Why do some Californians show lighter color on their ears, feet, nose, and tail than others?
The color markings of Californian rabbits is temperature dependent. You may note that bunnies born in the winter will have darker color than those born in the heat of summer. This darker color may fade during the summer and will not be permanent. All of your adults will eventually have approximately the same degree of color. I have observed Californian rabbits brought up to South Carolina from Florida during the spring of the year have marked less depth of color – even gray. Conversely, rabbits born and raised in the depths of a cold winter tend to have even, dark black on their points – beautiful. Watch out though, summer comes and if you live where the summer heat poses a problem you will see that beautiful point color fade with each molt. Californians with clearly defined white areas within the typically colored areas will may need to be culled as that may indicate a cross breed in the animal’s genetic history. This is called a tan pattern and often shows up on the underside of the
