Netherland Dwarf Care, Size and Personality

How big do Netherland Dwarfs get?

One and a half to two and a half pounds full grown, reached by about five months. Short upright ears rarely more than two inches, a flat face, a short neck and a compact rounded body. They are the smallest recognised breed and roughly a quarter the weight of a Mini Lop.

Netherland Dwarf personality and temperament

Lively, alert and genuinely interactive. They investigate everything, they binky readily, and a settled dwarf will follow you around a room. They are also the quickest of the four breeds to object to being grabbed, which is a size response rather than a character flaw. A two pound prey animal has good reason to dislike being lifted by something twenty times its size.

Are Netherland Dwarfs friendly? Yes, on their terms. Handled daily from a few days old, as ours are, they become confident and sociable. What they will not become is a rabbit that enjoys being carried around. For a young child who wants to hold a rabbit, a Holland Lop or Mini Lop is the better fit. The comparison is here.

Housing

A pen of at least 4 ft by 2 ft, indoors. The small size tempts people into small cages, which is the wrong conclusion: a dwarf is extremely active for its size and needs floor space to use. Bar spacing matters more here than in other breeds, because a young dwarf will fit through gaps you would not expect.

Temperature is the real constraint. A small body loses and gains heat fast. Anything above 80°F needs active cooling, and a draught matters more than it would to a five pound rabbit.

Handling

Sit on the floor. Do not lift to standing height, because a dwarf that kicks free from four feet up will hurt itself badly. Support the back end fully. Let it come to you and it will, and that is a much better relationship than one built on catching it.

Teeth, which need particular attention

The flat face means less room for teeth that grow continuously. Malocclusion is more common in this breed. Watch for dropped food, a wet chin, weight loss while apparently eating, or a rabbit taking pellets and refusing hay. Unlimited hay is the main defence, because sideways chewing is what wears teeth down.

Call a vet the same day if

• No food or droppings for twelve hours
• Sitting hunched, pressing the belly down
• A head tilt that was not there yesterday
• Drooling or a persistently wet chin
• Mouth breathing

A small rabbit has less reserve than a large one, so the window is shorter. Find a vet who sees rabbits regularly before you need one.

Feeding

Unlimited hay, about an eighth of a cup of plain timothy pellets a day for an adult at this size, and a handful of greens. The pellet portion is genuinely small, and overfeeding pellets is the most common mistake in dwarfs because the amount looks mean. It is not. The full feeding detail applies to every breed here.