Flemish Giant

What is a Flemish Giant?

The largest domestic rabbit breed, weighing 6-10kg and reaching 75-80cm nose to tail - bigger than many terriers. Long, heavy-boned and powerfully built, with a broad head and thick upright ears that can be 20cm long.

They are a lovely animal and a serious undertaking, and the two facts have to be held together. A Flemish Giant is a commitment on the scale of a medium dog, in space and cost, with a much shorter life.

History and origins

Developed in Flanders, around Ghent, and documented from the sixteenth century. Bred for meat and fur - the size was the point. They reached Britain and America in the 1890s and became a foundation breed for most other giant rabbits. The British Rabbit Council recognises them today purely as a show and pet breed.

Appearance and size

6-10kg, occasionally more. A long body with a distinct arch from shoulder to tail, heavy bone, and a dense glossy coat. Seven recognised colours in the UK: black, blue, fawn, light grey, sandy, steel grey and white. Does have a pronounced dewlap under the chin.

Temperament and personality

Placid, patient and slow to alarm - the breed's defining quality alongside its size. Well-handled Flemish Giants are affectionate and enjoy company, and their calmness makes them one of the few rabbits that tolerate being picked up, provided the hindquarters are properly supported.

They are strong. A frightened 8kg rabbit kicking out can injure a person and can break its own spine doing it. Handling is a two-hands, close-to-the-body, low-to-the-ground job.

Intelligence and trainability

Intelligent and easily litter-trained. They learn names, routines and simple cues, and their calm makes them easier to train than a flightier small breed. They are also perfectly capable of opening an unlatched enclosure, and strong enough to move furniture doing it.

Children and other pets

Good with older children under supervision, and their tolerance is genuine. But a child cannot safely lift one, and should not try - this is a rabbit that is interacted with on the floor, not carried.

They live well with other rabbits, and a bonded pair of giants needs a proportionately enormous space. Housing costs scale with the animal, and this is where most Flemish Giant welfare goes wrong.

Health problems

Sore hocks (pododermatitis). A very heavy rabbit puts a great deal of weight on a small area. Deep soft bedding throughout is not optional.

Arthritis and spinal problems, common with age and size, and a frequent reason for early euthanasia. A giant that cannot reach its own bottom to groom cannot stay clean, which brings flystrike into it.

Cardiac disease, more common in giant breeds.

Gut stasis and dental disease as with any rabbit.

Myxomatosis, RHDV1 and RHDV2 - vaccinate. Flystrike - and check thoroughly, because a giant's size makes soiling easier to miss.

Anaesthetic risk is higher in giant breeds, which matters because rabbits need anaesthesia for routine dental work.

Daily care routine

A large amount of hay - they eat several times what a dwarf does. Water in a bowl rather than a bottle. Litter tray cleaned daily, and a full-body check including feet and bottom. Nails every six weeks and they are substantial. Weight monitored, because obesity in a giant is a fast route to hock and joint disease.

Grooming and coat care

Weekly brushing, more in a moult. Where they need help is reaching themselves: an older or arthritic giant needs its back end cleaned and checked daily.

Exercise needs

The Rabbit Welfare Association's 3m x 2m x 1m minimum is for an average rabbit. A Flemish Giant needs more - realistically a dedicated room, a converted shed with an attached run, or free run of a large secure indoor space. A commercial rabbit hutch, of any size sold in a pet shop, is not suitable for this breed. Not one of them.

Feeding and diet

85% hay, unlimited, and a lot of it - budget for a bale rather than a bag. Generous daily greens, and a measured portion of single-component pellets scaled to body weight. No muesli. Growing giants need more protein than adults; ask the breeder what they were fed and change it gradually.

Price

£80-£250 from a breeder, and rescues have them regularly. The purchase price is the least of it.

Setup is £600-£1,500 for genuinely adequate housing. Running costs are £1,200-£2,000 a year for a pair - hay and bedding volumes are several times a small rabbit's. Vet fees are higher throughout because drug doses are by weight, insurance is more, and a neuter on a giant is a bigger procedure than on a dwarf.

Buying advice

Be honest about the space before anything else. If you would not have room for a medium dog, you do not have room for this rabbit, and no amount of daily free-run time compensates for an enclosure that is too small.

Ask what the parents and kits are housed on and look at the hocks of every rabbit on the premises. Ask the adult weight of both parents - "giant" is used loosely in adverts and a 3kg rabbit advertised as a Flemish Giant is a cross.

Do not buy under eight weeks; ten is better for a giant breed. Ask for the vaccination record, and find a vet experienced with giant rabbits before you bring one home, not after.

And know going in that they are short-lived. Five to eight years is the realistic range, and people who fall in love with the breed find that the hardest part of it.