French Lops are used by many breeders around the world as good meat rabbits. They are not as productive as pure meat breeds, but they are large and with good fresh food, may become very big. Litter size is determined by breeding lines, and diet, and can range from 5-12 kits weaned per litter.

These rabbits are not as popular as mini-lops for the pet market, but for those wanting a rabbit that sells on the pet markets, but which can provide meat for the table from culled or excess rabbits, they are a good utility breed.

• Type - meat, pet
• Size - medium large
• Production Capability - good production of meat
• Special Features - floppy ears give them a gentle appearance
• Best for Farms - good for farms wanting pet and meat production.
• Egg, Milk, Meat Features - typical
• Other Products - not applicable
• Historic or Contemporary Significance - well established breed in US
• Housing and Space Requirement - Lops do best with room to move around. They like a large hutch, but it does not need to be as high as for large rabbits with upright ears.
• Regional Adaptations - adaptable, but do not handle heat well, need air circulation or cold pack in hot weather
• Feed Requirement - typical, though a plentiful fresh diet improves fertility
• Other Considerations - French Lops can continue to grow slowly for years when they are fed a fresh diet. Cages or hutches may need to be enlarged or reinforced if they grow very large.

SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT RABBITS:

There are a gazillion rabbit breeds. We don't have all the good meat rabbits listed here (if we missed a particularly good one, let us know, it does not have to be endangered).

Rabbits produce a lot of young, so they are subject to fairly lax endangerment standards. They are not considered endangered until there are very VERY few left - the numbers are much lower than for many other species.

This means that some breeds NOT considered endangered may still be very difficult to obtain. It also means that by the time they ARE endangered, they may be IMPOSSIBLE to obtain. But many are still available unregistered, even when considered endangered. It is confusing.

If it is practically impossible to obtain the animals, we have not listed them. If they have genetic problems, are difficult to breed to a fussy standard that is irrelevant to utility, we have also not included them as a rule.