French Butterfly Rabbit

The ancestors of the French giant butterfly rabbit are spotted rabbits encountered for many years in various European countries, and particularly in Germany, Belgium and France. Spotted rabbits were very popular in the countryside of these countries. They were called butterfly rabbits and spectacle rabbits in France, and country rabbits in Germany. Some authors interested in the positioning of these spots during the nineteenth century, particularly at the nose level where some present a characteristic butterfly-shaped spot. This is how some precursors of the breed emerged such as the Egyptian butterfly rabbit, the Tauzac rabbit and the Japanese. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the butterfly rabbits present in French farms showed a certain lag compared to German butterflies, selected for practical purposes and having acquired a good size. Great efforts were then made to catch up, and the French butterfly and Eastern butterfly breeds were selected for their size and butchering abilities. In 1954, these two breeds were grouped under the name French giant butterfly at the behest of their clubs. Today the population is quite stable, and there are approximately 2,100 reproducers among 330 breeders.

The French giant butterfly is a large rabbit, weighing more than 6 kg in adulthood. Its body is elongated, with a slightly domed back, a rounded rump and fleshy thighs. The bone structure is average. The fur is dense with hair that is not too long. It is white in color with variable colored spots, usually black, havana or blue but all colors are accepted as long as the spots are well defined against the white coat. The spots form well-defined patterns by the standards of the breed. Thus, the spot at the nose level should have the shape of a butterfly, the area around the eyes should be encircled by an uninterrupted colored spot, which reaches neither that of the nose nor the ears, themselves colored. One observes a spot on the cheek, below the eye and a variable number of spots at the hip level. Finally, the entire dorsal stripe is colored, from the ears to the base of the tail. This rabbit has ears of good size (16 to 17 cm) which it wears in a V. The female bears a slightly prominent dewlap. The French giant butterfly is a fairly lively rabbit. Its English and dwarf counterparts differ in that the English butterfly is smaller and its flanks are spotted while the small butterfly is the dwarf version without the spot of the French butterfly.