German Angora Rabbits

German Angora Rabbits: This is the commercial breed with all that amazing angora wool. This is the angora breed that is easy to keep mat-free. Find tips on shearing and spinning angora fiber below.

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German Angoras are English Angoras that have been selectively bred in Germany over the last 80 years with a focus on quality and quantity of wool. The German standard recognizes animals suitable for supplying the needs of a growing international commercial wool market.

This breed is not recognized by the ARBA, but no matter. Being quite popular in the USA and Canada, a separate American accrediting organization was created, the International Association of German Angora Rabbit Breeders (IAGARB).

The IAGARB utilizes a German Angora standard modeled after the German standard, which heavily favors the animal's wool production and quality of that wool:

• Weight -- up to 20 points
• Body Type -- up to 20 points
• Wool Density and Length -- up to 15 points
• Wool Uniformity -- up to 15 points
• Wool Texture -- up to 15 points
• Furnishings -- up to 10 points
• Condition -- up to 5 points

German Angora Rabbits weigh 2.0 - 5.5 kg (4.4 - 12 lb), with preference given to the larger animal. They come in REW most frequently, however solid colors (not brokens) have been accepted recently into the IAGARB standard.

In order to register an animal with IAGARB, the German Angora must not only meet the standard for type, it must also pass 90 day wool production and quality tests. In Germany, the State has set up Angora Wool Stations, and these perform objective testing of German Angora wool quantity and quality.

Without a doubt, the 90 day wooling tests have led to animals that produce way more wool than any of the other Angora breeds...

• In 1920, angoras could produce 200 grams of wool a year.
• By 1963, German Angoras were surpassing 1000 gm/year.
• By 1999, the 2000 gm/yr mark had been passed, again by German Angoras.

Another improvement:
In 1920, breeders had to comb out the wool every day in order to keep the rabbit mat-free.

Today, according to Walter Drecktrah of Sulingen, Germany, "Any [German] Angora leaning toward matting is removed from the breeding program. Combing or brushing the animals between shearing is unheard of."

That is how German Angora breeders discovered and retained the non-molt gene.

Interestingly, English breeders have recently discovered individual English angora rabbits with the same trait - see English Angora Rabbit.

German Angora Wool

The undercoat is heavy, finely crimped, silky, and needs to be suitably long.The awn fluff are intermediate fibers, longer than the undercoat, a bit crimped and always with a curved tip. The tip will curve itself even after shearing.The awn hair is also known as guard hair. It is stronger and straight, extending beyond the lengths of the other fibers.

A good balance between these three fibers will result in correct wool texture.

Furnishings are present, but not excessively. German angoras should not be ‘wool blind.’ Expect to find more furnishings on bucks than on does.

German angoras require shearing at 4 months, or matting does occur. This is because the wool, while it doesn't fully molt, does slip a bit, and this is what seems to create the mats.

Despite the rigorous testing, weighing and measuring of German Angora wool by the IAGARB, some German angora guard hair fibers are quite coarse, measuring as high as 21-30 microns. This is as compared to merino wool, with an acceptable "high" of just 26 microns. Too high a coarseness may result in itchiness. The coarser fiber of the German angora may contribute to its heavier weight.

What this means:
Breeders of German angora rabbits can improve their breed by...

• Continuing the process of selectively breeding for non-molting rabbits
• In non-molting rabbits, breeding for quality of fiber (not too coarse)
• Don't pursue total fiber weight to the detriment of the breed as a whole.

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Shearing and Spinning German Angora Fiber

Mother Marion Spinning Wheel Demo:

For step-by-step instructions on spinning with a Drop Spindle:
http://eweporium.webs.com/howtospinstepbystep.htm

References:
http://eweporium.webs.com/howtospinstepbystep.htm
www.germanangora.net
http://www.iagarb.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angora_rabbit
Domestic Rabbits and Their Histories, by Bob D. Whitman

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