Detailed profile of this breed: origin, year of creation, recognised varieties and official approvals.
Breed summary
This label describes a set of coat colours rather than a single rabbit breed. 'Black' refers to a solid, non-diluted black coat; 'Blue' is the diluted form of black produced by the dilute gene; 'Havane' (Havana/Havanna) refers to the chocolate/brown colouring produced by the brown (chocolate) allele; 'White' may arise for different genetic reasons (true albinism, Vienna white, or white markings). These colours appear across many breeds and their exact appearance and acceptance depend on the breed standard.
Detailed origin
These colour types arise from well‑known rabbit coat genetics rather than separate racial origins. At least four major genetic loci (commonly noted A, B, C and D) plus multiple modifiers determine pigment distribution and shade. The brown/chocolate trait is associated with recessive alleles at the B locus (bb), while blue results from homozygosity for the dilute allele at the D locus (dd). White coats can be caused by recessive albinism alleles at the C locus or by spotting/white‑dominant variants such as the Vienna-type genes. Breeders historically selected and fixed these mutations in different regional strains, so the same colour names can refer to slightly different phenotypes depending on breed.
Detailed description
Visually: black is glossy and dense; blue presents as slate/steel grey due to pigment dilution; havane is a warm chocolate/brown; white can be pure white with pink/red eyes (albino) or white with pigmented eyes (Vienna or broken patterns). Genetically: two Dd parents give roughly 25% dd offspring (blue) if other loci permit; two Bb carriers produce roughly 25% bb (havane) offspring. A bb dd combination yields a lilac/very pale brown (less common). These colours do not determine size, fur length or general conformation — those are breed traits. Colour alone has limited impact on health, though the genetic mechanism producing white should be identified (albino vs Vienna) because it affects eye colour and may have breed‑specific implications.