is more likely to pose like a brit rather than a jersey.
A closer look at the standard for the head will also illuminate a difference between the breeds. The netherland dwarf’s head should be round when viewed from any angle. The easiest way to think of it may be a baseball sitting on the shoulders. The jersey woolies head is not equally round throughout. It is suppose to be wide and short. More oval in shape than round.
The ears of a jersey wolly and netherland dwarf are very similar except in size. The ideal length for a netherland is 2″ with a disqualification for being over 2.5″. The ears of the jersey wooly are ideally to be 2.5″. Jersey woolies are disqualified if ears are longer than 3″. That’s a 1/2″ difference between the breeds. However, this would be proportionate for both breeds when considering overall size.
If you want to compare the jersey wooly to a breed, the breed might be the English Angora, and that is without even considering the wool. Their overall body type, head and ears are much more similar to jersey wooly than the Netherland Dwarf.
Many experienced breeders have introduced the netherland dwarf back into their herds. They have improved the overall shoulder width in their herd, as well as other areas of type, further improving the breed overall. For those with established lines, this can often be carefully done without large negative impacts on other areas of the animals type. Breeders without well established lines, should be cautious about such breedings. In improving in one area you may actual hurt your herd in other areas.
Next time someone says a jersey wooly is a netherland dwarf with wool, you might ask them what makes them think that is the case. Then you can refer to the Standard of Perfection and show them just how different the two breeds really are.
Rob Usakowski
Three Little Ladies Rabbitry