24 MAMMALS 



The Silver Gray is really a bluish-black rabbit, evenly 

 ticked throughout with white hairs. The wavy ticking so 

 much sought for by breeders of Belgian Hares and Flemish 

 Giants is anathema in a Silver. Young Silver Grays are 

 black in the first coat, the silvering appearing later on. 



The Silver Fawn has the ground color orange, with white 

 hairs evenly dispersed throughout. This is a really beau- 

 tiful animal and well worth cultivation. 



The Silver Brown, said to be the result of a Silver Fawn- 

 Belgian Hare cross, is rather more complicated. The body 

 shade is chestnut which, when blown up, discloses a bluish 

 undercolor. Over this chestnut ground both black and 

 white hairs are evenly scattered, producing both silvering 

 and ticking. The Silver Brown is difficult to breed to per- 

 fection, and is perhaps less handsome than its congeners. 



Black-and-Tan and Blue-and-Tan Rabbits are of the 

 same ground shape as the Silvers, with cobby bodies, neat 

 ears and short coats. In size they are even smaller, seldom 

 exceeding three or four pounds weight. 



The ground color is blue or black according to the variety. 

 In either case the tan markings are the same. It is most 

 interesting to note that the distribution of tan is much the 

 same in dogs, mice and rabbits. In the latter species there 

 is a triangle at the base of the neck, and the underparts, 

 chest and throat are solid tan. There is a ring around 

 each eye, a line along the jaw, a touch on the nostrils 

 and edgings on the ears. The front feet are tanned on 

 the toes only, but the hind feet have this color on the inside 

 as well. 



The Polish is the smallest of rabbit breeds. In body it 

 is short and cobby, with small, narrow ears. The eyes 

 are large and prominent. The coat is very short and 

 smooth, requiring much grooming to keep it in condition. 



As bred in America and in England, the Polish Rabbit is 



