Bourbonnais Gray

The birthplace of the Bourbonnais gray is well known, but the conditions of its selection remain disputed. For some, this breed would result from gray rabbits that have been raised for a long time in the Bourbonnais, and which likely resulted from Flemish giants and common rabbits. These animals would have been selected by M. Chaponnaud who fixed the breed by crossing them with Norman animals. Another version of the facts indicates that M. Chaponnaud completely selected the breed by crossing Flemish giant animals with wild rabbits, before crossing the products obtained with Vienna blue rabbits. The first version remains the most likely today. The first subjects are presented in 1921 at Vichy.

The Bourbonnais gray is a medium-sized rabbit weighing between 3.5 and 5 kg. It has a fairly compact body, not too massive with a well-fleshed hindquarters. Its head is quite strong in the male, and slightly aquiline. It has two straight ears held slightly in V of 11 to 13.5 cm. A slight dewlap is tolerated in the female. The eyes are brown. The fur is short, fairly dense and well polished. It is fairly dark gray, slightly lighter underneath, with a dark slate-blue undercoat. The young are born black and the gray color appears after a few days. Points scale: