American Chinchilla Rabbit Breeders Association

Length and Density

The coat of the American Chinchilla rabbit is one of its most defining features, both visually and to the touch.

 

Length:

The ideal fur length is 1¼ inches (about 3.2 cm). This length allows the coat to display its characteristic texture and rollback quality properly—long enough to feel plush and resilient, but not so long that it becomes wavy or loses structure.

 

Density:

The coat is very dense and resilient, with a thick undercoat that gives it a soft, but firm feel. Density means you cannot see the pink skin when blowing into the coat, you want the slate blue color all the way down into the ring. When stroked backward, the fur should “roll back” slowly and smoothly to its natural position, not snap back quickly like flyback fur. This density is what gives the breed its famous plush texture, often compared to the feel of a real chinchilla pelt.

 

Overall Impression:

A well-conditioned coat should feel full, even, and well-balanced over the entire body, without thin spots. It should have a slight “spring” when you run your hand through it, indicating healthy guard hairs supported by a rich undercoat.

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Guard Hairs

Describing the unique Am Chin guard hairs that create the surface pattern.

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Color and Rings

We are working on a good definition for fur color!​

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​Brown Surface Colors on Jr American Chinchillas

Some lines of American Chins will have a brown coloring to the kits. Sometimes it even stays until the rabbit is in its intermediate stage. It is not a DQ in young rabbits. However, it is a DQ in adults.

 

​Check out this report from Dr. Steve Roush on the wideband gene for the American Chinchilla. 

 

On the wideband gene in American Chinchilla Rabbits

By Dr. Steve Roush

Let me start with an observation most judges (well- the better ones) know but that often breeders may not. Is it “wideband” as made by the “ww” or just a “wider band?” Simply blow in the belly fur. Does it have under color? If no, then the chin is genetically wideband. If it has blue under color, then it is not wideband. Note that the standard allows for “either white or blue belly under color.” Thus, you can show either!

Breeding wideband to wideband yields 100 percent wideband. As for the non-extension gene, it should never be in an American Chin program. It eventually creates what the Europeans call Sallander, lf self. It’s like a gorgeous Tort but no brown coloration.

Some of you who may have the ww and ee genes in other breeds will get Ermines, a very light, almost white, looking rabbit with black tipping at the ends of the hair shaft. Does it clarify ring definition or crisp up the light pearl bands? IMO that varies with your strain characteristics, some gene modifiers and your preference. Won’t we all agree that “light pearl band” is really interpreted by us and the judges as “whiter is better”?

Clearly density is a huge factor in ring definition. Obviously, those rabbits starting or in a molt have poor ring definition due to the many different stages of hair growth that muddies the appearance when we blow into the coat. If you haven’t done it, go look at Rex or Mini Rex Chin coats. Their density varies significantly and correlated with that is the ring definition.

In showing your chins, be sure to listen to judges’ comments. If they don’t mention ring color, ring definition, ring under color, density and length, you are getting shortchanged. Also, to truly see ring definition, I condense the fur and then blow into it. Helps to reaffirm the definition, collects all the guard hairs to the surface and thus shows a solid black surface. It’s a good practice when evaluating your stock.

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NOTE: Dr. Roush originally shared this information on a Facebook post and offered it to us to use it in our newsletter!

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