This young lady with ears galore is Minzi, also known as Adelheid von Burgundy. She’s a new resident of Julia Wheale’s horse farm in Velten, Germany. She’s only three months old, and she’s already a pretty sizable gal. She’ll likely get bigger. This breed of rabbit doesn’t stop growing until at least 12 months old.
Minzi is a Continental Giant rabbit, also known as a German Giant. This breed is thought to be a descendant of the Flemish Giant rabbit, the largest domestic rabbits in the world. Continental Giants are not universally recognized as a breed distinct from Flemish Giants, but in any event, they grow to impressive size. Continental Giants grow to 16-20 pounds on average, but some can grow larger, weighing over 40 pounds and exceeding four feet long.
The current Guinness World Record holder of biggest rabbit is a Continental Giant named Darius, who measured four feet, three inches long and weighed almost 50 pounds. We don’t know if Darius is still with us, as he was rabbit-napped in 2021 and there have been no sightings since. Similar tragedy struck Darius’ son Simon, on track to grow even larger, who mysteriously died in 2017 on board a United Airlines flight at the age of ten months old.
Flemish Giants, Continental Giants and other large breeds of rabbits were selectively bred for size for their meat and fur. But modern pet owners are finding that large rabbits make great companions, provided their needs are met. They generally have a more easy-going personality than smaller breeds, provided they are well socialized and properly trained. Adequate space must be provided: a standard rabbit cage won’t be comfortable for an animal over four feet long. And they need exercise room to run around to stay fit and healthy, as well as plenty of enrichment items like toys to keep them engaged and happy. Of course, a big animal is going to eat a lot more too, so budget for those extra helpings of rabbit pellets and veggies. Ralph, the Guinness record holder prior to Darius, regularly ate between 60 and 90 dollars worth of food weekly. His daily intake included cabbage, broccoli, half a cucumber, corn on the cob, two apples, half a bag of watercress, water crackers and two slices of brown bread.
The source for today’s gif is here.
Oxbow Animal Health: “Essential Guide to the Top 13 Largest Rabbit Breeds,” 2/26/24
BBC: “‘World’s biggest rabbit’ stolen from owner’s garden,” 4/12/21
Guinness World Records: Longest rabbit living
USA Today: “Giant rabbits apparently make great pets” by Mary Bowerman, 4/26/17
Fiction has not been kind to Rabbits Of Unusual Size...
𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘳𝘺 𝘙𝘢𝘣𝘣𝘪𝘵 by Australian author Russell Braddon is a campy, humor- horror science fiction novel featuring the Bludgerton Rabbits, giant from radiation exposure
movie version was released in 1972 titled Night of the Lepus – a straight monster movie take without charm or humor...
I am not sure how anyone can look at any bunny, much less Continental Giant rabbits and think, "There's a horror movie in this!"
I know giant rabbits exist but I am still amazed when I see footage of them. Imagine how different Peter Rabbit would have been if he and his siblings had been giants. Mr. McGregor would have had a hard time protecting his garden from such rabbits. Thanks, Martini, for the giant bunbun. All kinds of squee going on there.